Butler House And The Rectory

Butler House and The Rectory

Butler House is a medieval and 18th-century building on the north side of Haughton Green. It was originally part of the Rectory complex and comprises two distinct sections.

The western part dates from the early to mid-15th century and stands two storeys over four bays. It is built of stone rubble, rendered with pebble-dash. The two right bays are covered by an 18th-century projecting front range of pinkish brick with a steeply pitched pantiled roof. Early 19th-century sash windows with glazing bars are present, along with one complete two-light stone traceried window on the first floor. The left return contains a double window with many mouldings and chamfering, though the original tracery has been replaced by sash windows with glazing bars. A small lancet window appears on the north return of this section. The medieval part retains its steeply pitched pantiled roof, probably once thatched.

The eastern part dates from the early to mid-18th century and is two storeys with five windows. It is built of old pinkish brick with some rubble stone walling behind. Sash windows with glazing bars sit in near-flush box frames beneath gauged flat red brick arches with keystones. Between the two sections is a two-storey 19th and modern wood bow window.

Inside the 18th-century part, door and window woodwork remains largely complete, including lock plates, alongside some panelling and dado rails. The medieval part contains remains of two stone windows with paired cusped heads and a stone fireplace with a hollow chamfered wide segmental arch with splayed and chamfered jambs. One bay survives of a 15th-century crown post and collar-purlin roof, with the crown post having longitudinal braces to the purlin and transverse braces to the tie beam.

The Rectory consists of two parallel ranges running north from the rear of Butler House's medieval part. The western range dates from the second quarter of the 18th century and the eastern range from the early 19th century.

The eastern (entrance) front presents two storeys with five windows of wide proportions in pinkish brick. The northernmost window on each floor is a blank panel. Sash windows with glazing bars occupy near-flush box frames under flat gauged brick arches. A round-headed landing window is present, along with two Yorkshire sashes at ground floor left. A six-panel door with cornice head and oblong fanlight holding a projecting glazed lamp-holder stands in the centre. A low curved projection appears on the north return.

The garden front to the west displays two storeys with seven windows in pinkish brick. The roof has been renewed in modern ridged tiles. Two centre and two end chimneys are present. Gauged flat brick arches frame first-floor 18th-century sash windows with glazing bars in near-flush box frames and ground-floor early 19th-century recessed sash windows with delicate glazing bars.

Internally, the study retains original fielded panelling and dado rail. The drawing room to the south exhibits early 19th-century decoration with paterae in the doorcase angles and a Tuscan screen across the north end. A graceful early 19th-century staircase with spiral-ended handrail rises through the building. Rooms feature reeded flat plaster cornices with medallions at intervals. A series of round arches spans across the hall.

A range of outbuildings extends to the north, mostly single storey, built of roughly-coursed rubble with brick dressings. A late 19th-century red brick upper storey has been added over the north end. The openings are varied and the roofs are partly pantiled and partly of modern tile. The north-east angle of the main Rectory is cut away and corbelled out above.