Cruck-barn at Seddon's Fold, Prestolee

Cruck-framed barn of the late 15th or early 16th century, altered in the 17th and 18th centuries and substantially rebuilt in the 21st century.

The barn is constructed of coursed sandstone with a blue slate roof. It is a low building with a steeply pitched roof and south and north gables, comprising part single storey and part one-and-a-half storeys. The structure is four bays long with entrances in the long walls.

The cruck barn is the southernmost building of a farmstead that also includes a house, byre and stable. It occupies the highest point at the west end of a tongue of land formed by the westernmost meander of the River Irwell, where it is joined by the River Croal.

The south gable is built of varying coursed squared sandstone with blocked ventilation holes, alternating quoins and corbelled eaves. The west elevation has been rebuilt in the same materials and features a three-light mullion window either side of the door, with a deeper northern bay containing one two-light and one three-light mullion window, all with sawn sandstone dressings. The north gable is of regularly coursed machine-cut rock-faced sandstone with a first-floor two-light mullion window with sawn stone surround. The east elevation matches the west elevation in materials and openings, except in the south-west corner where the door is at the southern end and there is a short length of walling matching the south gable. The roof is of regularly coursed blue riven slate with two rooflights towards the north end of the west pitch.

The interior was formerly open with an earth floor and has been converted for residential use. A concrete floor slab has been introduced and the side and interior walls are plastered except for the south gable. There are three cruck frames, designated A to C from the south. Bays A and B are open to the rafters. Crucks B and C are closed with modern partitions and there is a floor in bays C and D.

The crucks are of Alcock type-A with blades joined by a collar at the apex. The carpentry is of particularly high standard with oak pegs to the joints, mostly of the edge-half-scarf type, an early technique for jointing timbers, with some mortice-and-tenon joints. The apexes carry a diamond-set ridge purlin and there are two rows of side purlins, all hewn. The base of each cruck blade sits in a steel shoe supported on a concrete pad. The crucks all have outer blades carried by wall-tie beams and curved wind braces running from purlin to outer blade, while Cruck A also has a purlin-beam. Wall posts originally ran down from the projecting tie beams of the crucks to the back of the blades; the walls have been widened internally and it was not possible to verify by inspection whether these have been retained within the walls.

There is evidence on crucks A and C for an additional cross beam below the tie beam, approximately 1.2 metres above the floor. All of the cross-members of cruck A have grooves and mortices in the soffit for wattle panelling and wall studs, indicating that this cruck was once fully closed, separating the south bay from the rest of the interior. Numerous carpenter's marks are also visible.