Milking Parlour At Old Middlecott Farmyard

This building is a milking parlour, originally part of a farmhouse within Old Middlecott Farmyard. It dates to the late 15th and early 16th centuries and was converted to agricultural use in the 19th century, possibly earlier, with further modernisation in the 20th century. Constructed from granite stone rubble with dressed quoins, the building is topped by a corrugated iron roof, which was originally thatched.

The building's plan is a long block built on a slope, facing north-east towards the farmyard. A stable block is attached to the left (north-western) end. The original house's interior has been extensively stripped out, but evidence suggests it was a three-room and through-passage plan, likely a Dartmoor longhouse with a shippon at the lower (south-eastern) end. It was originally a hall house open to the roof. There is no visible evidence of fireplaces. Doorways, though rebuilt, may mark the location of the through passage. The far end is now partitioned off as a calf house.

Externally, a rubble-walled porch with a monopitch roof covers the presumed front passage doorway. A shed covers the left end, and a single window is located to the right. Other windows are 20th-century additions. There are no obvious signs of original openings in the walls. The roof is gable-ended on the left and half-hipped on the right.

The interior is largely that of a 20th-century milking parlour. However, remnants of the original roof remain. Of the six trusses, only the uppermost one appears to have been fully replaced. The others vary in condition, ranging from a single surviving cruck post over the hall to one virtually complete truss over the shippon. All are raised crucks, with one true cruck blade, and the rest face-pegged jointed crucks. Some have locking strips halved and pegged into their sides. At the apex is a yoke and setting for a square set ridge. There are no trenches or mortices for purlins, suggesting they were pegged onto the backs of the principals. The timbers are stained and potentially, smoke-blackened.

This milking parlour retains the shell and roof remnants of a late medieval farmhouse, likely a Dartmoor longhouse. It is part of a group of traditional Dartmoor farm buildings, including a stable and barn. Middlecott is a settlement recorded in the Domesday Book. Documentation relating to a truss elevation by Commander E H D Williams (July 1980) is held at the NMR.