41-43 Church Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire

Hall and cross wing house dating to the later 15th century. The hall timbers have been dendro-dated between AD 1455 and AD 1479, while the cross wing was built in or shortly after the winter and spring of AD 1463-4. A late 17th-century extension was added to the rear of the cross wing chamber, along with a small lean-to store on the east side of the hall. Mid to late 18th-century alterations followed road remodelling, including the removal of the timber-framed west elevations, raising of the floor level in the hall and the front chamber of the cross wing, and the insertion of a cellar beneath the chamber. The north service cross wing and two bays of the hall were lost in 1973. The timber framing and building underwent renovation in 2002, with a modern shop front of no special interest being added.

The structure is built of an oak timber frame with hand-made bricks and stone slate roof.

The plan consists of a full-height hall, truncated at the north end, running parallel to the road on the west side, with a two-storey, two-chamber cross wing at its south end. A cellar sits beneath the front chamber. The cross wing has a small late 17th-century extension on its south side and a store on its north side abutting the east wall of the hall.

The front elevation faces west onto Church Street. A 2002 single-storey shop front of no special interest occupies the ground floor. Above it is a strip of wall approximately four brick rows in height with an overhanging stone slate roof. The roof is double-pitched at the left-hand end with a north gable wall and hipped at the right-hand end.

The rear elevation shows the projecting east gable wall of the cross wing on the left-hand side with the hall to the right. The outer corner posts of the cross wing stand on squared padstones. The mid-rail has brick infill below at ground-floor level and pegged close studding above rising to the tie beam. In the centre beneath the tie beam is a four-light timber mullion window. The gable apex also has close studding. The overhanging roof has bargeboards to protect the rafters. On the left-hand side is a flush two-storey brick extension with a lean-to roof against the south side elevation, which continues the roofline in a catslide. On the right-hand side is a brick extension projecting beyond the gable wall with an angled return to the corner post. It has a lean-to roof against the east wall of the hall. The angled return has a small rectangular window with a stone lintel and plank shutter. The east face has a doorway with an adjacent small rectangular window, both with stone lintels, a plank door and shutter.

The south side elevation is plastered and painted, with a stone boot scraper recessed into the wall, now missing the metal scraper. The north side of the cross wing is tile-hung, and the north side of the extension and hall is rendered.

Interior: The original timber framing has been patched in a 2002 restoration with badly decayed timbers replaced. The east wall of the hall has timber framing incorporating replacement timbers. There is a mid-rail with a wall below, originally coursed masonry, and close studding above with a blocked four-light mullion window to the centre. The wall plate has a possible seating for a dais canopy beam. At the right-hand end there is a short flight of steps down to the rear of the building. The king-post truss is constructed as an open truss against the side frame of the parlour cross wing with braces from the main corner posts to the tie beam. The main post for the cross wing truss, set in from the hall post, has two mortices suggesting there may have been a heck screen for a former doorway in the southeast corner into the rear chamber of the cross wing. The roof structure of rafters, tusk-tenoned purlins and ridge beam continues through the hall and cross wing.

The front and rear chambers of the cross wing are divided by a king-post truss with a main post on its left-hand side. A collar has been added to the west side of the truss, probably in the 18th century, to support the modified roof structure over the front chamber. There is a cross rail beneath the tie beam with mortices for floor joists. The front chamber, now full height, has close studding to the north side now without infill, with a mid-rail and a diagonal upper brace on the west side to the mid-rail. A large opening has been cut through into the hall. The rear ground-floor chamber has a ceiling with heavy floor joists running east-west, diagonal stone flags on the south side and straight stone flags on the north side. The first-floor chamber has close studding showing at the left-hand end of the north wall. The timber framing is all replaced as this is where a doorway opening had been cut through into the hall. The roof structure has rafters, purlins and a ridge beam. On the south side there is a large beam in the position of a wall plate which supports both the rafters of the original roof and the upper ends of the rafters for the later extension.

The small cellar beneath the front chamber is accessed by narrow stone steps down from the rear chamber. The rectangular room has coursed masonry walls and a barrel-vaulted brick ceiling. There are two niches in the north wall and a former exterior drop in the west wall. It has a stone-flagged floor and a stone table on brick legs.