Manor Farmhouse Including Remains Of Linhay At Rear

Manor Farmhouse, now a house, with the remains of a linhay at the rear, stands on Fore Street, Barton, Torquay. The core of the building dates to the early 16th century, with significant alterations made in the late 16th/early 17th century and around 1730, alongside later repairs and alterations in the late 20th century. The construction primarily uses plastered cob, with a thatched roof, half-hipped at the left end and fully hipped at the right. Axial stacks are present, including one with a plastered shaft to the right of the centre, and a further stack at the right end.

Originally an open hall house with a through-passage, the plan initially comprised a 3-room layout, including an open hall and a floored inner room, alongside a lower end which might have been unheated. During the late 16th/early 17th century, the hall was floored. Around 1730, the lower end was remodeled as a smart parlour, featuring a corner fireplace in the rear right corner, with a subsequent re-roofing of this section. A small rear right wing, set at a right angle to the main structure, may have been added at this time. A late 18th-century outshut behind the higher end likely served as a dairy.

The exterior presents an asymmetrical 2-window front. First-floor windows are 2-light casements with 6 panes per light, with eyebrowed thatch eaves above. A shallow, projecting porch with a lean-to slate roof provides access to the through passage, featuring a late 20th-century plank door in a vernacular style. Ground-floor windows include a 3-light casement to the left (6 panes per light) and a 2-light casement to the right (3 panes per light). The rear linhay remains, characterized by cylindrical stone rubble piers and a modern roof.

Inside, the original open hall phase is discernible in the roof, containing a sooted side-pegged jointed cruck truss with a mortised collar and original purlins and rafters, now beneath a later roof. Heavily-sooted timber infill is present between the hall and inner room trusses. Evidence of the late 16th/early 17th century alterations include an inserted hall fireplace with a timber lintel and stone jambs, and a stack backing onto the passage. Chamfered cross beams, featuring step stops, are visible in the hall and inner room, with the partition between the hall and inner room now missing. A portion of a plank and muntin screen separating the passage from the lower end remains. The 1730s remodelling is demonstrated by a 2-panel door, a corner cupboard, and an angle fireplace in the parlour, located in the lower end room. A single 2-panel door is present on the first floor. A late 20th-century staircase, replacing an earlier one, rises from the passage. The roof over the lower end is said to be of 18th-century character.

The remains of the linhay feature cylindrical stone rubble piers and a modern roof. This is a good example of an evolved house of late medieval origins, particularly notable in an area primarily developed in the 19th century.