Millers House And Cottage

Millers House and Cottage, now a Field Studies Centre, has 17th-century origins with alterations in the 18th and 20th centuries. The building is likely timber-framed and encased in red brick, predominantly in Flemish bond, though the central section uses English bond. It is roofed with plain tiles and comprises two storeys and an attic.

The west front is divided into Millers House on the left and a cottage on the right. Millers House is three bays wide, with the third bay constructed in English bond. It features two cross casement windows beneath segmental gauged arches, a French window to the right, and a first-floor band. Visible iron tie ends are present. Cross casement windows are located above. A wooden eaves cornice runs along the top. Hipped dormers with 20th-century windows break the roofline. A ridge stack exists, and a further stack to the right incorporates brick dated 1619. However, this stack has been rebuilt, as evidenced by a painting by John Constable in 1812 which depicts it in a different location. The cottage has a central staircase projection under a pent roof, housing a door. A casement window sits under a segmental arch to the left. A first-floor band is present, and iron tie ends are visible. Stepped and dentilled eaves run along the top, and a small, flat-roofed dormer is situated on the roof. An end ridge stack is present.

The east front of Millers House includes a two-storey staircase extension dated to the late 18th or early 19th century, projecting at the angle with the mill. It features a wooden doorcase with a Gibbs surround, a fanned keyblock, and a pediment. A 12-pane sash window is set within a flush architrave under a flat, gauged brick arch, and a 20th-century cross casement lies under a segmental arch. A plinth is present to part of the elevation, and a four-course first-floor band is visible. A 20th-century window is located above. The cottage has a plank door under a segmental arch, and a wide cambered arch to the left is partly blocked and contains a later window. A 20th-century window is positioned above. Stepped and dentilled eaves are present.

The interior of the house contains a staircase hall with a cut-string staircase featuring carved tread ends, stick balusters, slender column newels, and a ramped handrail. A domed light is situated above the staircase. Early 19th-century fireplaces are found throughout. One transverse beam exhibits stop-chamfered spine beams with run-out stops.

Flatford Mill came into the possession of the Constable family in the mid-18th century. This house is thought to have been the birthplace of John Constable, with records suggesting the family’s previous home in the village centre was not built until 1779 (Jennings). Following the death of Golding Constable, John’s father, in the early 19th century, his brother and sister, Abram and Mary, returned to live at this house. The Grade I listing reflects the building’s significance in the life and work of John Constable. The property is now leased by the National Trust to the Field Studies Council.