Large Aisled Barn At Manor Farm

The large aisled barn at Manor Farm is a late-medieval structure featuring a timbered interior, with some contemporary walling and alterations made to the south aisle in the mid-18th century, along with 20th-century modifications. The barn is constructed from random-rubble sandstone for the early work, which is partly rendered, and includes 18th-century hammer-dressed stone and 20th-century red-brick patching, topped with an asbestos roof. It consists of seven bays.

On the north side, there is a large doorway cut into the first bay of the aisle, reaching up to the first purlin in the roof. The doorway in the third bay features a square base block to the left, a wooden lintel, and a plank door. To the right, the fourth and fifth bays are occupied by a brick wall, while the other bays have rubble walls. The south side has quoins, and the aisle is cut back in the center three bays, with former stables in the outer bays that have quoined angles. The third bay has a tall cart entry with har-hung doors, the fourth bay is made of hammer-dressed stone, and the fifth bay shows posts on padstones with visible mortices for aisle ties, set between 20th-century brick. There are doorways within the re-entrant angles of the aisles, including one with a stable door. The right-hand return features a rendered gable with a large doorway that was recently raised around 1985, while the left-hand gable is made of rubble.

Inside, a brick wall divides the barn into three and four bays. The posts, resting on padstones, have joweled heads and long curved braces connecting to the arcade plate and tie beam. Heavy aisle ties are present, some with curved principals. The wall plate sits on the aisle tie, which has mortice holes to the soffit and remains of a wall post that has been sawn flush, indicating that there were once timber-framed external walls. The original arcade plate and tie beams are mostly intact, although all except the third truss have replaced principals and struts. The third truss features steeply-pitched principal rafters and a single curved angle strut, while the fourth truss retains its original curved struts. Purlins have been reused from a previous timbered structure, with most replaced in softwood. Rafters have also been replaced, except for those in the third bay, where some square-cut rafters remain.

Despite suffering from alterations in the present century, the timbered interior of this barn is a rare and important survival in the region and is part of the Mexborough estate.