Friday Cottage

Friday Cottage, Henley on Thames

A timber-framed range of two storeys occupying the eastern two bays of a larger jettied structure on Friday Street. The building dates from the early to mid-15th century, with later extensions and major renovation in the mid-20th century.

The range was originally built as part of a single construction with Old Timbers (Nos. 67-69 Friday Street), forming a six-bay structure. Friday Cottage comprises the eastern two bays of this range. The original purpose of these buildings is unclear, but they likely provided warehouse space connected to Henley's river trade. Smoke-blackening of roof timbers in adjacent sections indicates some early additional use, either for domestic accommodation or possibly as a malt-house. By the late 19th century, a large malt-house extension had been built to the rear, and the properties were associated with Greys Brewery. Friday Cottage itself appears to have been in domestic use from at least the mid-19th century.

The exterior displays typical 15th-century timber-framed construction with jettied upper storey. The ground-floor framing has been much renewed with modern brick infilling and two bay windows built out beneath the jetty, though four original wall-posts survive with pilaster profiles and curved jetty brackets supporting the joists. The first-floor framing comprises large rectangular panels with long arch braces and plaster infill. The steep-pitched roof is covered in plain clay tiles with mid-20th-century chimney stacks. All doors, windows and external openings date from the mid-20th-century renovation. A gabled rear extension, possibly of late 17th or early 18th-century date, is constructed with light timber framing.

The interior of Friday Cottage was not accessible at the time of survey but is believed to be of similar construction to the adjacent Old Timbers section. The building retains its early structural timber frame, though much of the external walling and part of the roof structure were renewed during the mid-20th-century renovation.