A look at Watford's architectural heritage

The Locally Listed Buildings Register provides information on several hundred buildings that include Watford Grammar School for Girls, Watford Central Library, alongside Edwardian horse troughs and World War Two pillboxes.

Changes to the list, which provides protection for those buildings on it against adverse exterior development, have been proposed and these will be open to public consultation until Tuesday, October 12, before the final document is produced.

Here Nostalgia explores the history behind some of Watford’s most well-known landmarks, and some more unusual places worthy of special attention.

The tomb of Bailey Smith, pictured above, lies in the churchyard of St Mary’s, in the High Street. Decorated with an ornamental granite scroll, which carries a carved inscription, it is described as an “excellent example of an ornately detailed memorial scroll”.

The tomb was built in the mid-19th Century as a memorial to Bailey Smith Esquire and his wife Elizabeth, who were listed under “gentry” in the street directories in the preceding decades.

A local family, whose income came from ‘independent means’, the scale of the memorial suggests they were wealthy, although it is unclear how significant they were within Watford. Elsewhere in Watford, Mary Bailey Smith paid for the building of a terrace of almshouses at Watford Fields, which are also Locally The memorial inscription reads: “Sacred to the memory of Bailey Smith ESQre who departed this life June 6th 1850, aged 67. Also to Elizabeth, his widow, who departed this life July 31 1878, in the 84th year of her age. Also to Mary Smith, elder daughter of the above, who died October 20, 1894, aged 72.”

The former Cottage Hospital, at 45-47 Vicarage Road, is believed to be Watford's first hospital.

Built in 1885, the single storey building is said to be an “excellent example of a Victorian cottage hospital”, designed by Charles Ayres.

The construction was financed by public conscription and opened in 1886 by Lady Clarendon.

It was then extended in 1897 and 1903 to provide more beds, before it was replaced as a general hospital by the Peace Memorial Hospital in 1925. Since then, it was used for a number of medical uses, such as a geriatric hospital and day centre, but has now been converted to offices.

Standing out from the crowd is 96 Estcourt Road, thanks to its ornate brick detailing and bright blue sign, which makes it “one of the finest examples of Victorian terraced architecture in the town”. Constructed in about 1870, it contains builder’’s offices, a yard and outbuildings while the company that owned the property – Clifford and Gough – were one of the most “prolific” developers in Watford.

One of the central features of the High Street scene, The One Bell public house has the oldest alcohol licence in the town, which dates back to the 17th Century.

The building itself was designed by local architect Charles Ayres and features three prominent chimney stacks.

While the southern part of the building dates from the late 19th Century, the northern section is older and is believed to have been constructed in the 18th Century.

King Street is home to a former police station that was later converted into a pub.

The L-shaped, three story brick building at numbers 7-9 was designed by County Surveyor Urban A Smith, who also designed the nearby Newton Price Centre in Grosvenor Road, and built in 1888.

It opened in January 1889 as the town’s first purpose-built police station and continued in this role until it closed in 1940.

Then in 1962 it became a pub named The Robert Peel, named after the founder of the Metropolitan Police. The building was recently saved from demolition and will now form part of a new shopping and restaurant development on the corner of King Street and High Street.

What is now a bingo hall at 19-21 King Street is Watford’s first large cinema, which was built in 1913. Described as an “attractive Art Deco style building”, it was designed by the London-based architects Norfolk and Prior. However, it was refaced as part of a renovation during the 1930s by architect George Coles. As a cinema, the building played an important part in the development of Watford's leisure facilities. It opened as The Central Hall Cinema on December 17, 1919, but later became The Regal in 1929 and The Essoldo in 1956. It closed as a cinema in 1968.

When a pub called the Jolly Sawyers was demolished in 1854, the building currently found at 61 Church Road was built in its place. The detached, two-storey house is now considered to be a “fine example of the type of substantial Victorian villa that historically dominated this part of Watford”.

It was originally known as Cassiobury Cottage, but by 1890, the name had changed to St Huberts.

Despite not being the original building on this site, it still remains one of the oldest in this part of the town.

With thanks to Watford Borough Council. The full document is available to download at www.watford.gov.uk or view a paper copy at Watford Town Hall and Central and North Watford libraries.