South Hole Farmhouse

South Hole Farmhouse is an early 17th-century farmhouse, with a 20th-century addition. It is constructed of rendered cob and stone rubble walls, with a gable ended roof covered in asbestos slate. Brick stacks are located at each end of the house and offset from the ridge.

The original plan comprises three rooms and a through passage, with the lower end situated to the left. A hall stack backs onto the passage, while the inner room is heated by a gable end stack. The lower room also features a gable end fireplace, although this may be a later addition. A newel stair is located within a projection to the rear of the hall. An integral wing extends to the front of the inner room, primarily serving as a barn, but with a chamber on the first floor that was accessible from the house. The lower level of this wing was incorporated into the house in the late 20th century, having previously been used for non-domestic purposes. A 20th-century lean-to has been added to the rear of the lower end.

The front facade is asymmetrical and features a three-window arrangement achieved with late 20th-century two-light casements. Three lights are present on the ground floor, the right-hand one being an earlier 20th-century replacement. An early 20th-century French window is visible on the inner face of the wing. A 20th-century lean-to porch is positioned at the centre of the front, leading to a wide, late 20th-century plank door. The barn at the end of the wing has a central cart entrance on its inner face, featuring a 17th-century chamfered wooden doorframe and buttresses on either side.

The interior retains a complete suite of 17th-century joinery, including original chamfered and hollow step-stopped door frames between the passage and hall, and hall and inner room, as well as at the foot and head of the stairs and several others on the first floor, including one leading to the chamber over the wing. Several doors are original plank. The hall’s open fireplace has a rebuilt brick arch and a good 19th-century chimneypiece. Close-spaced ceiling beams are present. A 17th-century plank and muntin screen, with chamfered muntins displaying hollow step stops, is located at the higher end of the hall, accompanied by a contemporary built-in bench with a decorative finial. The inner room’s fireplace features a chamfered wooden lintel and a herringbone pattern on the back wall.

The original roof structure remains intact over the entire house, consisting of four pairs of substantial straight principals with trenched purlins and curved collars, halved on with dovetail joints. A similar truss exists over the wing. The timbers appear darkened but not smoke-blackened.

This represents a complete example of a high-quality 17th-century farmhouse, notable for its integral attached barn wing.