The Smallest House in Great Britain (), also known as the Quay House, is a tourist attraction on the

quay A wharf ( or wharfs), quay ( , also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (mo ...

Conwy Conwy (, ), previously known in English as Conway, is a walled market town, community and the administrative centre of Conwy County Borough in North Wales. The walled town and castle stand on the west bank of the River Conwy, facing Deganwy ...

, Wales. It is reputed to be the smallest

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

in the United Kingdom.

History

The minuscule home was built in the 16th century and remained in use until 1900, when the tenant was a

fisherman A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million Commercial fishing, commercial and Artisan fishing, subsistence fishers and Fish farming, fi ...

named Robert Jones. The rooms were too small for him to stand up in fully and he was eventually forced to move out when the council declared the house unfit for human habitation, along with a number of properties. The house is owned by the landlord's descendants, the landlord being a man also named Robert Jones, having been passed to female relatives since Robert's sons showed a lack of interest in the business. After some persuasion by the then editor of the ''

North Wales Weekly News The ''North Wales Weekly News'' is one of a group of newspapers published weekly in Llandudno. History The newspaper was first published on 14 February 1889 by local printer Robert Evans Jones as the ''Weekly News and Visitors’ Chronicle fo ...

'', Roger Dawson (the owner) and the editor toured the United Kingdom in order to declare the house The Smallest House in Great Britain, a status that was later confirmed by the ''

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, listi ...

''.

Architecture

The house has a floor area of and is painted red. It stands near the

Conwy Castle Conwy Castle (; ) is a fortification in Conwy, located in North Wales. It was built by Edward I of England, Edward I, during his Conquest of Wales by Edward I, conquest of Wales, between 1283 and 1287. Constructed as part of a wider project to ...

walls. The ground floor is devoted to the living area with room for coal and an open fire, and a water tap tucked behind the stairs. The upstairs holds the cramped bedroom, which also comes with a small niche for storage.

Tourism

Tours of the house occur daily. Admission is £1.50 for adults or £1.00 for children; there is information about the house inside. A Welsh lady in traditional clothing stands outside when the house is open and will tell visitors about the history of the house. Visitors are unable to go upstairs to the first floor, due to structural instability, but can view it from the step ladder. It is open from spring to autumn.

Gallery

File:Smallest House in Great Britain, Conwy (8035).jpg, Quay House, alongside other properties File:Britain's Smallest House, Conwy Quay - geograph.org.uk - 1483046.jpg, Image of the House in the Quay File:Small House, Conwy.jpg, Woman in traditional clothing standing in front of the house

References

External links