Tallow Court

Granary or warehouse possibly built in the C15.

MATERIALS: timber framed with a rendered brick ground floor and pantile roof covering.

PLAN: the building is rectangular on plan and forms part of a long line of buildings running east-west between Nene Quay and the High Street.

EXTERIOR: the two-storey building has a pitched roof and was originally jettied. The moulded jetty rail is still partially exposed at the north-east corner of the building, along with seven floor joists, but otherwise the ground floor has been extended outwards in line with the upper floor. The principal north elevation has, at the eastern end, a rendered brick ground floor with an off-centre large, C20 double-leaf timber door. The upper floor is close studded, with exposed rafter feet at the eaves, and has two vertical plank timber doors. The middle section of the building has a brick ground floor with a large C20 double-leaf timber door. It is not clear whether the timber frame survives on the upper floor as it has been clad in weatherboarding. The next section, at the western end, has a large C20 double-leaf timber door and a weatherboarded upper floor pierced by a small C20 window.

The east gable end has a plank and batten door and a weatherboarded upper floor. This has a small opening with a vertical plank door. The ground floor of the rear elevation bears evidence of considerable repair/ rebuilding with three phases of brickwork. The upper floor is clad in corrugated iron, as is the central section of the roof.

INTERIOR: the building is divided into two main sections. The western end has been converted into domestic use and was not available for inspection; and the eastern section used for storage has been divided into two rooms by a C20 partition of timber panels. The eastern side of this has an inserted ceiling and one substantial bridging beam set diagonally across the ceiling. The western side has a chamfered bridging beam supported by posts, one of which is jowled, and substantial joists, some of which appear to have been replaced. The westernmost joist has mortices on the soffit indicating a former wall partition.

The upper floor is accessed via a hatch in the eastern side which was inaccessible during the site visit so the description is based on photographs taken in June 2015. These show a Queen post roof truss with purlins strengthened by wind braces. This type of truss is not commonly found until the C17 so it is likely that the roof has been rebuilt. Some of the rafters have been replaced and strengthened with slender timbers. Close studding with brick infill is exposed on the north and south walls, the former also has a tension brace, but it is not clear if any framing survives on the east and west gable walls.

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 03/12/2015