Tunhill Farmhouse

This is a farmhouse, originally a longhouse, likely dating from the late medieval period, with significant remodelling in the 16th century. It is constructed of granite rubble with a thatched roof, half-hipped at the left-hand end. There is a rendered stone chimneystack on the ridge, positioned off-centre to the left, and two further stone stacks in the rear wall—one rendered—at the left and right ends, likely from the 17th century. The original layout comprised a through-passage with a shippon (animal shelter) to the left and three rooms to the right. The shippon has since been divided into two rooms; it is thought a kitchen was inserted next to the passage in the 17th century. To the right of the passage is the former hall, featuring a fireplace backing onto the passage. Beyond that is a further main room with a fireplace, probably added in the 17th century, and a rectangular rear stair turret. A small, dark room is built into the hillside beyond that. The house is two storeys high, although parts of it were probably originally single-storey. There are five windows across the front. Most of the windows are 19th-century wood casements with glazing-bars, though two windows—the second from the right on the ground floor and the left-hand window on the second floor—have 20th-century replacements. The main doorway has a solid-walled porch with built-in seats; the side walls are stone, while the front wall is probably rendered brick. A second doorway is at the left-hand end, likely a 19th-century addition with a 20th-century door. Internally, the hall to the right of the passage has a ceiling of unusual quality, with intersecting upper floor beams and joists arranged to create a chequer pattern. The beams and joists are chamfered with stop-chamfered spine beams with run-out stops. A 16th-century fireplace with an oven is present, along with a stone bench against the opposite wall, with a late 16th/early 17th-century panelled back. Early roof timbers survive, showing evidence of smoke-blackening. The shippon drain is reported to survive beneath the floorboards. The house retains much of its original plaster wall surfaces and retains the ambiance of a traditional Dartmoor farmhouse.