Old Brewery House

Old Brewery House

An early to mid-17th century house, possibly incorporating an earlier core, that has been altered and extended certainly in the later 18th century and around 1840, refurbished in the 1960s and around 2010.

The building comprises three distinct structural phases visible in the external fabric, separated by straight joints. The north section is predominantly in red brick with timber lacing; the south section is in brick; and the inner section is in coursed clunch blocks with red brick dressings and an eaves level raised in red brick. The building has plain tiled roofs, with cladding replaced around 2010 to replicate the previous roofs.

The main range appears to be a 17th century lobby entry plan house, possibly incorporating elements of an earlier building, arranged in two storeys. The northern section has a lower ridge and comprises two bays, though the structure of the north-west gable wall suggests this was originally a lateral rather than end wall. This northern bay is shallower, with the roof extending over the new rear wall. Attached structures related to the brewery have been demolished.

The central and southern sections are in three structural bays with a large internal stack between the central and southern sections. Blocked entrances suggest a lobby entry plan arrangement. A truss of an earlier roof structure remains, either from a previous building or from substantial rebuilding work. The southern section appears to have been rebuilt or refaced in the 18th century and has a half-hipped roof. Originally of one-and-a-half storeys, the core bays were raised to two full storeys in the late 18th century.

At right angles stands a range of service buildings, including a former domestic brewhouse and bakehouse, extending from a lower one-and-a-half storey rear wing with a catslide roof on the inner, northern side. Attached to it is a lower single-storey range, with a smaller outhouse beyond.

The northern section has structurally a brick construction with timber lacing, probably the remains of light scantling timber framing infilled or replaced in brick. The entrance in the right-hand bay has a four-panel door beneath a flat canopy on shaped brackets. Windows are early 21st century two, three and four-light timber casements with square leaded lights in rectangular openings; the façade, fixtures and fittings were refurbished around 2010.

The central section has two window bays with a blocked opening to the right, almost opposite the stack, and a continuous clunch and red brick plinth. Ground floor openings have flush red brick openings beneath cambered arched heads with blue brick dressings and stone keystones. The keystone of the left-hand ground floor window is carved with apotropaic marks to ward off evil. First floor openings are set high under the eaves, which are cogged on both west and east elevations. The left-hand junction has red brick quoins. Windows are three-light metal-framed casements in timber architraves. The brick stack is square on plan with a moulded base and cap.

The right-hand section is of red brick in Flemish bond with flush blue brick dressings and a moulded brick plinth. It may also have been raised in height at the eaves, as the brick coursing is not consistent. It is inscribed WJ 1777 to the right of the left-hand ground floor window, and also has other undated initials scratched into the brick: AK, AW, IT, TM, WF. These have not been identified, though the initials IT appear on a nearby building. The left-hand windows are of two lights, the right-hand windows of three lights. Between is a blocked opening, with this and the adjacent window and openings beneath flush cambered arches. It has been suggested that the southern bay was rearranged to create a symmetrical room when viewed from inside.

The northern section was extensively repaired in 2010 when the internal plan was modified and the roof structure rebuilt.

The ground floor of the central section has been subdivided in the 20th century. The principal space has a chamfered spine beam and joists, recorded in 1997 as having lambs' tongue stops. It has a large brick chimneystack, opened up in 2010 to reveal an inglenook fireplace that has been restored. The section to the north has a flat-sectioned axial beam, and a light scantling partition wall separates it from the later northern section.

The fireplace opening in the southern room has a steeply cambered bressumer with large mortices on the underside, suggesting it is a reused collar from a late medieval roof. Within the chimney breast is a blocked opening with a narrow two-panel door giving onto the rear passage. The rear wall has been exposed to reveal straight, slender timber lacing infilled in stretcher bond brick. The south-facing window architrave does not align with the external opening. Early 21st century stairs rise to the rear of the bay, although historically stairs were located within this section of the house. First floor fireplaces have simple cambered brick arches.

On both floors there is a notable assemblage of iron-framed casements in timber frames, most with quarter ovolo moulded mullions, one with a cyma moulded frame, some repaired historically. Most casements have their original saddle bars, cames and leaded lights, some with shaped heads; most have sprung pigtail catches and plates and spiral or quadrant moulded stays.

The main roof is of clasped purlin construction, mostly with raking queen struts and a ridge piece, and although some joints are numbered, it incorporates reused material. However, the truss adjacent to the stack has a cambered tie beam and queen posts suggesting the survival of an earlier roof. An internal partition of wide horizontal boards remains in place. The roof was repaired in 2010 when the roof over the northern section was rebuilt.

The southern service wing, formerly the brewhouse or bakehouse, has a small brick stack with a shallow brick arch to the oven.

A single-storey kitchen added to the north-east corner of the house in 2010 is not of special interest.