Soham House

Soham House

A Tudor and Jacobean Revival house built in 1892 to the designs of C J Harold Cooper. The building is constructed of red brick laid in Flemish bond with stone dressings and a tile roof.

The house has an approximately rectangular plan with four south-facing reception rooms and a former service wing at the west end. It comprises two storeys with a cellar and an attic beneath steeply pitched roofs topped by tall, faceted chimney stacks. The overall style is free Tudor with asymmetrical elevations.

The principal north-facing elevation features moulded string courses at lintel level on the second floor, first-floor level, and along sill level on the first two bays of the ground floor. From the left, a recessed double-height billiard room is lit by a four-light mullion with a transom, behind which rises a triangular gable roof with ornamental timber-framed panelling and a small two-light window in a wooden surround. A projecting gabled bay follows, lit on the ground floor by a three-light mullion and single-light window, and above by a three-light mullion with a transom and another single-light window. A tiny semi-circular arch window with a gauged brick arch and three stone voussoirs lights the attic. The depressed arch front door sits in a moulded and blocked surround with a keystone containing the initials of those who restored the house in the 1990s. The elaborately carved door has four narrow arched lights and decorative strap hinges, set within a canted bay lit on the first floor by a four-light mullion. Two gabled dormer windows above have timber studs in the gable heads. To the right, the cellar and ground floor are lit by pairs of single-light windows in stone surrounds, with a tall six-light staircase window with a transom above it, the upper two lights arched at the top. A further projecting gabled bay to the right contains two two-light windows in the cellar, two cross windows on the first floor, an eight-light window with a transom on the second floor, and a small three-light window in the attic. A low service wing follows, featuring a three-light mullion, a vertical plank front door set in a blocked surround, and a two-light window, with a gabled dormer window wholly in the roof space lighting the attic.

The fenestration throughout consists of stone windows with ovolo moulded mullions with fillets in moulded and blocked surrounds; the quoins are also blocked. The gables are decorated with what appear to be tie rod plates in the shape of flamingos, although these are not an original part of the design.

The south elevation of the service wing has a replaced window, two two-light mullions, and a gabled dormer window. The short west elevation of the main house has, on the left, a single-light window on the ground floor and three-light mullions on the two upper floors, followed by a spiral fire escape. On the right, the ground floor is lit by a cross window, and there are two dormer windows flanking the chimney.

The south, garden-facing elevation is more regular than the façade and has moulded stone string courses at sill and lintel level on both floors. It features outer gabled bays lit by four-light mullions on the ground floor and five-light canted oriels on the first floor. The attic rooms are pierced by the same small semi-circular windows as on the façade. The wide central bay contains two tall six-light mullion windows with two transoms which light the galleried inner hall. Between these windows is a stone plaque carved in relief depicting a man driving a two-horse chariot. The billiard room, on the right, is blind on this elevation, and the right return is lit by a four-light mullion.

Interior

The fittings and joinery are of high quality and survive well throughout the house, although the panelling has been repaired in places and some doors and elaborate brass door furniture have been repositioned.

The principal area of interest is the suite of reception rooms which retain oak floorboards, decorative iron window furniture, service bells, and wide oak doors with four moulded panels and four small panels above, set in moulded doorframes.

The small outer hall has a depressed arched door with nine moulded panels and intricate brass lock plates and handle. It leads to a cloakroom with a red quarry tiled floor and opens into the double-height inner lounge hall, as described in the 1903 sale particulars. This space features oak panelled wainscoting with fluted pilasters where it meets the doorframes, and an incorporated display cabinet with glazing bars in a delicate pattern. The ceiling is clad in timber with exposed joists and moulded beams resting on corbels which support the gallery. The gallery has an elaborately carved balustrade spanned by a semi-circular arch with spandrels carved in relief depicting different tableaux. A marble hearth remains where a fireplace has been removed.

The drawing room to the west contains a dentilled cornice and neo-Classical style fireplace with flanking display cupboards, these not being original. To the west again, the double-height billiard room has oak panelled wainscoting and a depressed arch marble fireplace with Arts and Crafts tiles of turquoise flowers (some missing) and an overmantel consisting of two display cupboards with glazing bars in a square within a square design. The roof trusses have moulded tie beams and semi-circular arched braces supported by carved wooden corbels. The closed trusses at either end of the room are filled with panels decorated with painted flowers.

The dining room, on the west side of the house, has oak panelled wainscoting and a moulded wooden cornice. The depressed arch corner fireplace has a marble surround, moulded wooden mantelshelf and jambs, and a red tiled hearth.

Panelled wainscoting continues up the stairwell. The handsome oak dogleg stair has a panelled spandrel, closed string, and a moulded handrail supported by wide balusters ornately carved in different designs. The substantial square newel posts are surmounted by large carved finials in the form of various creatures – lion, ram, dog – each holding a cartouche.

The rooms on the first floor mostly retain eight-panelled doors in moulded frames with a pulvinated frieze. The principal bedrooms are those with canted oriel windows. That on the east side of the house has a parquet floor and a corner fireplace with a tiled inset and slate hearth; that on the west side has panelled wainscoting painted white. The cornice in the east bedroom and the bedroom in the north-west corner is probably not original.

The extensive cellar contains a wine cellar with slate shelves, a coal cellar with chute, an old boiler room with oil tank, and a white tiled room, probably for food storage. On the back of one of the plank and batten doors is written 'W. Bloyce 1915', the name of the house boy according to the census returns.