The Bridge House At South West Corner Of Bridge

The Bridge House, located at the southwest corner of the bridge in Little Hadham-on-Ash, is a house with origins dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries. The western part of the house was extended in the 17th century, while the eastern part underwent significant expansion and remodeling in the early 18th century. A southwest rear wing was added, and the house was uniformly refronted in the late 19th century. Inside, the plasterwork in the Pink Room is said to be from the 1920s, and an oval plaster panel on the front displays the dates '1500 1726'.

This two-storey house with attics features four windows and is timber-framed with plaster. It faces north and has steep old red tile roofs, with a double gable on the east side and a catslide extension at the west. There are two gabled dormers high on the front roof and three large gables with windows at the rear. The front is cased in painted brickwork beneath a projecting upper floor, which has panelled pargetting, coved eaves, and black-painted borders. The windows include 18th and 19th century two-light flush casements, with recessed 19th century casements on the ground floor. The entrance door is panelled and off-centre, topped with a small tiled hood.

Inside, the spacious entrance hall occupies the eastern end of the older front range, featuring remnants of a former black and white marble floor in a closet. At the rear, two Tuscan columns screen a fine early 18th century well stair that rises to the attics, complete with a swept moulded handrail, cut and decorated string, and three balusters per tread designed as Tuscan columns with dies. The attic flights have an uncut string.

The northeast drawing room, located in the higher-ceilinged 18th century eastern extension, is elaborately decorated with a heavy modillioned cornice, moulded dado and skirting, and a carved wooden chimneypiece with an eared surround, projecting corbels with paterae, and a fretted frieze. The cornice features pierced dentils. There is a six-panel door with a moulded architrave and sash windows with six-over-six panes in the projecting eastern bay. Both floors have early 18th century two-panelled doors with HL hinges, while the attics contain edge-moulded stile plank doors with strap hinges. The northwest part has a single-framed collar rafter roof, while clasped purlin roofs are found elsewhere. A separate steep winding stair is located in the shallow two-storey lean-to southwest extension. The house is a prominent feature at the eastern entrance to the village.