Congleton is a civil parish in Cheshire East, England. It contains 133 buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England as designated listed buildings. Of these, one is listed at Grade I, the highest grade, four are listed at Grade II*, the middle grade, and the others are at Grade II. The parish contains the town of Congleton, and surrounding countryside. Passing through the parish are the Macclesfield Canal and the River Dane, and a number of listed structures are associated with these waterways. The silk and cotton weaving industries came to the town from the 18th century, and there are listed buildings associated with these, including mills and weavers' cottages. Otherwise the listed buildings include houses and cottages in the town and the country, churches and associated structures, shops, schools, a town hall, offices, and public houses. Some of the buildings date from the 16th and 17th centuries, and are timber-framed. The great majority of houses are from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, reflecting the industrial growth and prosperity in the town at this time.
The fragment of the plague cross consists of a square stone shaft on a stone base. Its date is uncertain, but the first major outbreak of plague in the town was in 1559.[2]
A timber-framed farmhouse with brick and plastered infill and a tiled roof. The house has a T-shaped plan, and the windows are casements. Inside the farmhouse is a confessional closet and a chapel with painted inscriptions on the walls.[3][4]
A timber-framed public house in two storeys with two jettiedgables, the left gable being the larger. The windows are mullioned and transomed and contain casements. The roof at the front has stone slates, and at the rear is tiled.[5]
Originally three timber-framed cottages on a stone plinth, they were later roughcast and painted. They are in a single storey with attics, and have slate roofs. In the attics are gableddormers containing casements. In the ground floor are shop fronts.[6] As of 2022[update] the building is occupied by a café/bar.[7]
The oldest part is the rear wing, which is timber-framed with brick and plastered infill. The wing facing the street is in brick. The whole building is in two storeys, and has a slate roof.[8]
A timber-framed house with gabled cross-wings and stone-slate roofs. The infill is mainly with brick, although there is some wattle and daub, and some applied timber-framing. The windows are 18th-century casements. At the sides of the house are massive stone chimney stacks.[3][9]
A shop, basically timber-framed, the exterior later covered in applied timber framing. It is in two storeys with an attic, the upper storey and the attic being jettied. In the upper storey is an oriel window containing a casement. The ground floor has a modern shop window.[10]
Three shops, basically timber-framed, but with roughcast and stuccoed exteriors and shop fronts. They are in two storeys, no. 18 also with a gabled attic. The other two shops have gabled upper storeys, the bargeboard of no. 16 being plain, and that of no. 20 being ornamental and with a finial. In the passage between nos. 18 and 20 is exposed timber-framing.[11]
A timber-framed building, later roughcast, with a stone-slate roof. It is in two storeys and has a two-bay front, the right bay being gabled. In the ground floor are modern shop windows, and above are casement windows.[13]
A row of three basically timber-framed houses, with later applied timber framing. The panels are plastered, and the houses stand on a stone plinth. No. 8 has a gable with scalloped bargeboards, and a cantedbay window. To the right of this house is a covered way. The windows are casements.[14][15]
The public house may have an earlier core. It is basically timber-framed on a high sandstoneplinth, with later alterations, including applied timber framing to the front. The sides and back are in brick, The building is in two storeys and has three gables on the front. In the centre is a porch carried on Tuscan columns, and the doorway is approached by steps. Most of the windows are sashes. The roof is partly in slate, partly in stone slate, and partly tiled.[16][17]
A timber-framed public house with stuccoed brick infill and a tiled roof. It consists of a hall and a cross-wing and is in two storeys. The windows are casements. There is a single-storey extension on the right side.[14][18]
Originally a timber-framed house, Lowe House, it was extended in about 1835, incorporating timber framing, and converted into three dwellings. The building is stuccoed, and in two storeys. Its features include gables, all with ornamental bargeboards, and some with iron finials.[19]
A pair of brick houses, possibly originally one house, with a stone-slate roof. It is in two storeys. The windows are mullioned and transomed, and contain casements. In the centre of the building is a small gable containing a circular window.[22]
