The Old House

The Old House is a large detached house on the south side of The Green in Frampton-on-Severn. Originally built in the late 15th century, it was substantially modified in the 17th century with floors inserted, further altered in the 18th century, and the front refenestrated around 1830. Major restoration work took place around 1990, when a low wing was added to the east and a two-storey wing to the west.

The building is constructed on exposed 17th-century box framing supported on six cruck pairs, exposed to the east gable, with late 17th-century brickwork to the rear. The roofs are plain tile with brick stacks. The original plan comprised six bays: a three-bay hall, a two-bay service area, and one bay solar to the east. A stack was added to the first service bay in the mid-16th century. The hall was floored in the mid-17th century, when an east wing and stair were added. The west wing dates from around 1830.

The front elevation presents two storeys with an attic to the rear wing, featuring four windows with three large gabled face dormers, probably dating from around 1830. Each dormer contains a three-light pointed Gothick casement with leading, above similar three- and five-light casements below. Either side of the main door are small four-light 17th-century windows with diagonal wood mullions. The main framing sits on a high rubble stone plinth, stepped up to two of the gabled bays. The left return displays exposed framing including a cruck pair, with a three-light casement to the first floor and a late 20th-century flat-roofed extension. The rear wall's central three bays contain gabled full-height dormers, each with a two-light casement, with a matching casement at ground floor and a central door. The low gabled service wing has a casement and a door on the return. The higher wing has a small two-light casement to the attic, above an 18th-century twelve-pane sash window and a tripartite sash to the ground floor.

Internally, six cruck blades are visible at all levels, with smoke blackening above the hall and kitchen in the former service area. The cross passage features a stone flagged floor with chamfered arched wooden heads to doorways leading to the hall and former service area, and an early winder stair to the rear right. The kitchen to the left contains large stop-chamfered beams and exposed chamfered joists, some of which are replacements, along with a wide fireplace featuring a bressummer with a bread oven, reputedly dating from around 1690 and fitted with a 19th-century cast-iron door. To the right of this is a deep recess with a splat fretted ventilator above a plank door. The parlour has chamfered joists with bar stops and a fireplace with stone cheeks and a deep replacement bressummer. The wing room retains 18th-century panelling and detailing. The winder stair includes a short length of 17th-century balustrading with turned balusters to a square newel. Various 18th- and 19th-century plank doors, some with arched wooden heads, appear to have been repositioned.

The building was formerly known as Advowson House. A finely carved 16th-century stone panel depicting Susannah and the Elders, known as the "Advowson Stone", was originally set into the rear wall. The current owners possess photographs of this plaque and are aware of restoration work carried out before its removal around 1988. A median dendrochronological date of 1498 has been postulated for the crucks, some pairs of which are believed to be black poplar.