East barn at Middleton Court

The east barn at Middleton Court dates from the 17th to 19th centuries. It is a timber-framed building with a red brick underbuilding, brick nogging, a stone and brick plinth and a tiled roof. The barn is orientated north-south and is situated on the east side of a loose courtyard, south of Middleton Court. It is adjoined on the north gable by later, non-listed structures.

The barn is a five-bay, double-height structure. It has a timber frame with small box framing originally of four bays in height, standing on a stone and brick plinth. The upper boxes of the frame are infilled with red brick nogging, featuring alternating cross and diamond patterns made with blue bricks. The lower two boxes of the frame have been replaced, presumable during a conversion, to create four looseboxes with a central storage bay. This involved the insertion of stable doors with segmental arched brick heads and flat-headed louvred openings. A full-height timber door is present in the central bay on the west elevation, with a corresponding double doorway with a cambered head on the east elevation. The west elevation’s lower ground level reveals the stone plinth. The north gable is timber-framed, while the southern gable has been rebuilt in brick and contains an opening to the upper floor.

Inside, the barn is five bays long, originally with a central threshing bay and storage bays to either side. It has been subdivided to create four loose boxes on the ground floor, alongside a central storage bay, with the original floor replaced by brick and cobble paving, incorporating drainage gullies. An upper floor has been inserted into the outer bays, supported on two deep spine beams with run-out stops and regular joists. Internal partitions are made of horizontal timber boarding. The central bay is open to the roof, with a timber staircase providing access to the upper floor. The roof is likely, like the adjacent barn's, of queen post truss construction, incorporating two tiers of trenched purlins and a ridge piece.