Croft House Ivy Cottage

A pair of houses, now combined into a single dwelling, located in Rothwell, dated 1688 and 1699 above the doorways. The houses are constructed of coursed sandstone rubble with quoins, and have a stone slate roof with brick chimneys. They have a rectangular plan, with two units each.

The left house, number 18 (Croft House), features quoins marking the junction between the two houses, a chamfered Tudor-arched doorway offset to the left of centre, with a lintel inscribed “JR 1688”. There is a blocked doorway at first floor above this, and to the right, close to the junction, a blocked single-light firewindow with a chamfered surround, along with remnants of another at ground floor. All other openings on the front elevation have been altered. The right house, number 16 (Ivy Cottage), has a gabled, single-storey porch at its left end, close to the junction, with a chamfered Tudor-arched doorway, and a datestone above inscribed “HC 1699”. There is gable coping with large kneelers. At first floor, to the right, a blocked 4-light window with recessed chamfered mullions is present; all other openings on the front elevation have been altered.

The rear of number 18, the original section, retains the left jamb and head of a former window, possibly transomed. The junction between the two houses is marked by quoins at the first floor of number 18 and a ragged joint overlapping from number 16 at ground floor; otherwise, all features have been altered or enlarged.

Inside number 18, the original part has one axial beam with a cyma-stopped chamfer, and a large stone fireplace with a flat-arched, chamfered surround, which likely replaced an earlier inglenook. Number 16 contains a primitive stone fireplace with a bressumer of light scantling, and two chamfered beams with run-out stops.