Tradesmans Arms Inn

The Tradesman’s Arms Inn is a public house dating from the 17th century or earlier, with significant remodelling in the early 18th century, and later extensions in the 19th and 20th centuries. The construction is primarily of plastered stone rubble and cob, with the right-hand (east) gable end covered in scantle slates. The roof is complex, with a thatched gable on the right, a hipped section with raised eaves clad in asbestos tiles on the left, and a central axial stack topped with a tall dressed slate shaft having slate weathering.

The original layout was based on a two-room plan, with the axial stack centrally positioned, originally in front of a lobby entrance. A fireplace is situated on the right side of the stack, though it’s not original, as it replaced a cross-passage that once existed to the right. A fireplace is also visible in the right-hand end wall. The left-hand room has a rear lateral stack, indicating it was not served by the axial stack. In the early 18th century, the left-hand end of the building was remodelled and raised to a full two storeys. A small shop was added to the right-hand end in the 19th century, and a single-storey outshut was built at the rear in the 20th century.

The south front is asymmetrical, displaying a 1:1:4 window arrangement. The right-hand part has eyebrow eaves over a thatched roof, featuring a 19th-century two-light casement and three late 19th or early 20th century single and two-light casements on the ground floor, all with glazing bars. A doorway is centrally positioned to the left, with a 20th-century glazed panelled door and a matching porch. To the left is a late 19th or early 20th century 12-pane sash window on the ground floor, with a 20th-century casement above, likely replacing an earlier sash. A small section connects the inn to Well Cottage and includes a 19th-century shop window with a divided plank door and a pentice with slate hanging above, featuring a 20th-century casement. The rear elevation features a projecting lateral stack with a 20th-century brick shaft, a 20th-century slate-hung bathroom extension to the left, and a 20th-century single-storey outshut.

Inside, the right-hand room has closely spaced chamfered waney cross-beams. It contains a small fireplace within the axial stack with a 20th-century timber lintel, and a disused fireplace in the right-hand end wall, hidden behind a 20th-century bar. The left-hand room boasts an early 18th-century moulded cornice and a 6-panel door in the end wall. The fireplace here has a 20th-century timber lintel. The first floor of the left-hand section has 18th-century two-panel doors. The roof structure dates to approximately the 18th century, featuring straight principals with lapped and pegged apexes. The shop at the left end has a 19th-century glazed partition with glazing bars separating the front and back rooms.