Higher Beers Farmhouse

Farmhouse. It was likely built in the late 16th century, with extensions added in the 17th century and alterations in the 20th century. The exterior is built from painted stone rubble and cob, with a slate roof, gabled at the right end and hipped at the left. A large rendered stack sits on the rear lateral hall wall; a brick stack is at the gable end of the rear wing. Originally laid out with a 3-room and cross-passage plan on the lower-right side, including a staircase within the cross-passage, a rear kitchen wing was added in the 17th century to the rear left end, creating an overall L-shaped layout. The roof’s structure was replaced in the 19th century. The relatively narrow inner room seems never to have been heated, separated from the hall by a thin partition wall. The lower end, divided into two rooms, remained the service area and is also unheated. The farmhouse was later converted into two cottages, with a second staircase removed from the inner room; it now operates as a single dwelling. It is two storeys high and has a four-window facade. The windows are 20th-century replacements. A lean-to 20th-century porch covers a 19th-century plank door. The front wall of the hall and inner room has been built out at a later date. Internally, two planks from a plank and muntin screen, featuring chamfered muntins and a headrail, are visible between the passage and the hall; the rest of the screen is believed to survive but is concealed. A chamfered cross ceiling beam with a single pyramid stop is found in the rear kitchen wing. A 17th-century panelled door with scratch moulding remains to the right of the fireplace. A rough, unchamfered cross ceiling beam exists in the lower end. The original hall fireplace survives, concealed behind a 20th-century one. The roof structure was altered when the thatched roof was replaced with slate.