Fern Cottage, Dovetail Cottage

Fern Cottage and Dovetail Cottage are a group of three cottages, originally a single house, likely dating to the early 17th century or earlier, with extensions added in the 20th century. The external walls are constructed of whitewashed stone rubble, possibly incorporating some cob. The thatched roof has gabled ends; the right-hand end of Fern Cottage has been re-covered with asbestos tiles. The house has gable end stacks, with the left-end stack rebuilt in brick, the right-end stack heightened in brick, and a front lateral stack featuring a tall stone rubble shaft with slate weathering and set-offs.

The original plan consisted of three rooms and a cross passage. The left-end room and the inner room at the right end each have gable end stacks, and the hall has a front lateral stack. The house was later divided into three cottages: No. 3 occupies the lower end room and passage, incorporating a modern straight staircase; No. 2 occupies the central hall; and No. 1 (Fern Cottage) occupies the inner room, with a 20th-century two-storey extension to the higher end, along with single-storey outshuts at the front and back. Single-storey outshuts also project from the rear of Nos. 2 and 3.

The south-east facing front has an asymmetrical arrangement of four windows. It features 19th-century two- and three-light casements with glazing bars, and a 20th-century plate glass window where a doorway once stood. No. 3 has a 19th-century six-panel door, and No. 2 has a 20th-century glazed door, with the projecting lateral stack to its right. Fern Cottage at the right-hand end has a 20th-century glazed porch on the side of a 19th-century outshut projecting from the front of the extension.

Inside No. 1 (Fern Cottage), the former inner room has exposed later joists, a 20th-century fireplace, and a 20th-century straight staircase replacing a former stone newel staircase. No. 2 (the former hall) was not inspected, but is reported to contain a large fireplace within its lateral stack. No. 3, at the lower end, has a fireplace with a timber lintel and concealed ceiling beams. The roof is approximately late 18th century in date, with roughly fashioned collars halved, lapped, and pegged to straight principals. The rear elevation has not been inspected.