Hillhouse

Hillhouse is a timber-framed farmhouse, dating to approximately 1600, with later additions and 20th-century alterations. The construction incorporates painted brick and wattle-and-daub infill, a sandstone plinth and refacing, sandstone stacks with brick shafts, and tiled roofs. The house is arranged in an “L” shape, with the main block aligned east-west and a cross-wing at the east end. A projecting stair turret is situated in the angle of the “L” on the south face. A through-passage has been blocked, with the current entrance on the south face to the left of the stair turret. There is a large external lateral stack on the north face of the main block, with another lateral stack on the cross-wing. Later additions extend to the west.

The house has two storeys, with cellars and attics. The north front exhibits decorative framing on the gable end of the cross-wing, featuring a projecting first floor supported by a moulded bressummer and brackets, although much of this is now a 20th-century replacement. The fenestration is irregular, with a pair of 2-light casement windows on the first floor, a 3-light window below, and a lower ledged door providing access to the cellar. The main block extends to the right, featuring a lower roof level over later additions. Further irregular fenestration is present: a group of four 2-light casement windows are set within square panelling of a projecting infill to the ground floor, to the left of the stack; two 2-light casement windows are below the eaves to the right of the stack. On the ground floor, a ledged door and single light are situated immediately to the right of the stack, followed by two 2-light glazing bar casement windows flanking a further ledged door to the far right. Another ledged door is present in the later addition to the right. The stack has three rebuilt diagonal plan shafts.

The timber framing is largely complete, although some decorative panelling has been replaced with a painted imitation. Close-studding and ornamental square panels are visible on the cross-wing, while the remaining areas are characterized by six square panels from sill to wall-plate, the ground floor of the north front having been refaced.

The interior contains good moulded ceiling beams and traces of a stone fireplace with moulded jambs, although the lintel is a 20th-century reconstruction. A doorway with a flat ogee-shaped head and 17th-century panelling, featuring a fluted frieze, is located in the cross-wing. A fine late 17th or early 18th-century staircase with turned balusters is also present.