The Judge's Lodging

The Judge's Lodging in Presteigne occupies the former Shire Hall, built in 1826-29 to a neoclassical design by the Shrewsbury architect Edward Haycock. It was constructed to house a court room and judge's lodgings on the site of the county's earlier gaol, and its vaulted cells survive from that older prison. The court room was first used in August 1829 and continued to host assizes until 1970. The building is a Grade II* listed structure, designated in 1950, and its stucco-fronted Tuscan facade remains a landmark on Presteigne's Broad Street. It now serves as a museum interpreting Victorian court and prison life.