10979

1  

II  

Designated  

26/02/1981  

18/06/2004  

White Hall Hotel  

1 High Street  

Carmarthenshire  

Llandovery  

 

High Street  

276827  

234346  

E  

Situated set back on junction of Castle Street and High Street.  

Commercial  

 

Inn of C17 origins altered in C18 and C19, a date of 1650 said to have been found on roof truss. An ancient site on medieval castle approach probably built up in C16. A complex building F-shaped in plan with the oldest range at right angles to the High Street with 2 wings built out across the end of Castle Street. Owned from the C17 to later C19 by the Gwynne family of Glanbran, the building named in a will of 1675. It may have been the Lamb Inn kept by T Price, mercer, in the later C18. In 1811 it appears that White Hall was the name of the house but the inn was called the Old Lamb kept by Thomas Morgan, butcher. His son Morgan Morgans, surgeon, occupied it as a private house in 1817-37 and the house became the Glanbran Arms inn, reverting to the name White Hall by 1844. A 1909 photo shows that the doors in both ranges have changed, the W facing older range had a window in the left bay where the door is now and the door paired with a window where the pair of windows to the right are now. In the N facing range the door was in the left bay and a window in the centre, these positions now exchanged.  

Inn, C17 to C19, with original range running N-S at right angles to street, C18 wing on W side, stair wing on rear E side and outbuilding on W side behind and parallel to C18 wing. Two storeys with steep slate close-eaved roofs. The long N-S spine range has a whitewashed square rendered chimney at join with first W wing and a square stone stack further back and a short end stack at gable end to No 2 Castle Street. W end stack to W wing. L-plan front to street facing over cobbled courtyard, patterns of 4-slate diamonds to each front roof elevation. Lined painted stucco fronts, main range facing W, and the W wing facing N both with C19 horned 4-pane sashes with painted sills. Raised plinths. Main range of 3 bays: low, wide front door to left, sashes to middle and right hand bays on both floors but ground floor right has pair of smaller sashes. W wing has regular 3-bay front with central board door, chamfered ground floor corner to Castle Street. Windowless right end wall hand return, with curved groundfloor angles, the lower part in whitewashed old brick, probably C18, with marks of blocked windows, rubble stone in gable. The rear, backing onto small 3-sided courtyard also has brick below rubble stone, with one sash, to ground floor right. At right angles is continuation of main range, whitewashed rubble with one window above a broad cambered-headed cart-entry with stone voussoirs, infilled with window and door. Small inserted window to left, and in angle to right flight of stone steps to a loft door. Whitewashed rubble outbuilding wing at right angles has 2 altered openings facing N into courtyard, loft opening in gable end and 2 inserted double coach-house doors on S side, with brick jambs and pier between. The rear of main range is whitewashed rubble, and has a crosswing to right, to left of the first ridge stack and parallel to rear of Alma House, probably a stair tower, with door to ground floor right, square window to first floor and casement pair to attic. Window each floor to S side. Rest of main range has lower eaves: square window over lean-to to right, then window over door and window under long oak lintel, then narrow first floor light just right of second ridge stack. Door to left in final section.  

Ground floor bar at N end of main range has 5 C17 ovolo-moulded beams with a bead mould above the ovolo. One beam each end and 3 to ceiling, small fireplace at upper end with oak lintel, remnant of Tudor-arched moulding. Large oak beam to lower end fireplace, on inserted brick jambs. Room at right angles has plain rough beams, possibly C18. Interior needs further investigation. The outbuilding at SW has 3 pegged C18 tie-beam-and-collar trusses.  

Included as a substantial inn, largely C17 in overall form, and good C19 external detail. Probably one the of oldest surviving domestic buildings in the town.