Pennypot Cottage

Pennypot Cottage is a vernacular timber-framed house situated on Pennypot Lane in Chobham. The building comprises a central core of early 17th-century construction consisting of two and a half bays, with a late 17th-century bay added to the west and a late 18th-century bay added to the east. Mid and late 20th-century additions including a porch, gabled extension to the east, square bay projection on the ground floor of the south front, and large extensions to the south-east are not considered to be of special architectural interest.

The cottage is constructed with a timber frame and painted brick infill on a rendered plinth. The roof is covered with plain tiles and features an external brick chimneystack at the west end and a ridge chimneystack towards the eastern end.

The original plan was probably that of a two-bay end chimneystack house or smoke bay house, subsequently extended by one bay at each end. The building is arranged over two storeys with four rooms to the first floor and currently two rooms to the ground floor. Fenestration is irregular, comprising mainly casements with wooden surrounds and some metal casements with leaded lights.

The north elevation displays corner and three irregularly-spaced intermediate posts with a midrail and tension braces to the penultimate bay to the east, with studs remaining to the upper part. There is one gabled semi-dormer and three other windows. The west end shows framing of thinner scantling with a midrail at a different height, curved braces, queenposts and purlins visible. The east side has even thinner scantling with a partially weatherboarded gable, a two-tier six-light casement to the upper floor, and visible tie beam, diagonal tension brace and queenposts. The south side shows nearly three bays of the original building with a midrail and studs to the upper floor only and a curved tension brace to the western corner. A gabled semi-dormer lies to the west and two early cast iron windows are present. The ground floor features 20th-century casement windows and door.

Interior features include in the eastern end bay one visible old ceiling beam, some 20th-century beams and an RSJ. A trimmer on the south side accommodates a staircase, with doubling of the joist to take the board ends. The penultimate bay to the east is very narrow and contains a curved 18th-century brick fireplace with a wooden bressumer bearing rush light marks. This parlour fireplace replaced the original cooking hearth when the west bay was added. The spine beam has lambs tongue stops and four pairs of joists with diminished haunch tenons. Large 20th-century metal clamps are present at the western end of the spine beam where the former partition wall has been removed. The adjoining bay contains nine lightweight posts, six of softwood and three of elm, with an RSJ between this and the end bay. This end bay has a spine beam with lambs tongue stops and eight pairs of floor joists, with an open fireplace re-worked in the late 20th century. A circa 1950 winder staircase leads to the upper floor. The eastern room displays wallplate tie beam, queenposts and tension braces. A south corridor now connects other rooms. The penultimate room to the east has an exposed tie beam, queenpost and wallplate, with a plank door, possibly reused. The ceiling contains wattle and daub infill. The penultimate room to the west contains a partition wall with studs and slightly curved brace between this room and the western bedroom, representing the original end room of the cottage before the western bay was built. The western bedroom has visible wallplates, tie beam and a small curved brick fireplace. Pegged rafters were visible through the ceiling of the penultimate bedroom to the west, and a recent report indicates that the roof structure throughout has queenposts and collars with clasped purlins.

The building's remote location at a distance from Chobham village and thin scantling suggest it may have been a squatter's cottage on common land, or alternatively that the land was unable to support a more substantial structure. The central two and a half bays appear to be of early 17th-century date with sequentially numbered queenposts indicating this part was of single build date. Further bays were added at the western end with an external chimneystack at the end of the 17th century and at the eastern end in the late 18th or early 19th century. Local recollection indicates that in the 1920s the building was derelict with trees growing from the roof. Circa 1950 the building underwent renovation followed by the addition of an L-range to the south-east and a square bay to the south side in 1955. Further extensions to the east were proposed circa 1970, the laundry was probably extended in 1977, and a porch was added to the east side.

The cottage is designated for its substantial survival of original timber framing in the wall frame, internal partitions and roof structure despite 20th-century additions and some replacement timbers, its still-legible plan form of a two-bay end chimneystack or smoke bay house extended at each end, and for surviving decorative details including two mainly 18th-century brick fireplaces, some plank doors and original leaded light casements.