A brick house with stone quoins and a slate roof. It has two storeys with an attic, and is in two bays. The windows are sashes. The doorway is on the right side and has a doorcase with pilasters.[24]
The farmhouse was partly rebuilt in the late 18th to early 19th century. It has an L-shaped plan; the main block is in brick on a stone plinth with three storeys, and the stone rear wing is in two storeys. The windows are casements. On the corners are rusticatedquoins, and the doorway has a rusticated stone surround.[25]
The house absorbed an earlier 16th or 17th century house. In the 19th century its exterior was stoccoed and castellated, and later it was extended. The house is constructed in brick on a stone plinth, with a half-timbered core. It is in two storeys, with a three-bay front. The house has since been used as a school. Brick and stone outbuildings are included in the designation.[27][28][29]
The church replaced an earlier church on the site, and its tower was completed in 1786. Additions were made in 1839–40. The tower is in stone with, at the top, a parapet containing blind arcading and crocketedpinnacles. The body of the church is in brick with stone dressings and a stone-slate roof in Neoclassical style, Along the sides are two tiers of windows, the upper ones round-headed, and the lower ones with segmental heads. At the east end is a Venetian window. Inside the church are galleries on three sides, box pews, a finely carved reredos, and paintings of Saint Peter and Saint Paul by Edward Penny.[30][31][32]
The building may have an earlier core. It is a roughcast shop with a slate roof in three storeys with a two-bay front. The ground floor contains modern shop fronts, and the windows above are sashes.[33]
A brick house with a hippedslate roof. Originally with two storeys, a third was added later. It has a three-bay front, and the windows are sashes. The central doorway has a rusticated stone surround and a pediment. At the sides of the house are quoins. At the rear is a later single-storey extension.[34]
A brick house on a stone plinth with stone dressings and a green slate roof. It is in three storeys, and has a five-bay front. There are stone quoins at the angles of the house and flanking the central bay. The windows are sashes. There are pediments over the doorway, over the window above, and at the top of the central bay.[16][35]
There are two pairs of piers. Those flanking the gates are in stone with cornices and urn finials. At the end of the garden walls, the piers are in brick with stone cornices and caps. The gates are in wrought iron.[16][36]
A brick house with stone dressings on a stone plinth with a slate roof. It is in three storeys and has a five-bay front. The windows are sashes. The doorcase has pilasters and an elliptical fanlight, and in front of it is a porch carried on iron columns.[14][37]
Originally a house, this is in brick with slate roofs. The central block is in three storeys, on the right is a wing with a canted end in two storeys, and to the left is a later block, also in two storeys. The windows are sashes. The doorway has a stone surround with Doric3⁄4 columns, a frieze and a pediment.[14][38]
A brick house on a stone plinth with a slate roof. It is in two storeys, and has a three-bay front. The windows are sashes with keystones, flat brick arches and stone sills. The central doorway has flutedpilasters and a semicircular fanlight.[41]
A brick house on a stone plinth with a slate roof. It is in two storeys with an attic, and has a three-bay front. The windows are sashes, and in the attic are three dormers with bargeboards. The central doorway has flutedpilasters.[42]
A row of four stuccoed houses, possibly originally one building, with prominent quoins. The roofs are in stone-slate and slate. There are three storeys and a four-bay front, the lateral bays projecting forward. In the centre of the building is the doorway to no. 27, which has a porch carried on plain Doric columns. The doorways to nos. 25 and 27 have flutedpilasters. The doorway to no. 31 is on the left side; it has fluted pilasters and a semicircular fanlight. The lateral bays have single-storey cantedbay windows with balconies above. In the first floor the central window and the windows above the balconies are casements; the others are sashes.[14][43]
A row of three stuccoed houses with slate roofs. No 12 has three storeys, and is in three bays. It has a porch carried on Doric columns and pilasters. At the rear of the house is a two-storey circular bay window. The houses to the right are in two storeys. All the windows are sashes.[44]
