Barn At Extreme Northern End Of Burgage Plot Behind Numbers 34-37 Lower Street

This is a 17th-century barn, now used as a store, located at the extreme northern end of a burgage plot behind numbers 34-37 Lower Street in Cleobury Mortimer. The barn features a mix of coursed rubble stone and timber framing set on a stone plinth, topped with a pitched corrugated metal roof.

On the exterior, the east gable is entirely stone, with three splayed ventilation slits and quoins. The south wall is made of full-height stone on the left half, transitioning to timber framing on a stone plinth on the right, which is covered with weatherboarding and corrugated metal. The west gable is timber-framed and weather-boarded, also resting on a tall stone plinth. The north elevation features a pair of boarded doors to the left of center, with a stone wall extending to the corner.

Inside, the barn has two trusses with deep, slightly cambered tie beams, each supported by a pair of wide curved braces attached with four pegs to cut jowled wall posts. Above the tie beams, there are two short struts connecting to the collars, which are pegged to the principal rafters. The purlins are trenched into the outer edges of the principals, with a notable joint inside the entrance where one purlin resembles a chisel set into a trough. The ridge board is present, but there are no common rafters, only secondary light-scantling purlins. The wall plates are mostly intact, featuring a scarf joint above the cart entrance. The west gable end has studs rising from the cill plate on the stone plinth, with corner braces attached to cut jowled corner posts, and a pair of struts above the wall plate to the collar. The north and south walls also have studs between the cill plate on the plinth and the wall plate. The east end shows evidence of joist holes at mid-rail height.

This barn is an early example from the 17th century or possibly earlier, showcasing a beautifully crafted and complete roof structure, with stone and timber-framed walls, situated at the end of a former burgage plot behind a later listed terrace.