A Peckham historian is battling to get listed status for the Jones & Higgins Department Store on Peckham Rye despite being snubbed by Historic England.
Visible above the Rye Lane Costa outlet, the Victorian department store and its accompanying Jarvis Clock Tower, opened in 1867, are an example Venetian-Renaissance style.
Led by local historian Nancy Coleman-Frank, architects and activists say its preservation is “more important than ever” given Peckham’s ongoing regeneration – especially developer Berkeley’s seismic plans for the neighbouring Aylesham Centre.
But Historic England, which had already rejected an application in 2009, told the News: “It did not have the special architectural and historic interest needed to merit listing on a national level.”
This has shocked Nancy, who spent lockdowns pouring over architectural documents, uncovering new information about the building.
Nancy, who moved from California to the UK to pursue an interest in Peckham history, said: “With the threat of the Aylesham Centre being completely redone, it seemed more important than ever to get them listed so a small committee was formed to get it going.
“Then covid hit and all which made research difficult… and as time went on I became the main one who was doing all the writing for the application.”
As part of the application, Nancy says she submitted evidence of the building’s Venetian influences.
Peckham architect Benedict O’Looney was surprised by the decision: “If you look closely at Jones & Higgins there is a lot of Renaissance and Venetian-Renaissance detailing. It’s really quite unique and idiosyncratic.”
Jones & Higgins formed a key part of the ‘Golden Mile’ of shops that rivalled Oxford Street in the Victorian era.
Through research at the Victoria & Albert Museum and elsewhere, Nancy found out that its architects, Jarvis & Son, were likely influenced by Venetian architecture.
She found sketches belonging to Henry Jarvis, son of the architectural practice’s founder, also named Henry, from his time in Venice.
Some of his sketches of Venetian architecture bear an uncanny resemblance to the clock tower atop the Jones and Higgins building.
Benedict O’Looney believes the clock may be inspired by the one St Mark’s Clock Tower in Piazza San Marco.
The original store closed its doors in 1980 and part of the building was demolished to make room for the Aylesham Centre.
Some of the building was later taken over by the Peckham Palais nightclub until it closed around ten years ago.
The Victorian Society lists the Jones & Higgins Department Store as one of its top ten most endangered buildings.
But Historic England said: “The landmark clock tower that stands now is a 1950s remodelling of the original 1894 tower which was much larger and more elaborate. While the façade of the Jones and Higgins building is impressive, it doesn’t have the architectural interest to outweigh the loss of original features elsewhere. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport agreed with our advice.”