Osmond Cottage

Osmond Cottage is a cottage, likely originally a farmhouse, dating to the early 16th century. It has undergone alterations in the 17th century and an 18th-century wing was added. The construction consists of rendered cob and rubble walls, with a lower left-hand end wall of exposed rubble. The roof is thatched with a half-hipped design. A large rendered rubble projecting lateral stack is located at the front, featuring a brick shaft. A rubble gable stack is present on the wing.

The original layout comprised three rooms and a through-passage, open to the roof above the hall and lower room, with a central hearth. The space was ceiled around the early 17th century, and the lateral stack was added to the front of the hall at this time. A wing was added to the rear of the inner room, accessed externally with a loft above. The lower room was converted into an outbuilding at one stage, later reconverted in the late 20th century, and it is likely partially rebuilt in the 19th century.

The front facade is asymmetrical, with a two-window appearance on the first floor, and three windows on the ground floor. A 4-light, 20th-century casement is set within a dormer on the left-hand side of the first floor. The right-hand first-floor window is a 3-light, early 20th-century casement with glazing bars. Below this is a 3-light, 19th-century casement. They sit within a projection to the right of the lateral stack, which has a circular oven projection with a thatched roof extending over it to the left. A late 19th/early 20th-century plank door is located to the left of the projection, sheltered by a shallow slate porch hood. A 2-light, early 20th-century casement with glazing bars is situated to the right of the projection on the ground floor.

Internally, the hall features three chamfered cross beams with indistinct stops. The chamfered lintel of the fireplace is exposed, although a modern fireplace is inserted below. A plank and muntin screen separates the hall from the inner room, with the muntins exposed on the inner room side. The inner room has a chamfered cross beam with hollow step stops. The inner room chamber retains traces of a moulded plaster cornice. Three original trusses remain, visible on the first floor, with one pair being plastered over. Another pair are certainly jointed crucks, and the others are likely to be. Features include mortice cambered collars and threaded purlins, alongside a morticed apex and diagonal ridge. The roof space above the passage and hall is smoke-blackened throughout, affecting the common rafters and thatch. The lower end of the roof was rebuilt in the early 19th century with straight principals and lapped pegged collars, while the wing’s roof is probably 18th century. The building is notable for its combination of traditional exterior and an interior featuring a well-preserved early roof and other features, including traces of moulded plasterwork.