Watford

 

Exchange Road

Office block by Stephen & Partners, 1965, four storeys on stilts, faced. White unbonded tiles.

The Telephone Exchange.dates from 1956, with a bulky extension of precast panels by Hubbard & Ford, 1968 onwards.

High Street

Most enjoyable now that trees, tubs, and pavements have been replaced. The landscaping here and in The Parade is by A. G.Fidler Associates. The centre and the market was redeveloped by the local council in 1971 with new market, shops, car park, etc. architects Ley, Coif & Partners

Boots with the typical exposed concrete of the 1960s Huckle & Partners, 1966-8,

Clements, local department store, with a huge extension at the back in plain red brick with a tower, a stark but effective composition by Yorke, Rosenberg & Mardall, 1963-4.

LADYS CLOSE

Shri Guru Singh Sabha Ghudwara. Sikh community Centre. This was the Watford County Court House built around 1858 with a red brick façade. The courtroom is in the in the centre of the building and the judge's chamber and court clerk's room are at back.

 

Market Street

The market is first noted in the reign of Henry II.

Church of the Holy Road

The Parade

An anticlimax, although it is attractively landscaped with a central pool and trees placed asymmetrically.  It is no longer the triumphal way to the Town Hall, as it ludicrously has to be reached by a

Monmouth House, 1630s, largely reconstructed in 1920s. The exterior now has four gables, some interior features preserved in their original state.

Building timber-framed, incorporates the remains of a C16 hall, with queen-strut trusses.

Watford

Watford is the largest town in Hertfordshire. In 100 years its population has grown from 5,000 to more than 70,000, so that today it is an important road and rail centre, with a variety of industries, notably printing. For a long time the abbots of  St. Albans were Lords of the Manor and after many changes  of ownership the property passed finally to the Capel family,  Earls of Essex.. A mile long is built on sloping ground and still resembles that of a country town, especially on Tuesdays when it is very busy with its cattle-market. The fifteenth-century market-place and also the best shops are at the northern end of the High Street. A pleasant little park and promenade runs alongside the south bank of the River Come. Watford is also a manufacturing centre and its industries include brewing, milling, printing works, and silk factories.

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