Lower Grinsty Farmhouse

Lower Grinsty Farmhouse is a timber-framed farmhouse, now a house, dating back to approximately 1600, with a restoration undertaken in the late 20th century. It is constructed with timber framing, painted brick infill, and a brick base, featuring plain tiled roofs. The building has a hall and cross-wing plan; the hall consists of a single framed bay aligned east to west, and possesses a large external chimney with tiled offsets on the south side. A two-bay cross-wing is situated at the west gable end.

The farmhouse is two storeys and has an attic. The timber framing primarily features four panels from sill to wall-plate, with short straight braces in the upper corners. It includes collar and tie-beam trusses with four struts beneath the collar; the hall truss has a V-strut above the collar, and the north cross-wing truss has a single central strut in the apex. The framing on the north gable end is more substantial than elsewhere, reflecting it would originally have been the display front. Windows are 20th-century casements with leaded lights.

The north elevation has a 3-light window on the ground floor and a 2-light window on the first floor in the hall section. A lean-to porch, built on timber posts, is situated adjacent to the cross-wing, positioned in the original cross-passage location, although the current doorway is in the adjoining cross-wing wall. The cross-wing gable end has blocked original openings and a single-light ground floor window. The east side elevation includes a 2-light ground and first floor window, with a 20th-century door in the angle with the hall. The interior has not been inspected.

An inventory dating from 1617 suggests the farmhouse served as an extension, or "forechamber," to The Hall House nearby. The Hall House was altered to become the dining hall and parlour of the farmhouse, while the farmhouse itself comprised a buttery and four separate chambers. Alternatively, the 1617 inventory might refer to the farmhouse alone, and the "hall house" may refer to the hall within the building, with The Hall House subsequently becoming an outbuilding. The farmhouse and The Hall House together represent an unusual and remarkably well-preserved domestic group of considerable historical interest.