The Brick House

The Brick House is a house built around 1570 for Thomas Brand of Lambeth, Yeoman. It underwent restoration from 1954 to 1958, with small extensions added to the north and east in the 1980s. The house is constructed of small red brick in English bond and features old red tile roofs. It is a tall, two-storey brick tower house, which is unique in Hertfordshire.

The main rectangular block has two small square towers attached at opposite corners, two large chimneys projecting from the west wall, and a tall stair tower that projects further between the chimneys. The ground floor plan includes a square hall that occupies two-thirds of the space, entered from the east. This hall is separated by a timber-framed wall from the kitchen, with a cross passage at the north end. A larder or store is located in the northeast tower, accessible from the former cross passage leading to an outside door on the north wall. There is a large oven that projects from the kitchen fireplace, and the stairway is accessed from the northwest corner of the hall, next to its wide fireplace. A small parlour with wall recesses is situated in the southwest tower off the hall.

In the 1950s, the main entrance was relocated to the south face of the northeast tower. The first floor contains the main chambers, with small rooms off in the towers, and there are four attic rooms. The projecting gables feature crow-stepped parapets and three casement windows on each floor. The windows have square heads, chamfered surrounds with labels above, and heavy two-light mullioned timber frames. Small chamfered openings, approximately 8 by 3 inches, provide light to the upper floors and the staircase tower. The west chimney displays tumbled brickwork offsets. Inside, there are exposed timbers, and the roofs feature clasped purlins with wind braces. This house is notable in the county for combining rooms suitable for a prosperous yeoman with brick walling that is not typically found at the vernacular level, along with a tower house plan.