1, Freshwell Street

This is a timber-framed house dating to the 15th century, situated on a street corner in Saffron Walden. It has a rectangular plan with a gable facing Bridge Street, and the east elevation faces Bridge Street. The east elevation, which fronts Bridge Street, is jettied, featuring a corner angle post and bracket projecting from the plasterwork on the north side. A central ground-floor casement window with 4x3 panes is present, with a second jetty bracket to the south. Above this is a shallow-pitched, gabled oriel window with a casement featuring moulded 15th-century mullions, originally 4 lights with side lights, now fitted with simpler glazing and plasterwork below swept out to the sill. Horned wall plates are visible on either side. The north side, facing Freshwell Street, shows the shape of the jetty along its length, with a corner bracket at the east end. A 20th-century boarded and battened front door is located at the west end of the ground floor, alongside an early 19th-century sliding sash window with a moulded architrave and 4x3 panes. Above, on the first floor, there is a simple 2x2 pane casement window and a single-pane window, both at the west end. A stack rises through the roof pitch.

The interior features exposed timber framing on the ground floor, comprising two bays. A heavy diagonal dragon beam is present at the street corner, alongside common joists fanned to the corner. The north wall is timber-framed, with later additions; however, the removal of an original inner supporting wall reveals a series of carpenters’ marks (2-7, 9, 12, and 13). The east wall shows evidence of two medieval shop openings with arched heads, one to the south having lost its south post and half of the curved head, with joints remaining. Recesses and peg holes indicate the former position of original internal shutters, which were top-hung. An original stair trap is found in the southwest corner of the rear bay, with a 19th-century cast-iron grate in the front bay. The first floor has a simple 2-way braced crown post roof. The oriel window on Bridge Street was reworked in the 19th century. Original window features, including shutter grooves and sills, are visible on the Freshwell Street elevation, along with flame burn marks suggesting the former presence of a weaver's warping frame, reflecting historical weaving activity in Bridge Street. Good oak floorboards and several old, thin oak doors are also present.