Tordown House

Tordown House is a house with origins dating back to the 17th century, although it has been completely remodelled in the late 18th or early 19th century. The exterior features painted rendered stone and some cob, topped with asbestos slate roofs that have gable ends. There are rendered stacks at each gable end and a lateral stack at the rear, which is enclosed in a two-storey outshut. The building has a modillion cornice, and the lack of symmetry in the otherwise classical facade suggests that it has been refronted, likely covering an earlier structure. The original layout appears to have been a typical three-room and through-passage plan, with a rear lateral hall stack and an additional kitchen range added to the left gable end, which remains unaffected by the later remodelling.

The house is two storeys tall with an attic storey and features a four-window range of sashes. All windows are 16-paned except for the one above the doorway, which is 12-paned. All windows are hornless and retain their original glass. The entrance has a Doric porch with engaged columns and a dentilled cornice, leading to a six-panelled door with the upper four panels glazed and original fittings intact. This door is now enclosed by a lean-to conservatory that spans the two central bays. The kitchen range, set back to the left, has a three-light 19th-century casement with eight panes per light, along with two two-light casements above it, with six panes per light. To the right, there is a two-light casement with two panes per light. The two-storey outshuts at the rear still retain much of their original fenestration, including a round-arched stair window.

Inside, the house remains largely intact from the time of remodelling, featuring original joinery, window shutters, and a dog-leg staircase with a wreathed and moulded handrail that ramps up to slender newels. There is a painted surround to the first-floor fireplace in the outshut, and a water pump is still in use in the kitchen range. Lime ash floors are present in the service rooms. Tordown House was the home of the Reverend John Russell from 1833.