Bridge House

Bridge House is a house, dating back to the 16th century. It is located on the east side of Brockford Street in Wetheringsett-cum-Brockford. It is known to have been an inn in the 16th century and a farmhouse from the 17th to the mid-19th century. The house is composed of three main sections: an early 16th-century two-cell range to the south; a mid-16th century addition in line to the north; and a mid-16th century wing to the rear (east) of the earlier work. A fragment of a further 16th-century range at the rear was shortened around 1948 and now runs corner-to-corner with the rear wing. The house is timber framed and plastered with differing roof coverings: the south range has a plaintiled roof, hipped to the south; the north range is pantiled to the front and slated to the rear; and the rear range is plaintiled to the south and glazed black pantiled to the north. It is two storeys high, with a former attic in the north range. A continuous jetty extends to the road, with a small section underbuilt, and the north range has a moulded bressumer. Windows are 20th century casements with squared-leaded glass, except for a small late 19th-century ground floor canted bay with sash windows on the south range. The front has a door with six flush panels and a large overlight. There is a fine stack at the south end of the north range, featuring three circular shafts decorated with Fleur-de-lys and saltire motifs on moulded bases. A similar stack in the rear wing has two of the shafts rebuilt in plain form, retaining the original moulded bases, while the third displays Fleur-de-lys motifs. The interior of the south range comprises a hall and service cells. The hall ceiling has heavy chamfered cross beams, originally knee-braced to the wallposts; plain joists are in the service end, which was originally two rooms. On the upper floor, the front wall has tension braces and two oriel window sills. The rear wall has two adjacent 16th-century doorways, one original, and one doorway may have led into a gallery associated with the building’s use as an inn. Framing in the south gable end shows evidence for a doorway that probably led to a garderobe. The roof was reconstructed, with later upper ceilings and replacement tie beams. The north range has close studding visible on the upper floor, though the timbers are largely concealed otherwise. High upper ceilings are present. The roof has one row of clasped purlins, two-way arched wind bracing, and evidence for two original dormers in the rear slope. The rear wing is in four bays, with good studding and evidence for diamond-mullioned windows, one of which is intact on the upper floor. The forwardmost bay has close studding and a chamfered-joist ceiling. An adjacent former smoke bay contains an inserted stack and an inserted ceiling with irregularly-chamfered joists set flat. A two-bay room at the rear has plain ceiling joists. A staircase dating from around 1800 in the rear wing has stick balusters and shaped tread-ends. Two upper fireplaces contain duck’s nest grates of a similar date.