Two brick houses with slate roofs. No 29 is in three storeys and has a three-bay front and a stone parapetcornice. No 29A is a two-storey single-bay wing. The windows are sashes.[45]
Originally one house, later converted into a shop and a hotel. It is in three storeys, and has a front of five bays. The building is in brick, the right three bays being stuccoed. Between the two sections is a round-arched entrance, and to the left is a modern shop front. The middle bay of the right section contains a doorcase with pilasters, a cornice and a fanlight. The windows are sashes.[46]
This originated as West House, a house in Georgian style. It later became Danesford School, for which a wing in similar style was added about 1920, and after that the building was converted into flats. The building is in brick with slate roofs. The windows are sashes. Other features include a two-storey semicircular bay window on the east front, and a large pediment on the south front.[14][47]
This was used as a water-powered silk mill and a flint grinding mill. It is constructed in sandstone and brick with Welsh slate roofs. It has a square plan, and is in three storeys with an attic. On the river side is a breast shot waterwheel about 18 feet (5.5 m) in diameter with cast iron buckets. In the top floor are sash windows with wedge lintels. Inside is a complete set of flint grinding machinery.[48][49]
A brick house with a slate roof in two storeys with an attic and a front of three bays. The windows are sashes. The central doorway has panelled and reeded pilasters and a pediment. At the ends are gables, each containing an arched window.[50]
A brick house with a slate roof in three storeys and with a three-bay front. In the right bay is a single-storey cantedbay window. The windows are sashes. The central doorway has Doricpilasters, a pediment and a fanlight. Both the doorway and the bay window have triglyphfriezes. To the left is a range of brick outbuildings.[14][51]
This originated as Mortlake House, was later used as a children's home, and then converted into flats. It is built in brick on a stone plinth, and has a hippedslate roof. The house is in two storeys, and has a front of five bays. At the east end is a two-storey semicircular bay. The windows are sashes, and the porch is carried on Roman Doric columns.[14][52]
A group of silk mills, extended in 1835, built in brick with slate roofs. The original mill is in four storeys, the later mill had five storeys. There was also a full-height latrine tower. Included in the designated are railings, perimeter walls and gate piers.[16][53] The 5 storey Mill was demolished in 2019.[54]
A stone cottage with a tiled roof. It is in two storeys, and contains sash windows. The attached painted screen wall incorporating a doorway is included in the designation.[55]
A brick house with a slate roof, it is in two storeys and has a three-bay front. The windows are sashes with brick arches and stone sills. The central raised doorway is approached by stone steps. It has a doorcase with pilasters, an open pediment, and an elliptical fanlight.[56]
A row of roughcast brick houses with tiled roofs in three storeys. Most of the windows are sashes, and in the top storey long weavers' windows have been retained.[58]
The house originated as a vicarage. It is in brick on a stone plinth, and has three storeys. The windows are sashes. In front of the central doorway is a flat-roofed porch carried on Doric columns.[59]
A public house in painted stone with tiled roofs with two storeys. An extension was added to the left later in the 19th century. The original part has two sash windows in the upper storey, and a crow stepped gable on the right side. Behind this is a wing with a castellatedparapet.[60]
A brick building with a slate roof in three storeys with an L-shaped plan. The front on High Street has a modern shop front in the ground floor. In the middle floor is a Venetian window with Tuscanpilasters, and a sash window. There are two sash windows in the top floor. The other front facing Market Square is in three bays. It contains a semicircular-headed doorway, and sash windows with channelled lintels.[14][62]
A large brick house with a slate roof. It has a square plan, is in three storeys, and has a front of five bays. There is a stuccoedRoman Doric porch, and the windows are sashes. On the left side is a bay with a cornice surmounted by urns. There are two later wings on the right side.[63]
A brick house on a stone plinth with a green slate roof. It is in two storeys and has a three-bay front. The wooden doorcase has pilasters and a fanlight, and in front of it is a portico with Tuscan columns. On the south side of the house is a two-storey cantedbay window. In the gabled ends are small semicircular windows.[64]
