Middle Court and Court Hall

A house, originally divided into two dwellings, dating to the early 18th century, with extensions built between 1747 and 1796, an early 19th-century refurbishment, and early 20th-century alterations. The exterior is rendered, possibly a mixture of cob and stone rubble, with a two-span slate roof, gabled at the right end and hipped at the front section’s left side. There are stacks on the right end, axially, and laterally on the front left.

The building’s form reflects a complex evolution. Some elements may predate the early 18th century, and the subsequent division of the house along the line of the later extension has altered the function of some rooms. Originally of double-depth plan with three rooms wide, a block was added to the left end in the early 19th century, creating a four-room width. The principal entrance to the Court Hall is in the third bay from the right, leading to an entrance hall; the entrance was moved from the second bay from the right in the 20th century. A second entrance to the left-hand house leads into the early 19th Century addition.

The two-storey facade has an asymmetrical three-by-four window arrangement, featuring a regular pattern of probably late 18th-century twelve-pane sash windows. A distinctive doorcase with Doric columns, a cornice, and a swan-neck pediment is located in the third bay from the right. Photographs from the early 20th century reveal the pediment to be a 20th Century addition. The right return, which appeared blind in late 19th-century photographs, now has a probably Edwardian first-floor canted bay window with timber sash windows and glazing bars, and two round 20th-century windows on the ground floor. A tall stone rubble garden wall with square gate piers adjoins the right return and extends around the garden to the south-west.

The right-hand house features a plaster cornice and a segmental arched recess with a moulded architrave and plaster rosettes on the ground floor. The rear right room has a reeded plaster moulding on the ceiling, set within panelled areas flanking boxed-in crossbeams; the beams may predate the 18th century. Stained-glass windows, probably from the early 20th century, are present. The left-hand house retains a plaster cornice in the right-hand room. The staircase appears to be Edwardian. A print from 1747, owned by the current owner, depicts a four-bay house (corresponding to the present right-hand dwelling), while a watercolour from 1796 portrays the present seven-bay arrangement but lacks the left-end block.

The site was occupied as early as 1512. The historian Polwhele is believed to have resided there between 1782 and 1793, and the house is illustrated in his history of Devon. In the early 20th century, it was used as a private mental asylum for women.

A handsome building with a long and complex history, situated in the centre of Kenton. The building has group value with the other houses along Mamhead Road.