Walton Hall Farmhouse

Farmhouse. Dating from the 15th century, it was remodelled in the late 16th or early 17th century, with later additions and alterations. The building is timber frame, rendered and clad with iron sheeting, with sections rebuilt in brick, and has graded slate roofs. Originally an open-hall range of five framed bays, it was floored over in the late 16th or early 17th century, and a two-storey porch was erected in front of the through-passage. A long cross-wing, apparently of four bays, projects to the right.

The hall range has a 16-paned sash window to the left and a 19th-century segmental-headed four-light casement window to the right, above the overhanging two-storey gabled porch. Gable eaves dormers are located to the left and right of the porch; the left dormer has paired sashes and the right appears to be timber-framed behind the render. The porch has two mid-19th century casements directly below the eaves, and inner and outer doorways aligned with the through-passage. The inner doorway has a massive plank and muntin door; a similar door is in the same position on the back wall. The cross-wing has two mid-19th century segmental-headed cast-iron casements and a gabled eaves dormer to the left.

A prominent red brick ridge stack with four attached and rebated shafts of star section stands immediately to the right of the porch and slightly to the left of the hall range. An internal end stack is located to the left of the hall range. The cross-wing has a large external stone and brick stack to the back wall, with three attached and rebated shafts of star section.

The interior timber frame is largely covered by wallpaper, however, the main ground-floor room (the former hall) has a massive chamfered cross-beam with ogee stops and heavy flat joists. Deep-chamfered ceiling beams are also present in the former service end to the left of the through-passage. The far left room has an inset 18th-century walnut wall cupboard in the corner. The massive stack to the right of the through-passage contains infilled inglenook fireplaces; the fireplace facing the passage has a chamfered wooden lintel with straight-cut stops. The position of an original ladder-type staircase is visible to the rear of the stack. The present oak winder staircase in the porch, cutting through the wall-plate, is likely an insertion from the late 17th or early 18th century. Plank and muntin doors with pointed strap hinges are found on both floors. The far right room of the cross-wing (the present kitchen) has a massive chamfered beam ceiling supported by a carved timber post. A 19th-century cast-iron cooking range is also present. Two roof trusses of the open-hall range are exposed to the right of the stack, featuring massive tie beams (the right-hand one with a pronounced camber), vertical and raking struts to the collars, double purlins, and straight windbraces. Three late 16th-century doorways were cut into the tie beams, two now infilled. The double-purlin roof of the cross-wing has not been inspected.