Crown Hill Cottage

Crown Hill Cottage

A timber-framed house dating from the late 16th or early 17th century, with 19th and 20th century additions and substantial renovation in the 1930s.

The building stands on a brick plinth, though the timber frame is now concealed beneath render. The steeply pitched roof was originally thatched but is now covered in asbestos slates. An off-centre brick chimneystack rises from the building, with its upper portion rebuilt in 1930s brickwork. The windows are 1930s wooden casements, irregularly spaced across the facades.

The plan comprises a two-cell house of one storey and attics with a jetty at the west end. The rooms on each floor are unequally sized, with a lobby entrance to the south of the chimneystack, though original access may have been to the north. The original plan has been modified by 19th and 20th century outshots added to the west, north and east sides.

The south or entrance front features two mid-20th century wooden casements with louvred shutters on the first floor, a taller similar window to both the left side ground floor and the western outshot, and a projecting 20th century central porch with flat wooden weatherhood on brackets and plank door. The east elevation has one 20th century casement to the first floor, a taller window in the 20th century western outshot and a 20th century glazed door. The north elevation has a flat-roofed 20th century dormer with casement and two taller casement windows in the rear outshot.

Internally, the oak timber frame with some chestnut studs remains visible. The south wall retains much original framing with curved down-braces and corner and off-central jowled posts to the first floor. The original west side wall has a jetty supported on curved wooden brackets, and the first floor frame features curved down-braces. The ground floor wall has been removed but the end ceiling beam retains sockets for a diamond mullioned window, with similar sockets visible in the wallplate. The original east end wall has also had the ground floor frame removed, though the supporting beam retains diamond-shaped sockets of an original window. The first floor of the east wall is intact with curved braces to the corner posts. The original external north wall retains one curved down-brace and part of another on the ground floor, with the first floor frame little altered and traces of external weatherboarding visible. The southern part of the western outshot retains some 19th century rough wall framing and rafters, whilst the remainder of the outshots are of 20th century softwood construction.

Both ground floor rooms have unchamfered floor joists, formerly covered by lath and plaster ceilings. The eastern room has a fireplace of mid-20th century date, though earlier fireplaces may survive beneath in both rooms. Access to the first floor is by a mid-20th century straight flight staircase in the south-eastern corner. The eastern first floor room retains wide original oak floorboards. The top part of the chimneystack displays visible mid-20th century brickwork; the lower part is rendered but its dimensions suggest it contains earlier brickwork. A framed internal partition stands to the west of the chimneystack, which formerly had a lath and plaster infill. The first floor was ceiled over, probably in the 19th century to provide greater headroom, but when stripped revealed the roof structure of pegged rafters and collars. Secondary softwood roof timbers were added in the mid-20th century when the thatched roof was replaced.

The 1872-3 Ordnance Survey map shows a building with rectangular plan in a large triangular plot with entrance to the south, an outshot to the west and a small attached structure to the north-west. By 1897 an outshot to the north-east had been added and the building formed an L-shape. The building underwent extensive refurbishment in the 1930s, which included covering the timber frame in render, replacing the thatched roof, rebuilding the upper part of the chimneystack and refenestration. Internally the fireplaces were modified, a new staircase was inserted and four panelled doors added. In 2008 the interior wall coverings and first floor ceilings were stripped out to reveal the timber frame.

The building retains a substantially intact timber frame including the roof structure dating from the late 16th or early 17th century. The original plan form of one storey and attics with two-cell structure, unequal-sized rooms on each floor, west jetty and lobby entrance survives despite later outshots on three sides. Significant original fabric survives including the timber frame, floor joists, first floor internal partition, original floor boards and the lower part of the chimneystack. Sockets for three original diamond mullioned windows remain visible. The building has group value with the Rose and Crown public house (Grade II).