Orchard Cottage

Orchard Cottage, located on Orwell Town Green Road, is a cottage with several building periods, dating from around 1600, the late 17th century, and the 18th century. It features a timber-framed structure that is plaster rendered, topped with a steeply pitched tiled roof. The cottage has an axial ridge stack that is rendered, along with an end stack. It consists of two bays and a crosswing, with a single bay extension from the 17th to 18th century at the northeast end. The building is one storey with an attic, and it includes three dormers fitted with horizontal sliding sashes. There is a fire insurance plaque on the gable of the northeast dormer. The ground floor has six windows, which include two hung sashes and two horizontal sliding sashes. The doorway is now located at the crosswing.

Inside, the bay at the southwest end dates from around 1600, with visible framing in the rear wall and curved downward bracing from that period. The roof was raised, and possibly a floor was inserted into this bay in the 19th century. The central bay, which has an inglenook hearth, may also retain a wall frame from around 1600, although this is not visible. The remaining wall frame is from the late 17th to 18th century and is similar in structure to the two-bay crosswing, featuring slender downward bracing and staggered studwork. The roof over the crosswing is original, constructed with clasped side purlins, and the rafters are halved and pegged at the apex, along with an original ridge piece. The bay to the northeast was added in the 18th century.