Until the arrival of industry in the later part of the 18th century the area was rural, containing only small settlements. Most of the older listed buildings are, or originated as, farmhouses or farm buildings. There is one surviving industrial building, a former engineering workshop, that has been listed. Many of the other listed buildings are associated with the development of a substantial town, and with its road and rail links. The buildings associated with transport are a former coaching inn (now a public house), a road toll house, and a railway viaduct. A number of public and commercial buildings are listed, including the town hall, the public library, the former mechanics' institute, a market hall, a shopping arcade, and a former bank. The other listed buildings include large houses, some of which have been adapted for other purposes, a political club, churches, and memorials. The newest buildings to have been listed are a complex consisting of a fire station, magistrates' courts, and a police station, which were built in the 1930s.
Originally a hall house, later altered and used as a house and a barn. It is in stone with a stone-slate roof, in two storeys, and has an H-shaped plan. The central range was possibly an open hall, with projecting gabled wings, that on the left being a barn. On the right side is a two-storey extension containing a former garderobe. Other features include a stair turret with a stone spiral staircase, and a possible chapel in the upper storey.[2][3]
This originated as a farmhouse, and it was altered in 1927 to make two dwellings. It is in pebbledashed stone, and has stone-slate roofs. The building has two storeys, a three-bay front, and a short two-storey outshut at the rear. On the front is a two-storey gabled porch with a Tudor arched doorway. Most of the windows have been altered, but some mullioned windows remain.[4]
Originally a farmhouse, extended in the 19th century, and later divided into three dwellings. It is in stone with stone-slate roofs, and the original building has an L-shaped plan with three bays and a wing to the third bay. There is a porch with a datestone above, and the windows are mullioned.[5][6]
A former farmhouse in stone with a stone-slate roof, it has two storeys and three-bays with a two-storey gabled rear extension. On the front is a two-storey gabled porch. The windows are mullioned.[7]
The farmhouse was extended in the 18th century. It is in stone with a stone-slate roof, and has two storeys and three bays. There is an outshut at the rear, and the third bay has been extended forward to make a cottage. On the front is a lean-to porch that has a mouldedTudor arched doorcase. The windows are mullioned.[8]
A farmhouse that was extended and later divided into two dwellings. It is in rendered stone with exposed quoins and a stone-slate roof. The building has a cruciform plan, with a two-bay main range, later extended with a bay added to the left. On the front is a two-storey gabled porch with a Tudor arched doorway and a datestone, and at the rear is a gabled stair turret. Most of the windows have been altered, but some mullions remain.[9]
The sundial is in the churchyard of St James' Church. It is in sandstone and consists of a square panelled pillar about 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) high standing on two octagonal steps. On top of the sundial is a moulded cap with an octagonal plate and a triangular gnomon.[10]
The stocks are in Huncoat and in an enclosure bounded by railings. The stocks consist of two square stone uprights, and two wooden cross bars with spaces for two pairs of legs.[11]
The former farmhouse was later extended by the addition of a loomshop to the right. The building is in sandstone with a stone-slate roof. Both parts are in two storeys, the house having a symmetrical two-bay front with a gabled single-storey porch. The loomshop has a four-light mullioned window on the ground floor and two square windows above.[12]
The church was altered and enlarged on a number of occasions during the 19th century. It is built in sandstone with a slate roof, and has a simple rectangular plan with the nave embracing a west tower. The tower has four stages, rusticatedquoins, a round-headed west door and window, and an embattledparapet. The nave is in two storeys and has two tiers of round-headed windows. The east window contains Gothictracery. Inside there are galleries on three sides.[13][14]
The barns, which incorporate an earlier basement shippon, are in sandstone with stone roofs. In the north front are a cart opening with a depressed arch, and former shippon openings converted into windows at the ends, and between them are windows with stone lintels and sills.[15]
This originated as the Red Lion Inn, the first coaching inn in the town, it was extended in 1822, and has since been used for other purposes. It is in sandstone with a slate roof, in two storeys, with a symmetrical three-bay front, and a wing at the rear of the left bay. There are round-headed doorways in the centre of the front, and on the right side. There is also a two-storey bay window on the right side. Most of the windows are sashes.[16]
