Besbury Cottage

Besbury Cottage is a farmhouse dating from the early 18th century. It is constructed from coursed limestone rubble with dressed quoins and features a stone tile roof with gable ends. The building has stone axial and gable-end stacks with rebuilt brick tops. The layout consists of a three-cell plan, which includes a kitchen/hall at the center, heated by a fireplace in an axial stack at the lower end of the room. There is a small inner room on the left (south) with a gable-end fireplace, and an integral outhouse at the low right (north) end, accessible from the front. In the 19th century, an outshut was added at the low end, and a porch was constructed on the east front.

The exterior is one storey and has an attic, featuring an asymmetrical four-bay east front with a small gable to the right of center. On the ground floor, there is a two-light chamfered stone mullion window to the right of center and another in the gable above, both with wooden casements. To the left, there is a two-light casement and a stone lean-to porch in between. The right side has an outhouse doorway with a plank door and another doorway in the lean-to outshut. The rear (west) side has a small gable to the left of center with a small blocked window, a two-light chamfered stone mullion window below to the right, a blocked window on the right, and a small blocked opening on the left. The south gable-end has a one-light iron casement to the right of the projecting stack, and there is a window in the north gable end above the outshut.

The interior of Besbury Cottage is largely intact. The kitchen/hall features a slightly chamfered cross-beam, a 20th-century chimneypiece in a blocked fireplace, fielded panel window shutters, and a dresser. The inner room is ceiled and has a small fireplace without a chimneypiece. There are plank doors and winder stairs beside the axial stack. The attic chambers are also ceiled. The integral outhouse at the north end has exposed joists and unplastered walls. Besbury Cottage is a rare example of a small unaltered farmhouse with an unconverted integral outhouse at the low end.