Westacombe Farmhouse

Farmhouse. Probably originating in the early 16th century, with remodelling in the 17th century. The structure is built with whitewashed rendered cob on stone rubble footings, and has a wheat reed thatched roof, half-hipped at the ends. It features one granite axial stack with a granite cap, and one brick axial stack, likely inserted in the 18th or 19th century. The original layout includes three rooms and a passage (with a rear door that has been blocked), the hall stack backing onto the passage itself. The brick stack, serving the lower end of the house, also backs onto the passage and is another later addition. The inner room is unheated and contains a 19th-century staircase. A single-storey rear lean-to on the left, formerly a dairy, is thought to be of 18th or 19th-century origin. Although roof access was unavailable in 1985, there is a strong probability of a medieval roof structure, and the current plan likely represents a remodelling and extension of an earlier medieval house. The front elevation has an irregular four-window arrangement, with the eaves of the roof creating an eyebrow effect over the three right-hand windows. The front door is centrally positioned on the right-hand side, leading into the passage, and is sheltered by a slate pentice supported on the left by a projecting rectangular bread oven attached to the hall stack. The survival of small-paned casement windows, likely dating from the 19th century or earlier, is a significant feature of the front. These include a two-light casement with six panes per light and iron stanchions in the hall, a ground-floor window to the left with two panes per light, and other three-light casements with three panes per light. The interior remains largely complete and unaltered since the 19th century. The left-hand wall of the passage is formed of granite ashlar from the hall chimney stack. A portion of a plank and muntin screen with a chamfered, pegged 17th-century doorway remains to the rear on the right-hand side, leading into the lower end. Another chamfered, pegged doorway into the hall has a mortise in the lintel and may have been part of a former screen, adapted when the stack was built. The hall has an open fireplace with jambs made from single pieces of granite and a chamfered lintel with diagonal stops; a chamfered stopped cross beam is also present. The inner room features a chamfered cross beam and exposed joists, with a probable 19th-century straight staircase against the rear wall. The lower end room has an early 18th-century decorated plaster ceiling, featuring a central floral motif with a large, centrally moulded oval enclosed by ribs. A newel stair is located adjacent to the stack. The first-floor rooms connect to one another. While roof access was unavailable, exposed rafters suggest jointed crucks, indicating a likely medieval roof. It represents a rare example of a good early thatched farmhouse with few 20th-century alterations.