A brick house in Georgian style with a slate roof. It is in two storeys and has a front of five bays. The windows are sashes with flat brick arches and stone sills. The central doorway has a semicircular head and a radial fanlight. At the top of the house is a parapet with a modillion cornice. In front of the house is a perron with a double flight of steps, and wrought iron railings.[20][65]
The bath house is in the grounds of Bradshaw House. It is built in brick with a pyramidal hippedslate roof. The bath house has two storeys, it is in one bay, and it has a square plan. The bath is in the lower storey, it measures 10 feet (3.0 m) square, and six stone steps lead down to the bottom. In the upper floor are blocked fireplaces. Two steps on the east side lead down into the bath chamber, and five steps on the south side lead to the upper floor. The windows are sashes.[20][66]
A pavilion in the garden of Bradshaw House, it is built in stone and brick, and is in Neoclassical style. It has an apsidal plan, and has a pediment carried on Doric Columns and pilasters. It has an arched opening with a keystone carved with a Grecian head.[20][67]
A brick house with a slate roof in two storeys and with a seven-bay front. The windows are sashes with brick arches and stone sills. The wooden doorcase has pilasters, and an elliptical fanlight.[68]
A brick shop with a slate roof in three storeys with a four-bay front. The ground floor contains a modern shop front. The windows above are sashes with keystones and grooved lintels.[69]
A row of three brick shops with stone dressings and slate roofs, all with modern shop fronts. Nos 8 and 10 are in two storeys with an attic, and No 12 is in three storeys. The windows in the upper storeys are sashes. No 10 has a wooden moulded doorcase with pilasters, a fanlight, and an open pediment. The attic windows in Nos 8 and 10 are in gableddormers.[70]
A brick shop with a slate roof. It is in three storeys and has a four-bay front. There is a modern shop front, and above are sash windows with flutedkeystones. Between the middle and top storeys is a stone band. The deep eaves have modillions.[71]
Three brick shops with a slate roof. They are in three storeys and have a five-bay front. In the ground floor are modern shop fronts and a passageway. The first floor contains five sash windows.[72]
A brick building with a slate roof, it is in two storeys, and has a four-bay front. In the ground floor are a modern shop window and a segmental-headed archway. The windows are sashes.[73]
The shop may have an earlier core. It is built in brick with a slate roof. It is in two storeys with a gable. In the lower floor is a modern shop doorway and a bow window, and above is a casement window.[74]
A row of brick houses with slate roofs. They are in three storeys. In the ground floor are four plain doorways, a shop front, and three casement windows. There are four similar windows in the middle floor. The top floor contains a three-light casement on the left, and three long five-light windows for fabric workers.[75]
A brick house, later used as Social Services office, with a hippedslate roof in two storeys. The wooden doorcase has pilasters, an open pediment and a radial fanlight. The windows are sashes with brick arches and stone sills.[77]
A row of brick shops in two and three storeys. On the ground floor are modern shop fronts, and above are sash windows with flat brick arches and stone sills.[78]
A brick building on a stone plinth, in three storeys with a five-bay front. In the centre is a rusticated archway. This is flanked by modern shop fonts and doorways with semicircular fanlights. The windows are sashes with brick arches and stone sills.[79]
A pair of brick Georgian houses with slate roofs. The windows are sashes with flat brick arches and stone sills. The centre two bays project forward, with a pediment containing a circular window. The wooden doorways have pilasters and pediments.[80]
A brick house with a slate roof, it is in two storeys and has a three-bay front. The house has a semicircular doorway with Ionicpilasters and a radial fanlight. The windows are sashes.[81]
A row of three-storey houses. The ground floor is in rusticated stone, and the upper storeys are in brick. The roof is slated. The windows are sashes, and the doorways have fanlights.[82]
This originated as the coach house to No. 11 West Street. It is constructed in brick with a tiled roof, and is in two storeys. In the ground floor are four round-headed windows and a doorway. Elsewhere are pitch holes and casement windows. Outside the building is a stone mounting block.[83]
A brick house with a slate roof, which may have an earlier core. It is in two storeys, and has a three-bay front. In the ground floor are two sash windows. The other window in the ground floor, and those in the upper floor, are casements. The door has a simple doorcase with pilasters.[84]