A house in Georgian style. later used for other purposes. It is built in stone with a hippedslate roof, with two storeys and a symmetrical five-bay front. In the centre of the front is a doorway with a fanlight and a Doric surround. At the top of the house is a mouldedcornice and a parapet. The windows are sashes.[17]
A large house in Classical style, built in stone with a hippedslate roof, it has two storeys and a symmetrical five-bay front. The central three bays project slightly forward, they are pedimented with a dentilledcornice, and contain a Doric porch with fluted columns, a frieze, and a segmental fanlight. On the right side is another pillared porch. The windows are sashes.[18][19]
A house later altered for other purposes, in ashlar stone with a slate roof. It has a front of five bays, with two storeys at the front, and three at the back, where there is a three-storey extension. The central three bays are pedimented, the ground floor windows have been changed, and the windows above are sashes.[20]
The former toll house is in sandstone with a slate roof. It is in Tudor style, with two storeys and four bays, the gable facing the road. On the south side is a gabled porch. Most of the windows are rectangular with hood moulds, and there is an arched window in the upper floor.[21][22]
A sandstone public house with a slate roof, it has two storeys and a symmetrical five-bay front. The second and fourth bays contain wide segmental bay windows, between which is a narrow bay that has a round-headed doorway with imposts and a keystone. The windows are sashes.[23][24]
A farmhouse with attached shippon, barn, and tower, the latter built to be an eye-catcher. The buildings are in sandstone with stone-slate roofs, and have a U-shaped plan. The tower has two stages, two arched openings, windows, and an embattledparapet.[5][25]
A house and a pair of back-to-back cottages and a former cellar dwelling on a corner site, they are in buff sandstone with slate roofs. On the north front are two storeys, and four bays, and the south front has 2½ storeys and an outshut. At the rear is a garden wall with blocked openings.[26]
The viaduct was built for the East Lancashire Railway and was restored in 1866–67. It is built in brick on stone plinths, and is faced with gritstone. The viaduct takes a curved line and has 19 (originally 21) semicircular arches with spans of 40 feet (12 m) at a height of 60 feet (18 m). At the south end a bridge carries the line over Blackburn Road on a segmental arch, and there is a similar bridge at the north end over the Whalley Road.[27][28]
The former school is in stone with a slate roof, and is in Early English style. It has a single storey, and is in a T-shaped plan, with a symmetrical six-bay front facing the church. On this front is a gabled double porch, and at the rear is a lower single-storey wing. The windows are lancets.[18][29]
The building was designed by James Green, and was originally the Peel Institute, becoming the town hall in 1865. It is built in stone and has a hippedslate roof. There are two storeys, and fronts of seven and three bays. In the centre is a porte-cochère with large arches, above which is a portico of six Corinthian columns, behind which is a Venetian window. The ground floor windows are round-headed with rusticated surrounds and keystones, and the upper floor windows have segmental heads, balustrades and segmental pediments.[30][31]
The monument was erected by members of the Accrington Brass Band in the churchyard of St James' Church to the memory of one of their musicians who played the ophicleide. It is in stone and consists of a Gothicpedestal on which is a draped musical instrument. The monument has a square base, a mouldedplinth, diagonal buttresses, a chamferedcornice, and a pierced parapet with crocketed corner pinnacles.[13][33]
Designed by H. Macauley in Early English style, the church is in sandstone with slate roofs decorated with bands of green slate. It consists of a nave, a west porch, a south aisle, transepts, a chancel, and a southeast steeple. The steeple has a three stage tower, corner pinnacles on short shafts with foliated caps, and an octagonal spire. Inside the church is a south arcade having piers with crocketedcapitals.[34][35]
Originally the Manchester and Liverpool Bank, it is in free Italian Gothic style, and built in stone with slate roofs. The main front has a single-storey pavilion on the left and a two-storey block to the right. Between these is a porch with a round-headed doorway above which is a shaped gable containing a coat of arms. The pavilion has five bays, the centre three bays projecting forward. The block to the right has four bays, and between the windows are medallions with badges and monograms.[27][36]
The market hall, designed by J. F. Doyle, is in ornate Renaissance style, and has a front of ashlar stone. The hall behind is built on an iron frame with a roof of slate and glass. The front has two storeys and is symmetrical with nine bays containing Corinthianpilasters. The central three bays project forward and contain a round-headed entrance, and a clock face surrounded by cherubs with cornucopias. At the top are two statues of figures holding agricultural produce. The outer bays are surmounted by balustradedparapets. Inside the hall are galleries on all sides.[30][37]
