Chapman Headstone, 3 Yards North Of Church Of St Dunstan

Chapman Headstone is a barn that was later converted into a house. It dates from the 16th century and was extended in the 17th century to the southwest before being converted into a house in the late 20th century.

The building is timber-framed, clad in weatherboarding on a brick plinth. The northwestern part of the outshot is made of stone rubble. It features a plain tiled roof that is hipped with a gablet to the north and half-hipped to the south, with a deep catslide to the west. The structure has five bays, with the northern three bays being the earliest and the southern two bays having a separately framed roof and a full-length outshot to the west.

On the exterior, there are wagon doors to the east that have been glazed in, with a smaller late 20th-century wooden arched doorcase inserted in the center. The lower wagon doors to the west have been replaced by French windows. The wall frame has had several wooden casements added. The western roof slope has four Velux rooflights, a cylindrical metal chimney flue to the northwest, and a soil vent for the bathroom to the northeast.

Inside, the wall frame and roof are largely intact, featuring jowled upright posts and curved windbraces. The northern part has two tiers of purlins, with the upper ones supported by windbraces, while the southern bays have staggered purlins and a central angled queenstrut. There is a late 20th-century inserted ceiling and plastered partitions made from reused timbers, a herringbone brick partition, a brick chimney, and an inserted staircase with solid oak treads and diagonally placed balusters in the cart bay.

Historically, this building was originally a barn for Downlands Farm and was once owned by the Preston estate before its conversion into a house in the late 20th century.

The significance of Chapman Headstone lies in its well-preserved timber-framed structure from the 16th and 17th centuries. Despite its conversion into a house, the timber frame remains largely intact, giving it special architectural interest.