21 The Thoroughfare
You might assume Georgian or Victorian but that raised pediment and expanse of glass hide a 17thC interior still visible inside today.
No 21 is another gem from 4 or more centuries ago, hidden in plain sight in the trading centre of Harleston.
It is only when you look from the side that you see the front roof slope has been raised up behind the 19th Century parapet to give more height in the front rooms whilst the original steep slope suited to a thatched roof has been retained at the back and on the rear wing. The delightful colonnaded balcony allowing access to the rooms above the shop floor is a sympathetic 20th Century addition but if you peer up under it you will see a concealed jettied end gable – another hint of the extreme age of this building.
Squashed between two pubs (part of the Cap was demolished to give access to what is now a car park) this was really in the heart of the town which doubtless compensated for the grounds behind being impinged on by auxiliary buildings of the Swan.
It was probably the Baillie family, who revamped the premises in the Victorian time- a very thrusting family who traded from a number of premises in the Thoroughfare.
Baillie Family advert
Victorians did not have much sentimental attachment to ancient architecture when it came to running a business. The improvements involved inserting huge plate glass windows, partially supported by the metal columns that form part of the glazing, raising the roof which enabled the insertion of the large sash windows with the ornate arched tops. To balance out the heavy cornice below the new parapet, the Victorians added moulded quoins (pretend corner stones along the vertical edges) giving a vaguely continental feel in harmony with the Italianate Station and clock tower. However, if you peer through the large Victorian shop windows you can still see some of the ancient timber framework.
A few of the older residents might remember Henry Howard’s Drapery and Fancy Goods shop trading from here. Sadly his son Dennis Marshall Howard MC died during WW2 whilst a Prisoner of War.
Howard carried on trading in the post war period but struggled with the additional paper work in what was then a highly regulated commercial environment with controlled prices and lightning inspections.