9 St Mary's Butts

8 Castle Street

At the junction of Castle Street and Bridge Street, the two ancient roads of Reading again split, with Castle Street being the old road towards Bristol.

Where the Castle was is uncertain. There are two different ideas. The first is that the Castle would most likely have been on high ground, overlooking the town where Yeomanry House is now. This would place it on the heights above the town with a commanding but somewhat distant view. The other possibility is that it was much nearer the town centre, protecting the important crossroads and the roads across the important Kennet crossing.

St Mary's Church, Castle Street was built in 1798 on the site of the old County Gaol. Later was added the front of Bath Stone which nowadays makes it such a prominent building. It also used to boast an unusual bell tower, otherwise known as the pepperpot. With it once being the site of the gaol, it is possible that this church was once the site of the Castle.

Further up Castle Street are the Alms Houses. The first almshouses in Reading were built in 1476 in what was then called Old Street but is now called St Mary's Butts. These almshouses here were built when the original ones were demolished in 1886 Victorian times. They are still in use today. John Leche, who was also known as John a Larder because of his duties in Reading Abbey, founded these almshouses to help old people who had little money. He also provided money for them to buy food.

The Sun Inn in Castle Street was one of the oldest inns. There is a Norman arch in the rear yard. The King's Arms Inn was built on three sides of a courtyard. 158-160 were built as early as 1734 while 154-6 were added by 1796.