Week Cottages

Week Cottages

Row of three cottages, probably originally a single house dating from the 16th century and extended and converted into separate cottages in the early to mid 17th century, situated at Dartington.

The building is constructed of local stone rubble with cob upper sections of walls that are plastered. It is roofed with thatch, gabled at the right end and swept down over a lean-to at the left end, with eyebrow eaves over the first floor windows. There are two large stone rubble lateral stacks at the rear and a gable end stack to the right.

The original house plan is uncertain but may have comprised three rooms and a through passage, with the lower end to the right. During the early to mid 17th century conversion to cottages, the building was divided as follows: No. 1 to the right occupies the lower end, with partitions inserted to form two rooms and a central passage. It has a heated room to the right with a lower gable end stack containing an oven, and an unheated room to the left. No. 2 in the centre occupies the hall, configured as a single heated room with a rear lateral stack. The passage to the right may occupy the position of the original passage or may have extended further right into the unheated room of No. 1. No. 3 to the left occupies the inner room of the original house, enlarged to form the main heated room of a two-room cottage plan with a rear lateral stack, a newel stair to its right, a central passage, and a smaller unheated room at the left end without a chamber over. Nos. 1 and 2 have 18th or 19th century staircases on the rear walls of their left hand rooms. The outshuts at the back are probably 18th and 19th century additions.

Externally, the building is two storeys tall with a long eight-window range. The three windows to the left are set back slightly, and one window to the left is in the single storey part. Late 19th or 20th century two and three-light casements with glazing bars have been inserted. The right hand ground floor window is a 17th century two-light window with an ovolo moulded stone mullion and a hoodmould. Other ground floor windows have timber lintels, some chamfered. The four first floor windows to the right have chamfered timber lintels with pronounced camber beneath the eyebrowed eaves.

Three doorways are present: No. 1 to the right has a chamfered timber lintel with straight cut stops, a chamfered 17th century doorframe with mason's mitres, a 19th century plank door, and a 20th century slated canopy. No. 2 to the right of centre has a similar lintel, doorframe and door, with a single piece of slate for the canopy supported on old timber cantilevers and rafters. No. 3 to the left has a timber lintel with run-out stops, a plank door with wrought iron hinges, and a slated canopy on timber cantilevers. A small squint is present in the angle where the left hand extension is set back.

Internally, No. 1 to the right contains a chamfered cross-beam without stops in the right hand room and a gable end fireplace with an oven and rendered timber lintel. To the left of the entrance are the remains of a plank partition now concealed by boards. The roof is inaccessible but the feet of very steep principals are visible in the first floor rooms.

No. 2 in the centre has chamfered unstopped ceiling beams and a rear lateral fireplace with stone rubble jambs and renewed timber lintel. Circa 19th century stairs are positioned on the rear wall. Very steep straight principals with lapped collars are visible in the first floor room, and the roof space is inaccessible.

No. 3 to the left has a chamfered cross-beam with bar pyramid stops at one end only; stops at the other end are possibly buried in the wall. Unchamfered joists are present. A newel stair is positioned at the rear of the same room. The roof contains threaded purlins.