Crocker'S Farmhouse With Adjacent Farmbuildings

ST 11 SE CLAYHIDON 6/6 Crocker's Farmhouse with - adjacent farmbuildings - II Farmhouse with farmbuildings adjacent. Mid C17, possibly incorporating earlier work. Pebbledashed random rubble chert; gable end and hipped corrugated iron roofs. Originally a 3-room, through-passage plan house, the higher end to the right of the passage with a wing to the rear of the inner room; the service end (now occupied in part by the dairy) has a 2-storey range to the rear, probably used for storage, but possibly for servants' or labourers' accommodation. The plan overall therefore forms 3 sides of a courtyard. The service end and wing are of jointed cruck construction; the roof over the higher end and wing was replaced (and heightened) in the C19. At this time also the inner room was converted into the main entrance hall with stairs, and the house extended to the right by the addition of another room. Hall heated by axial stack backing onto passage; wing to rear of inner room with internal end stack with evidence of former (replaced) newel stairs adjacent. Internal end wing to C19 room. All stacks with brick shafts. 2 storeys. Exterior: front: the higher end (together with the C19 extension) forms a roughly symmetrical 3-wndow range; 1st floor with 12-pane hornless sash windows; porch with moulded cornice and solid side walls; panelled door. 5-light casement window to hall; French window to C19 extension. Service end: above the present entrance to the dairy is an early C19 3-light casement window. Some breeze block patching. Rear: service end with early C19 3-light casement window, 8 decorated panes per light; hall chamber with small window. Outer face of wing to rear of inner room with angle stair turret. The other wing with planked door with fleur-de-lis strap hinges, and a small 2-light window, the surround and mullions eroded, and probably C17. Another similar window of 3 lights to wall opposite. Outer face of the other wing with C19 and C20 2- and 3-light casement windows. Interior: service end and wing to its rear with jointed cruck trusses, side pegged; halved and pegged apex carpentry. Hall with intersecting ceiling beams form a grid of 4 panels, the beams with composite moulding (2 ovolo, 2 cavetto mouldings). Rear wing (to inner room; cross ceiling beam with ovolo moulding and filletted run-outs. End fireplace blocked, but survives concealed with bake oven and smoking chamber. The chamber above is accessible only from the end newel, and may have been labourers' accommodation.

Listing NGR: ST1532911480