Parsonage Cottage

Parsonage Cottage is probably of mid-to-late 16th century origin, with extensions and division into two dwellings occurring in the early 17th century. Further alterations and conversion to a single dwelling took place in 1890, with 20th-century modifications also present. The cottage is timber-framed with brick panels painted white, and has a plain tile roof, half-hipped at the left end and gabled to the right. A central, axial stone stack features a pair of later brick shafts; a crease moulding on the stack suggests the roof was originally thatched, and a later brick stack is set against the right-hand gable-end.

The plan consists of a lateral range of three rooms, the right-hand and central rooms forming the original house. These rooms are heated by back-to-back fireplaces within the axial stack, which may have been inserted into a central smoke bay. A lobby with a blocked doorway facing the street sits in front of the stack. The right-hand end room was added in the 17th century and was originally unheated, later being converted into a kitchen with an added fireplace. A straight flight of stairs is at the rear.

The exterior is single-story with an attic, and has an asymmetrical front. An original blocked entrance doorway has a segmental-arched head on the left, with a later doorway containing a vertical plank door in the centre. A single casement is to the left of the doorways, and two double casements are to the right; all have glazing bars and are 20th-century replacements. An early 20th-century canted bay window is at the left-hand end, with a 20th-century metal casement above in the half-gable. A small projecting brick stack is at the right-hand end. The rear features a gabled dormer, a 20th-century brick porch, and 20th-century casements.

The interior of the left-hand room has later exposed joists and a large stone fireplace with the lintel removed. The central room features a chamfered bridging beam with straight cut stops, broad chamfered joists with diagonal stops, and an ashlar fireplace with chamfered jambs and a lintel bearing incised circles. The right-hand wall has a deeply chamfered rail and a jowelled post at the rear. The small right-hand room has rough exposed joists and a partition at the rear for the staircase and bathroom. The roof contains very large purlins. A principal rafter in the putative smoke-bay was cut short when the stack was inserted and shows signs of smoke-blackening. The cottage is an early example of the lobby-entrance plan for the area.