Lawrence House is a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

townhouse in Launceston, Cornwall. Built in 1753, the house is a National Trust property and a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

building. It is leased to Launceston Town Council and used as a local museum.

The house

Lawrence House is a

building being No 9 and 9a, Castle Street, Launceston, the house, the museum and the forecourt wall all being covered by the listing. The property was first listed on 27 February 1950 under the designation "Castle Street No.9 Lawrence House, The Mayor's Parlour and Borough Museum".

John Betjeman Sir John Betjeman (; 28 August 190619 May 1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was Poet Laureate from 1972 until his death. He was a founding member of The Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, ...

described the street as "having the most perfect collection of 18th Century townhouses in Cornwall". The property is a red brick town house laid to Flemish bond, with two storeys as well as a basement and an attic. The roof is slated and steep with red brick chimneys and the gable end of the cross wing is on the right. An inscription reads "1753" and "HL" and another on the right wing reads "1913". The upper storey has five windows, the right hand one being a Venetian window with moulded hood. The doorway is central and has a pedimented porch with pilasters and consoles, and the four-panel door has a fan window above. There are two original pedimented roof

dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...

s, each with a 6-pane sash window. The interior has many original features including a grained basement staircase, panelling, plasterwork, moulded ceiling cornices and chimney-pieces. Lawrence House is owned by the National Trust and leased to Launceston Town Council, who use it as a local museum and civic centre. The museum houses a collection of costumes from Victorian and more recent times on the first floor, and numerous exhibits and much information about the local history of the area on the ground floor. During the summer season, some of the exhibits are changed around at intervals to freshen the display. The museum is currently closed for repairs and will re-open in Spring 2022. Admission is free.

References

External links

Lawrence House information at the National Trust
* {{Portal bar, Cornwall, United Kingdom, Architecture, border=no Houses in Cornwall Grade II* listed buildings in Cornwall National Trust properties in Cornwall Museums in Cornwall Local museums in Cornwall Launceston, Cornwall National Heritage List for England Buildings and structures in Cornwall