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| Library
and Schools stand on a corner site and the road improvements
display them to a great advantage.The front elevation is of
worked limestone with buff terra cotta dressings. The gables,
quoins, window and doorway frameworks, and facias are all terra
cotta as are the names of the buildings, set out across the
full front elevation. |
| The
clock turret, included in the origianl drawings, was omitted
and over the central windows of the school there is a pediment
with the carved arms of Newton Abbot and Newton Bushell. |
| At
Passmore Edwards request, the library, although forming a part
of the whole group, is practically a separate building from
foundations to roof. It occupies part of the frontage to the
extreme left. Over the entrance is insrcibed "This building
was presented to the town by J Passmore Edwards Esq, in memory
of his mother. |
| On
the right of the entrance was the general reading room for papers
and periodicals, whilst to the left was the magazine room and
directly opposite was the ladies room. From the entrance hall
the wideeasy staircase gave access to the first floor. Here
was situated the main lending library with the librarian's office
leading off through an archway. The borrowers lobby was situated
on the stairway landing. There was also a reference library
and committee room on this floor. On the second floor were the
caretaker's rooms, with 3 bedrooms,and a large book store. A
doorway on this floor gave access to the Schools but in all
other aspects the two buildings were seperate. |
| The
technical schools had an access on bothMarket and Bank Streets.
A fine entrance lobby and entrance hall gave access to the rooms
on the ground floor. Opening from the central hall was a large
room for machine drawing and building construction. Adjoining
this was the principal's and secretary's offices. Another large
room was set aside for science and technical classes. There
was also a photographic dark room. All of the floors were wood
block over a cement base. A broad staircase lead to the first
floor where on the wide landing wooden disdlay cases were filled
with fossils and corals given to the schools by Wm J Vicary
JP. The first floor is given over to science laboratories, and
lecture and demonstration rooms whilst on the second floor accommodation
was made for the artists with rooms for painting, drawing, pottery
and casting and wood carving. The whole building was heated
by water filled radiators and ducted hot air from boilers installed
in the cellars beneath the school buildings. |
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