Description

YORK

SE6051NW KING'S STAITH
1112-1/28/524 (North East side)
14/06/54 No.9
Cumberland House

GV I

Town house, now offices. c1710, remodelled later and extended
in C19; restored c1950. For William Cornwall, Sheriff 1700,
Lord Mayor 1712, 1725.
MATERIALS: basement of magnesian limestone, upper floors of
orange-red brick in Flemish bond; ground floor of Cumberland
Street front stuccoed and lined to resemble ashlar; raised and
chamfered quoins and dressings of ashlar; timber eaves
cornice; hipped roof of tile with segment-gabled dormers and
brick stacks.
EXTERIOR: entrance in Cumberland Street, which has 2 storeys
on moulded basement plinth, and 4 windows. Basement opening
with shouldered head and keyed tripartite lintel breaks plinth
at left end: to right of door, shuttered opening in plain
surround with flat lintel. Doorcase towards at right of centre
has sunk panel pilasters beneath open segmental pediment on
enriched bulbous consoles, and panelled double doors with tall
overlight in eared bolection-moulded architrave. Ground and
first floor windows are 18-pane sashes with moulded stone
sills, those on ground floor with incised wedge lintels, on
first floor with flat arches of gauged brick. Raised first
floor band, lower arris chamfered, and plain eaves frieze.
King's Staith front: basement, 2 storeys and attic; 5-bays.
Basement has wide doorway with shouldered lintel, between iron
grilled openings in raised round-arched surrounds with
keyblocks and imposts. All upper floor windows are 18-pane
sashes with moulded stone sills, some renewed: all except
centre windows have flat arches of gauged brick. Centre
windows have prominent architraves, that on first floor over
an apron. Moulded first floor cornice, and oversailing eaves
cornice on bold modillions over moulded frieze, both returned
at right end. Rear largely obscured by adjacent buildings.
First floor windows to rear of right wing are 18-pane sashes.
Attic windows are 3-light Yorkshire sashes in altered
elliptical arched openings. Gabled eaves have 3-course brick
bands.
INTERIOR: ground floor: stone stairs rise from front door,
beneath partitioned ceiling with moulded cornices. At the
stair head, two keyed round arches on sunk panel pilasters
with moulded imposts and panelled soffits and spandrels: right
arch blocked by window, the left closed by glazed door.
Entrance hall has bolection-moulded fireplace with duck-nest
grate and chimneybreast cupboard with 3-panel door on
H-hinges. 4-panel door in hollow moulded architrave leads to
small front room, and keyed round arch on fluted Doric

pilasters with panelled soffit and spandrels leads to
stairhall. Small front room lined with bolection-moulded
panelling between panelled pilasters carrying moulded cornice:
similarly moulded fireplace with hobgrate and panelled
overmantel, between by 4-panel doors. Large front room fitted
with bolection-moulded panelling and moulded cornice: similar
fireplace with cornice shelf between foliate volutes and
round-headed overmantel panel, between by semi-domed alcoves
framed in keyed round arches on sunk panel pilasters.
Stairhall doorcases are round-arched with round-headed
12-panel doors. Cantilevered staircase with panelled treads,
three balusters, alternately fluted, twisted and turned, to
each tread, and moulded handrail, ramped up to fluted column
newels, swept at foot on moulded curtail step. Matching dado
panelling to stair well. Staircase window is radial-glazed
with small pane sashes framed in a round arch on corbelled
fluted pilasters.
First floor: landing doorcases are keyed round arches on sunk
panel pilasters. Ceiling, above coved acanthus leaf cornice,
is panelled in plaster. Main rooms have moulded cornices, and
two retain bolection- moulded fireplaces; third fireplace
survives in right end room on Cumberland Street side. Room at
rear of right wing has plain fireplace with later basket grate
in heavily moulded surround, panelled window recess with seat,
and moulded cornice.
Attic: some simple fireplaces survive.
(City of York: RCHME: The Central Area: HMSO: 1981-: 151-2).

Listing NGR: SE6047351908

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Cumberland House at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q17530613

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability
• 
  ENGLAND GUIDE TO POST WAR LISTED: A Guide to Post-war Listed Buildings
• 
  Listed Buildings, Conservation Areas and Monuments
• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Northamptonshire: Buildings of England Series (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)