A brick shop with a slate roof. It is in two storeys, with modern shop fronts in the ground floor. The upper floor has four sash windows. At the rear is a cantedbay window and more sashes.[85]
A brick house with a slate roof, it is in three storeys and has a three-bay front. The lower storeys protrudes forward, and contains doorway with a semicircular head. The windows are sashes.[86]
A stone cottage with a thatched roof in two storeys with casement windows. To the right is a single-storey extension, and on the left is a lean-to outbuilding.[87]
Originally a silk mill, this is built on sloping ground, with three storeys at the front, and two storeys and a basement at the rear. It is built in brick with a hippedslate roof. The buildings has a front of eleven bays, and a small pediment in the centre containing a clock. The windows are small-paned, with stone lintels and sills.[16][88]
A Roman Catholic church designed by John Hall, a priest. It is built in brick on a stone plinth with a slate roof. The church is in two storeys, and has an entrance front facing the road. This contains a doorway with a semicircular head and a fanlight. It is flanked by windows, and above it is a pediment with a niche containing a statue of the Virgin Mary. The east end is slightly polygonal, and all the windows have semicircular heads. The attached presbytery is included in the designation.[89][90]
The distance marker by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. It is marked on the east side with 1⁄2 and on the west side with 3⁄4. The numbers are enclosed in a painted rectangle.[99]
The milestone by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. The faces are inscribed with the distances in miles to Marple and to Hall Green.[100]
The milestone by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. The faces are inscribed with the distances in miles to Marple and to Hall Green.[101]
The milestone by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. The faces are inscribed with the distances in miles to Marple and to Hall Green.[102]
The former Sunday School is in brick with stone dressings on a stone plinth and has a slate roof. It is in two storeys, the original part having seven bays. The central three bays project slightly forward under a pediment. To the left of this is a two-bay extension containing a doorway. And further to the left of this is a lower two-bay extension. The windows are sashes.[103][104]
The distance marker by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. It is marked on the south side with 1⁄2 and on the north side with 3⁄4.[110]
The milestone by the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal is constructed in sandstone and has a shaped top. The faces are inscribed with the distances in miles to Marple and to Hall Green.[111]
The aqueduct carries the Macclesfield Canal at a height of approximately 45 feet (13.7 m) over the River Dane, the engineer being William Crosley. It is built in sandstone and consists of a single semicircular arch with a span of approximately 35 feet (10.7 m). The aqueduct has a parapet and curved abutments with cast iron railings between balusters capped with urns.[112]
The tunnel, now blocked, is under the Macclesfield Canal, and was designed by William Crosley. The north portal has not survived, but the south portal is in stone. It has a round-arched entrance with a keystone. The tunnel extends for about 50 feet (15 m).[113]
The aqueduct carries the Macclesfield Canal over Canal Road, and was designed by William Crosley. It consists of a cast iron trough carried on a cast iron arch, with a balustrade flanked by sandstonepiers. The balustrade continues over curved wing walls.[91][114]
Originating as an accommodation bridge, it carries Morley Drive over the Macclesfield Canal. The bridge was designed by William Crosley, and is built in sandstone. Here the canal runs through a cutting, and the bridge is tall with a horseshoe arch. The parapets end in square piers and have slightly curved projecting copings.[91][115]
A brick house with a slate roof. It is in three storeys with one bay facing Bridge Street and three facing Victoria Street. The windows are sashes.[120]
A pair of houses in rendered brick with slate roofs. They are in two storeys, and each house has a front of three bays. Above the doorways are fanlights.[122]
A brick house with a stone-slate roof. It is in a single storey with attics, and has a three-bay front. The windows are casements, those in the upper floor being in gables.[123]
The fence posts are on the outside of the towpath of the Macclesfield Canal. There are 38 fence posts visible. They are in sandstone, and each has two railing slots.[124]
The former school is built in stone with slate roofs. There is a central projecting gabledbay forming a porch. On the sides of the school are two-light mullioned windows under semicircular heads. There are flat buttresses on all the corners.[48][125]
