144, THE STREET

This is a house dating to the late 16th century, located in Stoke Ash. It is a timber-frame structure, now plastered and colourwashed, with a pantile roof and brick stacks projecting centrally and at the right end. The house likely began as a three-unit lobby-entry plan, but is now a two-unit dwelling. The front elevation has a two-window arrangement on the first floor, featuring a diamond mullion window to the left and a single-light window to the right, with another single-light window on the ground floor between them. The ground floor also has a two-light casement to the left, a French window and a two-light window in the centre, and a three-light casement to the right. A door is located on the right end, above which sits a diamond mullion window, and a large projecting stack is present. Further windows are found at the rear, including two diamond mullion windows, the first-floor one largely original.

Inside, the timber framing is visible up to wall plate level, exhibiting tall panel framing, jowled corner posts, diagonal braces, and massive intermediate posts. There are framed gable ends, partition walls, and chamfered bridging beams with wide, flat rafters. A central stack features back-to-back open fireplaces, and a winder stair is also present.

While the roof level may have been altered at a later date, the house otherwise remains substantially intact, with heavy timbers, fireplaces, and the unusual survival of diamond mullion windows. The original frame may have included surviving elements in the adjacent property, which has not been inspected.