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Summary A small two bay cottage with living-kitchen and parlour, probably originally having storage on the upper floor. It was probably built for a smallholder in the late 17th century or early 18th century (i.e. c.1690-1720). |
This is a stone-built two bay cottage of 1½ storeys with a thatched roof. It is aligned with the street, with the original living kitchen at the SE end, and a smaller parlour at the NW end. There is a large inglenook fireplace, with internal seat and ogee stopped chamfer fire beam. A modern stair at the side of the fireplace is probably in the original position. The front windows have been replaced with uPVC.
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Internally, there is a continuous chamfered spine beam, with ogee stops to a missing central room partition, the chamfer stops hidden in the parlour end by the insertion of a second brick fireplace and stack. There is a tabled scarf just inside the living kitchen bay.
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The present entrance door is probably in the original position opening into the living kitchen against the lost partition. There is a slated outshut along almost the full length of the rear, recently extended as a large kitchen. The outshut is probably not original, as there is evidence for a blocked window from the parlour to the rear. This opening has a bottom panel rail from a timber-framed building re-used on its side as the lintel, and a further timber, built into the back wall, has a tenon. A brick panel in the rear wall suggests that the stair was approached from the outshut after this was added to the building. |
 The roof consists of halved birch pole rafters, with purlins supported by the principal rafters and a roughly squared ridge. Many original battens survive under the 1982 roof. This is carried at the centre truss by a saddle. The truss has been infilled with wattle and daub, plastered, indicating the upper floor was once open to the ridge. Half of the partition has now been removed for access.
There is some smoke staining on the stonework of the NW gable, prior to the insertion of the stack, but it is unlikely to be from an open floor hearth. The house was originally thatched with straw, latterly covered with corrugated iron. This was replaced in 1982 with Norfolk reed, when the eaves line was brought back to near the original level, and new dormers provided for the upper floor. The rear wall was raised in brick. History The cottage was part of the Watts estate in 1779, later sold to the Hesketh Estate. In the 1911 census the house is recorded as having 4 room occupied. |
Description