The Old School House

The Old School House is a building that was originally a school for girls and is now a private house. It was constructed around 1820 by Hugh Rowe, a builder from Lostwithiel, for Reverend Jeremiah Trist. The structure features slatestone rubble walls and a polygonal hipped roof that is thatched with water reed, with a chimney located over one end of the ridge. The design was intended to resemble a farmhouse plan but includes a large room based on the Madras plan, also known as Dr. Bell's system.

Initially, the building was a single storey, but an attic was converted in 1884. The north front, which faces the village center, is symmetrical and has three ground floor windows set in depressed and central arched openings, which once had shutters, as shown in an old photograph. The original glazing pattern features timber 'Y' tracery in the window heads, with pairs of opening casements below, each with six panes. The central window is located in a wide projecting bay with rounded sides, which has late doorways on either side. The original arched entrance is situated at the rear of the building.

The roof overhangs the front of the house significantly, creating a verandah that is supported by two granite columns of a broadly Tuscan style, complete with capitals and bases. A large 20th-century bay window has been inserted into the roof, where two tall dormers from 1884 once existed. The interior of the house retains part of its original layout. Hugh Rowe was also responsible for constructing five round houses in Veryan.