Cust Hall

This is a house, primarily dating from the 16th century, with alterations made in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is timber-framed, with some plaster, exposed timber framing, painted brick cladding, and a roof of handmade red clay tiles. The house is composed of two main ranges: a three-bay range aligned approximately north-south, facing east, with external chimney stacks to the north and west, and an internal chimney stack in the south bay. To the northwest of this is a three-bay range aligned east-west, with an internal chimney stack between the west bay and the middle bays. A small building connects the two ranges in the northeast corner. A 19th-century extension is at the south end of the main range, and a stair tower is located in the northwest angle. Single-storey lean-to extensions from the 19th century are attached to the west of the main range. The house is two storeys high with attics. The east-facing elevation is jettied with three exposed, plain brackets; the south bay is underbuilt. It features a plain boarded front door and a two-window range of tripartite sash windows with 2-4-2 lights dating to the late 19th century. The connecting block has a double-hung sash window of 16 lights on the ground floor and one of 6 lights on the first floor, both dating to the late 18th or early 19th century. The north elevation is jettied with exposed joists and studding, with underbuilding in the east bay only. The north-south range has richly moulded transverse and axial beams and joists, with exposed studding, along with 20th-century alterations, and a rebuilt 20th-century rear hearth. Originally, the roof was of crownpost construction, later rebuilt in a clasped purlin form. Evidence suggests the roof was moved from another site and reassembled here with some differences, appearing initially as a guildhall or other public building around 1500. This building was then re-erected as a domestic residence in the second half of the 16th century. The east-west range is simpler, narrower, and original to its site.