Designed by H. Varley in Early English style, the church is in stone with s slate roof. It consists of a nave with a clerestory, aisles, a chancel with a three-sided apse, and a south steeple. The steeple has a three stage tower with a south doorway, a canted stair turret, an octagonal bell stage, and an octagonal splayed spire.[18][40]
The Mechanics' Institution was designed by George Baines in Classical style. It is in sandstone with a slate roof, and has two storeys and a rectangular plan with symmetrical fronts of five and three bays. In the Willow Street face is a central round-headed doorway with an Ionicpedimentedarchitrave. The St James' Street face has in the upper floor a modified Venetian window under a pediment. The other windows are sashes.[41][42]
The church was designed by Henry Ross, with details mainly in Geometrical style. It is built in sandstone with slate roofs, and consists of a nave and chancel under one roof. There are aisles with porches, the nave has a clerestory, and chapels flank the chancel. On the roof at the junction of the nave and chancel is a gabledbellcote with a flèche.[21][43]
The engineering workshop, originally part of Howard & Bullough's Globe Works, is in sandstone. It has a rectangular plan with four storeys and fronts of thirteen and four bays. In the ground floor are round-headed openings with voussoirs and keystones, and the upper floors contain segmental-headed windows with keystones.[44]
Designed by Morley and Woodhouse in Renaissance style, the building was in stone with a slate roof. There were three storeys, a basement and attics, and a symmetrical five-bay front. In the centre is a round-headed doorway flanked by pairs of granite columns, and with an entablature and a pediment. In the outer bays were two-storey cantedbay windows with parapets and finials. At the top was a balustrade with finials, and gableddormers. Damaged by fire in 2016 and storeys above ground floor doorway demolished.[27][45][46]
A shopping arcade on a curved plan with shop fronts divided by panelled pillars. It has a glazed roof carried on slim pieced columns. At the Warner Street entrance is a block in brick with white terracotta dressings and a slate roof. Above the entrance is a gabled attic and a lunette, and at the sides are shop fronts.[23][47]
The library was designed by W. J. Newton in Renaissance style. It is in stone and has a slate roof. There are two storeys and five bays, with an entrance in the right bay. The entrance has an Ionic doorway with polished columns, and to the left are rectangular windows with keystones in the form of heads. In the upper floor are Corinthianpilasters, and round-headed windows, each with a balustrade. At the top of the building is an inscribed frieze.[30][48]
A house designed by Walter Brierley in 17th-century style, and later used for other purposes. It is in sandstone with stone-slate roofs, is in two storeys and has an irregular plan. The main block has three bays, and there are two unequal wings. The windows are mullioned or mullioned and transomed.[49]
The gate piers consist of square sandstone pillars with decorative bands, flat copings, and large ball finials. The wall encloses the rectangular garden, it is in sandstone and has ridged coping.[50]
Originating as a large house called Hollins Hall, later used as an art gallery. It was designed by W. H. Brierley in Jacobean style. It is built in sandstone with slate roofs, in 2+1⁄2 storeys, and has an E-shaped plan with five bays and a T-shaped service wing at the rear. In the centre is a two-storey porch with a pierced parapet, and the outer bays contain two-storey cantedbay windows. Most of the windows are mullioned and transomed.[18][51]
The war memorial is in Oak Hill Park, it was designed by Charles Reilly, and the sculpture is by Herbert Tyson Smith. The memorial is in stone and consists of a statue representing Compassion in front of a tall obelisk with flutedpilasters up to the half-way point of the obelisk. These stand on a pedimentedplinth with bronze plates containing the names of the fallen.[21][54]
The fire station was designed by Percy Thomas, and is in stone. All in a single storey, it has a taller central main block and two lower, smaller wings. The main block contains five tall garage doorways and a staff entrance. The wings each contains three smaller doorways and a window. At the rear is a six-storey tower, with pilaster strips in the top storey, and a pedimented roof.[27][55]
The building was designed by Percy Thomas, and is in stone with flat roofs. The magistrates' court faces Manchester Road, and is in a single storey with a central porch rising to a higher level. The porch has a giant arch with voussoirs, and contains a recessed doorway. The court is attached to the police station, which faces Spring Gardens, and has two storeys.[27][56]
