Old House

The Old House is a house with an original part dating back to 1580, built as part of the Swaynstone estate. A further section was added in the 1840s, originally serving as a buttery on the ground floor with a storeroom above. The original section is built of stone rubble with a thatched roof and a brick chimneystack. It has two storeys and three windows. Most windows are casements with cambered brick heads on the ground floor. One original stone mullioned window exists on the right-hand side, featuring a hood moulding, and two other mullioned windows are reported. A stone gabled porch was added in the mid-19th century. The right-hand addition is also of stone rubble and has a thatched roof with an end brick chimneystack. This section is single-storied with one window, also a casement with a cambered brick head. It has a gabled porch with kneelers and a round-headed doorcase. Inside, the buttery retains a central beam with hooks for hanging pork. Records from 1670 indicate that the Widow Curtis was paying rent of 16 shillings, and in 1680, she held a lease for the "tenement now called 'New House' with 23 acres of land for her life, paying a yearly rent of 12 shillings and 13 pence." At that time, the property was described as “a very good stone house and in good repair."