Ruins Of Stevenstone House

ST GILES STEVENSTONE PARK SS 52 19 IN THE WOOD 17/221 Ruins of Stevenstone House - GV II

Ruins of mansion. 1872-73 by the Honourable Mark George Kerr Rolle on an ancient site; reduced in size circa 1914; abandoned since circa 1945. Grey-coloured snecked stone with with cream-coloured limestone detail, rendered brick internally ; brick and stone stacks with snecked stone chimneyshafts with limestone coping; no roof, formerly slate. Plan: Ruined mansion. The entrance front faces east-north-east, say east. It is said to be the original front rebuilt further back when the eastern half of the house was done away with circa 1914. The interior walls have collapsed and are much overgrown and therefore a description of the layout of rooms is not possible here. Nevertheless it is clear than the principal rooms were those on the south and east sides. Service rooms were increasingly concentrated in the north-western corner and a service block connecting that corner, northwards and connecting to the service courtyard (now called Stevestone Court), has been demolished. Formerly 2 storeys with a basement. Exterior: The ruined walls are very overgrown and rarely stand their full height. A 3-storey turret and stack stand high and relatively intact in the south-west corner and a large projecting lateral stack dominates the east front. The windows have limestone ashlar architraves and the most prominent have curvilinear pediments filled with the carved Rolle arms. Eaves cornices and chimneyshaft cornice are limestone modillion friezes. The east (entrance) front has an irregular 5-window front interrupted by the projecting stack right of centre. The doorway is central. Partly collapsed flight of steps to remains of stone ashlar shallow porch; external bands of rusticated stone and panelled interior. The south front, overlooking the deer park, has a 4-window front. The right end window here is a projecting bay window with very large windows. According to the owner he has a pre- 1914 photograph showing this bay window is central. Interior has completely collapsed although here and there the walls are still plastered and one room in the south-west corner has the remnants of a moulded plaster cornice including a modillion frieze. All the carpentry, joinery and other fixtures and fittings have been removed. These are the ruins of the Rolle mansion whose occupants shaped the surrounding landscape in the late C19. They were then the largest landowners in Devon and this was one of their 2 major houses. The legacy of Mark George Kerr Rolle is imposed on just about the whole parish of St Giles in the Wood.

Listing NGR: SS5271419290