Laxfield House

Laxfield House is a former farmhouse, now divided into two dwellings. The main part of the house dates back to the 17th century, with an earlier wing, approximately from 1600, projecting at a right angle to form an L-shaped plan. The main range was significantly altered in the 19th century, and around 1900, two gabled brick additions were built to the rear. The house is timber-framed, with some sections plastered and others encased in red brick, a portion of which is colourwashed. A brick on the rear of the main range is scratch-dated 1795. The later additions are of red brick. The main range has a plaintiled roof with crest tiles, while the older wing is pantiled. Scalloped bargeboards are present. The house is two storeys high with attics. Windows are mostly casements, dating from the 18th and 19th centuries, and there is one small gabled dormer window. A colourwashed brick gabled porch, built in the 19th century and featuring scalloped bargeboards, has a half-glazed 4-panel door with ogee-headed glazing bars in the door and side windows. A 19th-century door and open porch are located in the angle between the two ranges. Chimneys have rebuilt shafts with corbelled caps. Inside the main range, little of the original fabric remains. The roof, featuring stepped diminished butt purlins and a ridge piece, dates from the second half of the 17th century. The older wing has been less altered, and some of the original timber framing is visible. An original newel staircase leads to the attic. Evidence suggests that diamond-mullioned windows once existed in both gables. The roof exhibits clasped and butt purlins with 2-way wind-bracing. Within the rear addition is a fine oak overmantel dated 1631, bearing the initials ‘S’ over ‘WE’, and some carved panelling of a similar date, now used to form a dado. Notably, both the overmantel and panelling are of a different origin and were brought to the house from elsewhere.