20554

 

II*  

Designated  

19/10/1998  

19/10/1998  

Prichard Jones Institute  

 

Isle of Anglesey  

Rhosyr  

 

Newborough  

242518  

365804  

NW  

Set back from the NW side of Pen-dref Street, within grounds also housing 6 cottage homes built to front of the Institute, c650m NE of the Church of St Peter in Newborough.  

Recreational  

 

Built 1905, and officially opened on June 30th by Sir Richard Williams Bulkeley Bart. Lord Lieutenant of Anglesey; a plaque in the hallway reads: "This building was erected and endowed by John Prichard Jones, a native of this Parish, and presented as a free gift forever on June 30th 1905 to the people of Newborough for their use and for the use of the people of adjoining parishes, together with the cottage homes which are for the benefit of the inhabitants of Newborough alone. Architect Rowland Lloyd Jones, Caernarvon. Builder Hugh Hughes, Newborough" (the institute was furnished by North of England Furnishing Company, Darlington). The institute and cottage homes were erected at a cost of £20,000; the donor, John Prichard Jones, began working as an apprentice in the retail trade in Caernarfon and eventually became Managing Director of Dickens and Jones in Regent Street, London. He also financed the building of Prichard Jones Hall at the University of Wales, Bangor, for which he received a knighthood. The cottages were built to provide homes for pensioners of Newborough and the institute building itself housed a library, public hall, coffee room, smoking room and 'other offices' for the use of the cottage residents, and the inhabitants of Newborough and surrounding district.  

Flamboyant Neo-Tudor style Institute building; asymmetrically planned, 2-storey with attics, based loosely on a hall and cross-wing principal, with short central range of 2-bays, and shorter 2-storey range set back to right end of main building (the caretaker's house). Entrance to left in central block, clock tower to its right. Elevations are faced with local granite rubble to lower part, half-timbered above, with Ruabon stone dressings throughout. Slate roof with shaped, rectangular, red-brick stacks with moulded caps; caretaker's house to right has decorated terracotta ridge tiles. Main entrance is through a depressed pointed arch with chamfered jambs; arch is decorated with beading in the angle, hoodmould above and recesses in the spandrels. Above the arch is a plain entablature broken by a moulded string and with continuous moulded string above which forms the first floor sill band. Directly over the entrance there is a first floor paired casement window with sandstone lintel; each window is of 3 lights, 2 side-hung casements with a top-hung casement over. Right of the entrance is a clock tower; 3 stages with the clock stage above. Ground floor with hipped-roofed adanced block to front lit by single quatrefoil light in front face, first floor with similarly detailed windows to those above the entrance, 2nd floor with narrow lights; each stage is articulated by moulded sill bands, the 2nd floor with an ashlar band under the dentilled cornice; clock stage above. Clock stage has 4 faces each with advanced central panel, front with clock face, flanking panels are fluted with moulded plinth and cornice. Moulded dentilled cornice, then cupola above with tall finial. Advanced 3-storey wing to right has ground floor transomed and mullioned windows of 4 lights, lower lights with 2-panes, smaller upper lights small paned. Entablature and mullioned windows of 3-lights above, similarly detailed to those above the entrance. Second floor with plain sill band and canted oriel window of 3-lights (as ground floor); jettied gable apex. Advanced wing to left has slightly advanced 2-storey bay window; ground floor with transomed and mullioned windows of 5-lights (as for right wing), similarly detailed entablature above; 1st floor also with transomed and mullioned windows of 5-lights, lower lights 2-pane, upper lights with rounded heads. Two-storey wing set back at right end (caretakers house) has panelled door to left and windows similarly detailed to those over the main entrance. Other elevations also have similar windows.  

Entrance is through half-glazed doorway with flanking half-glazed panels and rectangular fanlights with margin panes above; windows with floriate Art Nouveau designs. Central hallway beyond contains dog-leg staircase with moulded rail on turned balusters; battered newel post with fluted sides, top panels decorated with carved flower set under a moulded cap. The hallway contains a brass plaque giving details of the history of the institute; panelled doors lead into ground floor rooms, hall and nursery to right, library and reading room to left. The library and reading room are the most richly decorated rooms, divided by a glazed partition of Art Nouveau style floriate design glasswork. The library contains original shelving, reading desks and rounded cupboards and also houses the original library booking system behind the counter; the reading room has an ornate floriate tiled fireplace and both rooms have decorative plaster coving. Other rooms in the institute also contain tiled fireplaces, the ground floor hall has one decorated with floriate designs, other fireplaces are plainer; and other rooms also contain moulded coving, again of plainer design that that found in the library and reading room.  

Listed as an exceptional example of an early C20 public institution which forms part of a remarkable endowment at Newborough. The Institute forms the centrepiece of a group including 6 cottage homes designed in a flamboyant Neo-Tudor style, and is a prominent feature of the village. It retains its original character, including a well-preserved interior with library.