Smugglers House Hotel

Smugglers House Hotel

A house, now hotel, situated on the north side of Rattle Street in Gorran Haven. The building dates from the early 17th century with additions of the later 17th century and alterations made in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The main structure is constructed of stone rubble, rendered and painted, with a slate roof featuring ridge tiles. The roof form is characterised by a gable end to the left and a hipped section to the right. Two chimney stacks serve the building: a gable end stack to the left with a brick shaft, and a rear lateral stack to the right with rubble and brick shaft.

The original plan follows a three-room and cross passage arrangement, possibly originally incorporating a through passage. The lower end room to the left is heated by the gable end stack, while the central room to the right of the passage appears never to have been heated. The upper end room to the right is heated from the rear lateral stack. In the later 17th century, a stair tower was added to the rear of the passage. Probably in the late 17th or early 18th century, an unheated outshut of one storey with loft was added to the rear right, abutting the stair tower. A single storey service wing was probably added to the rear left in the 19th century.

The front elevation is asymmetrical with five windows across two storeys. At ground floor, from left to right, there is a 19th century 18-pane horizontal sliding sash, a recessed doorway with a 19th century half-glazed door, a 19th century 2-light 8-pane casement with remaining pintles for external shutters, and a 19th century 3-light 8-pane casement. The ground floor windows are fitted with timber lintels. At first floor, there are two 19th century 2-light 8-pane casements, two late 19th century 4-pane sashes, and a 19th century 2-light 8-pane casement. An attic level window to the left comprises a 20th century 2-light 4-pane casement with a slate cill.

The left end is rendered with an external stack. The right end displays two 20th century windows at first floor level. At the rear, an external stack to the left is accompanied by a 20th century raking dormer to its right. The outshut to the left features a 19th century 9-pane window and plank door, a 4-pane window, and a 2-light 2-pane casement. The stair tower is gabled with the upper level constructed in rendered cob and lit by a 19th century 2-light 2-pane casement. The rear service wing to the right is single storey with a 20th century door, a 3-light 8-pane casement, and a plank stable-type door, topped by a corrugated asbestos monopitch roof. A small single storey stone rubble addition at the end has a single window.

Interior

The ground floor originally comprised three separate rooms but partition walls between the lower end room, passage, and the room to the right have been removed to form one large room. Roughly hewn chamfered beams remain alongside some moulded replacement beams. At the left end, the fireplace features a large roughly hewn cambered timber lintel with a cloam oven to the rear left. The front windows display deep splayed reveals. The room at the right end has similar ceiling beams and a rear lateral fireplace with a roughly hewn timber lintel. A cupboard under the stairs is fitted with a plank door with H hinges. The staircase is a dog-leg design, rebuilt, and extends to attic level.

At first floor, the rooms are divided by stud partitions. The room to the front right is fitted with 18th century moulded beams. A straight stair in the outshut serves the rear right area.

The roof structure displays two visible trusses at the right end; the principal rafters are roughly hewn with cambered collars pegged to the sides of the principals. Two rows of purlins rest on the backs of the principals. The remaining trusses are ceiled below the level of the collars, with the feet of the principal rafters visible.