The house is attached to the school by an archway. It is built in stone with a slate roof, and is in two storeys. The windows are mullioned under semicircular heads. On the ends are copedgables.[48][126]
A range of brick houses with stone dressings in Tudor style. They are in two storeys with an attic and tiled roofs, and have a symmetrical front. The central bay projects forward, and has a gable with an arched niche containing a stone bust. There are three doorways with arched heads and stone gabled porches. The windows are casements.[14][127]
The viaduct was designed by J. C. Forsyth for the North Staffordshire Railway to cross the River Dane. It is constructed in red and blue engineering brick and consists of 20 semicircular arches carried on rectangular piers.[128]
The viaduct carries the railway over the valley of the Dane in Shaw Brook at a height of 130 feet (40 m). It is built in brick and consists of ten round-headed arches carried on rectangular piers.[129]
A row of stuccoed shops in three storeys. At the top is a parapet that rises at the centre to form a pediment. In the ground floor are modern shop fronts. Above, the windows are casements in mouldedarchitraves with pediments.[130]
A row of brick houses and a public house with a slate roof. The buildings are in two storeys. No 31 is in three bays, and the others have two bays. The windows are sashes, and the doorways are round-headed with fanlights.[131]
A brick shop with a slate roof in three storeys with a three-bay front. In the ground floor is a modern shop front. The windows above are sashes, and below the windows are stone corbel tables.[132]
A brick house with a slate roof in two storeys. The entrance front faces east, and has a central projecting gabledbay. This contains a two-light mullioned and transomed window, and a doorway with an arched head and a fanlight. There are two more gables on the south front facing the road. All the gables have ornamental pierced bargeboards.[134]
A brick public house with a slate roof, it is in two storeys and has a three-bay front. The windows are sashes. In the centre is a wooden doorcase with pilasters, an open pediment and a semicircular fanlight.[137]
The obelisk is in the grounds of the school, and is in the form of a Chinese pagoda. It stands on an octagonal pedestal and has panelled sides.[14][138]
The town hall was designed by E. W. Godwin in Gothic style. It is constructed in stone with a slate roof. The front is in two storeys with an attic containing six gableddormers. The ground floor is in five bays, which was originally open and later contains shop fronts. The upper storey is in eight bays and with lancet windows. On the front of the town hall are three niches containing statues. From the centre rises a tower with a battlementedparapet, and on the top is a clock tower with a pyramidal roof.[141][142]
A range of offices in brick with stone dressings and a slate roof. Along Lawton Street they are in three storeys and extend for ten bays. Around the corner the building is in two storeys and extends for four bays. On the ground floor are shop fronts; the other windows are sashes.[143]
The church was designed by William Sugden in Gothic Revival style with unconventional features. It is constructed in stone with a slate roof. The west end has a double portal with a large window above. At the northeast corner is an octagonal turret.[144][145]
Originally a bank, later a public house, it is in stone with a green slate roof, and is in Tudor style. There are two storeys and the windows are mullioned and transomed. The centre bay projects forward, with a window in the ground floor and above a gable with applied timber-framing. On the left is a two-storey cantedbay window and a doorway. On the right is another bay with a doorway and a gateway and, on the corner, an oriel window that rises to an octagonal turret with a pinnacled roof and a finial.[16][146]
The water tower was designed by William Blackshaw, and is built in red and yellow brick with bands of blue brick. It is in three stages, each of which contains openings with semicircular heads. At the top of the tower is a decorative brick frieze, a cornice, and iron railings.[20][147]
The gate piers are in stone, and have panelled sides, and caps with ball finials. Between them are wrought iron gates, and an overthrow with a lantern. On the sides are low stone walls with wrought iron railings.[148]
The pavement is raised above the level of the road, and has a stone wall incorporating a double flight of worn stone steps. It is paved mainly with concrete, but also has some large stone slabs and some blue brick. On the wall are 19th-century wrought iron railings.[150]