Listed Building: OLD VICARAGE AND PARISH ROOM TO CHURCH OF ST THOMAS OF CANTERBURY (1375900)

CHESTER CITY (EM) SJ46NW PARKGATE ROAD 1932-1/2/219 (South West side) 10/01/72 Old Vicarage and Parish Room to Church of St Thomas of Canterbury (Formerly Listed as: PARKGATE ROAD St Oswald's Vicarage) GV II Vicarage, now English Department of Chester College. 1880. By John Douglas. Red-brown brick with plaster panels; graded Westmorland green slate roofs. PLAN: Asymmetric plan with porch and stair left, corridors in recessed central portion, attic stair, ancillary rooms and former parish room in single-storey wing, right, all facing north-east; all principal rooms face south-west garden, and views; c.f. Douglas's home, Walmoor, Dee Banks (qv). EXTERIOR: 2 storeys and attic. Stair roof sweeps down to front left, apsidal 2-storey porch has stone steps to brick archway, 9-panel door in leaded half-glazed timber screen. Casements have moulded brick mullions, stone transoms to ground floor and ogee and basket-arched heads to upper lights; leaded lights, some removed. Two 3-light casements to corridor; square turret for secondary stair; 5-light casement in front gable, right. Parish room has porch in corner with house, doorway arched; a triple lancet and a pair of lancets. The second storey has terracotta jetty to porch and central bay; apsidal chapel above porch has brick strings and hoodmoulds to a lancet in each face. Two 3-light leaded casements to the upper corridor; loops to turret and a course of basket-arched lights beneath the eaves to its pyramidal roof with weather-vane; 3-light casement in right gable. Rectangular plaster panels beneath corridor windows; lozenge panels with brick diapering in gable. A lateral chimney at inner corner of porch-bay with house; a large chimney before the ridge of the central roof. The south-east end has a projecting shaped chimney behind the ridge; a French window with 2 leaded lights above and a cross-window to stair; plaster lozenge-panels in gable. The garden front has a long, simple rear wing left, dividing garden from Parish Room; a 2 storey 6-light canted bay-window, right; three 3-light casements to ground floor of central portion; a band of lozenge-panels to central portion and rectangular panels to bay window; a horizontal band of rhythmically-grouped mullioned casements to bedrooms; rear gable-end to left bay has a basket-arched light to the first floor and a 2-light casement beneath the plastered apex to the gable. INTERIOR: has a number of features and details typical of Douglas: pine doors of 5, 6 and 9 panels with reeded stiles, muntins and rails; door furniture; fireplace surrounds with good tiles and timber detailing, with inlaid work; timber screen with leaded glazing; a good open-well stair with timber screen to landing; trusses to Parish Room roof of well-expressed simple carpentry. Listing NGR: SJ4022267142