Hole Farmhouse

Hole Farmhouse is a house, possibly dating back to the 15th century, with significant remodelling in the late 16th or 17th century and later additions at the rear. It is constructed of roughcast stone or cob, with an asbestos slated roof, hipped at one end. Originally, it likely had a three-room and through-passage plan, though the separation of the inner room from the hall is uncertain before around 1700. A kitchen was probably located to the left of the passage, featuring a fireplace in the rear wall, with the hall to the right, its fireplace backing onto the passage. A short rear wing with a thick wall sits behind the former kitchen, potentially representing an early addition. The front of the house has four window bays, though the windows vary in size and level. Most windows are 20th century replacements, except for a few 20th century wood casement windows on the right side. The off-centre doorway has a chamfered lintel with run-out stops, and a 18th or 19th century six-panel door, with the bottom two panels flush. A porch with solid, thick side walls, a built-in seat, and a slated pent roof is attached. A thick, rectangular-section rendered stone chimney rises two stages below the roof ridge, serving the hall fireplace. A small, semi-circular oven projection is visible in the wall to the right of the porch. Inside, there is an open fireplace in the hall with a chamfered wood lintel. The ceiling features stop-chamfered spine beams with run-out stops. Evidence of a former partition to the inner room remains visible as halved studs on a lightly chamfered ceiling beam. The roof was rebuilt in the 19th or early 20th century. Further features of interest may be hidden behind plaster. A barn formerly attached to the house on the left, now incorporated into the building, is said to have had a gable inscribed with the date 1811. Axial chimney stacks are a rare feature in this part of Devon.