Brookfield House

Brookfield House is a detached former farmhouse of possible 15th-century origins. It was substantially modified in the later 17th century with the insertion of a chimneystack and re-roofing, then re-fronted and extended to the south-east in 1760. A further extension was added to the south-east in 1730, a coal house extension to the north-west around 1900, a porch was added in the 20th century, and further refurbishing including a south-west extension took place in the early 21st century. The 2005 south-west garden room is not of special interest.

The building is timber-framed but has been refronted in brick, with a half-hipped tiled roof. A brick chimneystack is set into the rear roof slope, and a 19th-century external chimneystack stands to the north-west.

The oldest fabric is found in the western two bays and was possibly a hall-house with a smoke hood to the south. This building was extended to the south, a chimney was added internally, and it was remodelled in the late 17th century as a lobby entrance house, with a south-west extension added in 1830.

The principal front to the north-west is of two storeys in red brick laid in Flemish bond with cut pointing. It has a modillion eaves cornice and a band between floors. The date 1760 is picked out in black headers over the entrance, and there is a Phoenix fire insurance plaque. Windows are 19th-century casements in original openings except for two ground floor late 19th-century canted bay windows. The entrance in the penultimate bay to the south has a wide 17th-century architrave and a 19th-century four-panelled door behind a 20th-century gabled porch. The north-west end wall has a cambered opening with a 20th-century gabled porch and a 19th-century external chimneystack. Two bricks are inscribed PK 1821 and LK 1821, probably by children of the Kelsey family. The south-west or rear elevation has a catslide roof to the north, an outshot with 18th-century brickwork, a circa 1900 projection, and 19th-century casement windows. At the south end is a rendered circa 1830 two-storey extension with a gable. The south-east elevation is now concealed by the 2005 oak-framed garden room with a vaulted ceiling and full glazing to the side and end of gable.

Internally, the oldest part of the wall frame is visible in the ground floor outshot, comprising the former north-west external wall, which has timber framing of thick scantling including a curved brace. This was structurally independent of the later chimneystack. The northern part of the outshot, adapted into a bathroom, incorporates a 19th-century cast iron pump and the original floor gully is still connected to the original well outside.

The northern ground floor room (drawing room) stretches over two bays. The northern bay has un-chamfered ceiling beams of thick scantling, probably of late 15th or early 16th-century date, running north to south. The adjoining bay has a 17th-century inserted ceiling with beams running east to west. This has a chamfered spine beam and ceiling beams with lamb's tongue stops. The open fireplace was built independently of the main timber frame and lies entirely within it. It was restored in the 20th century and is of brick with a wooden bressumer and has cambered side alcoves along the south-west wall. An adjoining door of vertical boards, probably of 17th-century date, leads to an 18th-century half-winder staircase.

The south-east wall of the drawing room is an 18th-century partition wall of thin scantling with diagonal braces and incorporates a ledged plank door with 18th-century strap hinges. The adjoining passage from the front door has a wall frame with diagonal braces and thin ceiling beams running at right angles to the adjoining rooms. A two-panelled door with 17th-century L-type hinges leads into the dining room to the south, which has a spine beam with a two-inch chamfer and un-chamfered ceiling joists, originally plastered. The kitchen to the south-west, added circa 1830, has square ceiling joists of thin scantling and an electric servants' bells indicator. The adjoining south-east wing was added in 2005 but a ground floor room incorporates a reused beam from a bedroom.

A further staircase leads into a first floor passage immediately over the ground floor passage. The south bedroom has an exposed queen post roof with purlins and curved braces and deal floor boards. This structure continues to the rest of the front range although it is not visible in the other bedrooms as they have been ceiled. The queen posts and curved braces of this roof assembly appear to be earlier than the purlins and pegged rafters, and some roof timbers appear to be reused, including some curved braces. The bedroom immediately north of the passage has 18th-century partition walls, a tall two-panelled cupboard door with butterfly hinges to a powder closet, and a small wall safe with butterfly hinges over. This room adjoins the 17th-century chimneystack and may contain a blocked-in fireplace. The northern bedroom has partition walls and a midrail. The roof over the 1830 extension appears to be of softwood.