Queen Anne's Walk, Barnstaple, south front. Immediately left is the River Taw. Before being filled-in, the large sunken rectangular paved area in front was Barnstaple Quay at which merchant ships loaded and unloaded"The Strand, Barnstaple", painted c.1880s by Joseph Kennedy (c.1838–1893), view looking northward. Visible buildings are Queen Anne's Walk (The Mercantile Exchange); Star Hotel (background right, demolished); steeple of St Nicholas's Chapel by West Gate (all demolished). Collection of Barnstaple Town Council, displayed in Barnstaple GuildhallQueen Anne's Walk, East side. In the centre of the parapet are shown the arms of Chichester; raised above to the left are those of the Borough of Barnstaple, to the right those of Robert Incledon, Mayor of Barnstaple 1712–13, who supervised the building process. The two contemporary brass tablets inscribed in Latin record the essential history of the buildingBarnstaple Quay, 19th century, viewed from the River Taw. Queen Anne's Walk to left
Queen Anne's Walk (formerly The Mercantile Exchange) is a grade I listed building in the town of Barnstaple, North Devon, completed in 1713 as a meeting place for the town's merchants. It is believed to have been designed by the architect William Talman, on the basis of its similarity to his work at the Hall in Drayton, Northamptonshire.[1] It was promoted and financed by the thirteen members of the Corporation of Barnstaple whose armorials are sculpted on and above the parapet,[2] and the work was overseen by Robert Incledon (1676–1758), Mayor of Barnstaple in 1712–13.[2] It has been owned for many decades by North Devon District Council, which currently (2014) leases it to Barnstaple Town Council, and now trades as The Cafe on the Strand.
