4, Fore Street

This is a late 16th-century house, extended in the early 17th century and partly remodelled in the late 20th century. It is located on Fore Street in Boscastle, adjacent to Kiddlywink and Linhay on the left and Sharrocks on the right. The house is built of rendered and painted slate-stone rubble with a bitumen-coated rag slate roof and gable ends. There are two gabled front wings with cement-washed and bitumen-coated rag slate roofs, and several early crested ridge tiles. Axial stacks, possibly originally front lateral stacks, are constructed of stone rubble.

Originally, the house likely comprised two rooms and a through passage, with the two rooms heated by front lateral stacks. Two 2-storey wings, each of one-room plan, were later added to the front of the left and right-hand rooms, and the through passage was retained.

The front elevation is almost symmetrical, with two windows and a double gable end. The ground slopes down to the left. The ground floor has an early 19th-century 12-pane hornless sash window to the left, a 20th-century stable-type door near the centre, and a 20th-century 12-pane window to the right. The first floor has a 19th-century 3-light casement on the left and a 19th-century 2-light casement on the right, both with glazing bars. The lintels to the ground and first-floor openings have been remodelled in the late 20th century.

The front room on the right was gutted in the late 20th century, and its ceiling beams replaced around the same time. The remainder of the house was not accessible for a full inspection at the time of survey, though a full inspection may aid in establishing the original date and its relationship with neighbouring buildings. It is unclear whether the house was originally part of a terrace or formed a single large house with the adjoining properties.