Ebberly Lawn (Terrace)

Ebberly Lawn is a terrace of eight houses, now largely divided into flats, built in 1794 (as indicated by a datestone) and subsequently altered. The houses are of mass wall construction, originally stuccoed, though much of the stucco has been replaced with later render. They have slate roofs behind a parapet, brick stacks with some old pots, and cast-iron rainwater goods. The terrace fronts onto a lawn, with a private entrance off Bear Street. A later terrace, numbered 9-18, was built opposite.

The houses are larger at the ends, with entrances on the returns. One house (No. 7) was inspected; its plan shows a single room width, two rooms deep, with stairs rising axially between the front and back rooms from an entrance passage leading to a rear service door within a rear service wing.

The terrace is symmetrically designed, though some variations are now visible. The window range is 1:2:2:1.5:1.5:2:2:1. A coped parapet rises centrally to form a frame for “Ebberly Place” in raised capital letters, incorporating the datestone. A moulded cornice sits below the parapet, with paired pilasters to the range and further paired pilasters between houses 3 & 4 and 6 & 7. Doorways originally had a round-headed or segmental-headed form, with recessed six-panel doors, fielded panels, and fanlights with spoke glazing bars. Ground-floor windows are sashes with shallow segmental-headed recesses above, intended for blind fanlights with spoke glazing bars. Nos. 7 and 2 likely have later ground-floor canted bays; the bay to No. 2 incorporates shafts with carved capitals. No. 3 features a nowy-headed three-light ground-floor window with a moulded surround. The original window forms are now unclear, as they have been replaced with a variety of timber sashes, some with small panes and others with plate glass. No. 1 shows a symmetrical three-bay return elevation with a dentil cornice, small-pane tripartite sashes, and a gabled glazed porch. No. 8 has a bowed bay on its return wall. Various flat-roofed dormers are present.

Inside No. 7, original joinery has been preserved, including a stick baluster staircase. Other interior features may also be of interest.

A plaque indicates that W.R. Lethaby, who started his architectural career in Barnstaple, lived at No. 2.