Truggers Oast

Truggers Oast is a former maltings with an added hop kiln, likely dating from the early 18th century, with alterations in the early 19th century and a hop kiln from the early to mid-19th century. The main stowage ranges form a “T” shape. The larger range, of four bays, is timber framed in oak. The ground floor of the elevation facing the farmhouse was cut away and replaced with brickwork in a stretcher bond pattern in the early 19th century; the original ground floor may have been open. The first floor is clad in tiles. The rear elevation features pargetted plasterwork on the first floor, decorated with a pointed pattern and border created with the point and flat end of the trowel. Originally two storeys and attics, the upper floors are now missing. The roof is peg-tiled, although the tiles were not present during the survey. There are three casements with pargetted plaster aprons. The roof structure has staggered purlins with run-out stops and no ridge piece. Upright posts have jowls with cut profiles. Four openings originally accommodated diamond mullioned windows; mortise holes remain on either side of these openings, along with shutter grooves used to store hops in darkness. The first-floor frame has lath and plaster infill and some diagonal tension braces. The posts are of thin scantling and some are rough-hewn. An internal partition between the third and fourth bay has brickwork at the base, including some reused brickwork from the 16th or early 17th century. A circular hop kiln, built of brick in an English garden wall bond variant and originally tiled (tiles absent during survey), was inserted into this range in the first half of the 19th century. The “T” range appears to have been built at the same time as the larger range, and is timber framed with a base of red brick on a sandstone plinth, mainly 19th century, but incorporating early 17th and 18th century brickwork. Originally weatherboarded above, it internally contains four smaller bays with staggered purlin roofs and run-out stops to the purlins, with one bay featuring green posts. Jowled upright posts have cut profiles. Traces of smoke blackening on some roof timbers indicate possible use for smoking or firing. The building is depicted on an estate map of 1761.