Stables And Waggon Lodge At Park Farm

The stables and waggon lodge at Park Farm date from the early 18th century, with later additions. They are built of brick, with weatherboard at the upper levels of the granary and later work of flint with brick lacing, all under pantile roofs.

Originally two separate blocks, the stable is to the south and the waggon lodge to the north, linked by a later wall with a shelter shed on the south side, open to the east. The stable has a hipped roof and a rectangular plan. The south facade has matching two-storey blind porches at each end, each with a south-facing gable, openings in the gable, and a slightly recessed panel below, infilled with black brick. A similar decorative blind porch is on the east end. The north wall faces into the yard with two stable doors and an entrance in the west end. The interior has a 19th-century engineering brick floor and a roof with morticed collars and king posts, some of which have been replaced, along with two rows of chamfered butt purlins.

The waggon lodge is open to the north, with a granary supported by three wooden pillars, accessible via a loading door in the west wall. The east side has a hipped roof and a two-storey blind porch mirroring that of the stables. Inside, the granary floor is missing and the roof is carried on collar trusses.

A wall running along the west side is of flint with brick lacing, topped by brick courses. A central double door gives access to the shed from the roadway. The mid-19th century shelter shed has a metal king post to a softwood truss. Later 19th-century shelter sheds and loose boxes now enclose the yard.

The east ends of the stables and waggon lodge were originally designed as an eyecatcher to be viewed from the early 18th-century house, located equidistant from the early 18th-century barn across the roadway. The south facade is also decorative, with gables matching those to the east. The design is significant within the context of the picturesque movement of the first half of the 18th century, predating the later, more scientific approach to farm building design.