West Middleton Farmhouse Including Attached Stable Range At South East End

West Middleton Farmhouse is a farmhouse with an attached stable range, situated in Parracombe. The farmhouse itself dates back to the 17th century, with significant remodelling and a raised roof occurring in the 19th century. The stable range was likely built in the early 19th century.

The building is constructed of rendered stone rubble, with some 17th or early 18th century brick visible on the porch, stack, and some internal partitions. It has a slate roof with gable ends. There's a 19th century brick stack at the right gable and a 17th or early 18th century brick stack on the hipped left end. A rear lateral hall stack was removed. Originally, the farmhouse followed a 3-room-and-through-passage plan. The left-hand lower end has a lower roofline and a 20th-century staircase. Late 17th or early 18th century brick partitions were added to each side of the through-passage, along with a two-storey front porch at the same time. A doorway previously leading to the hall was filled in during the 20th century.

In the 19th century, the roof over the through-passage, hall, and inner room was raised, and the hall, previously heated by a rear lateral stack, and the inner room were altered internally. The hall was partitioned at its upper end to create a cross-passage between it and the inner room, and a gabled stair turret was added to the rear. An original staircase was located in a projecting turret to the left of the hall stack. A further cross-passage was created in the 20th century by partitioning the hall at its lower end, adjacent to the original through-passage. The overall remodelled plan now includes a lower end with a lean-to scullery on the left and a rear dairy outshut, the original through-passage, a cross-passage, the hall, another cross-passage, and the inner room.

The stable range projects at right angles from the left lower end, forming an L-shaped plan. The farmhouse features four windows in total. The lower end displays 20th-century fenestration, including a large ground-floor 4-light casement with a slate drip. A gabled brick porch features slate-capped seats on each side and a 17th-century straight-headed, ovolo-moulded inner door with weathered stops. The original plank front door has scratch-moulded cover strips. A chamfered surround is present around the rear through-passage doorway, with an old ledged plank door. To the right of the porch, the 19th-century remodelling aimed for symmetrical window placement, with three sash windows with margin glazing bars above two similar windows flanking the gabled slate roof of the porch, and a 20th-century door. A 20th-century lean-to porch has been inserted in the angle of the two-storey porch to the left. The stable range is symmetrical, with a loft door accessed by external stone steps over a doorway, flanked by small window openings with timber lintels.

Inside, there's an ovolo-moulded surround to the lower end/through-passage doorway. The lower end has a wide, unstopped, chamfered cross ceiling beam. A fireplace has been blocked. The hall has chamfered, hollow-step stopped cross ceiling beams and dressed stone jambs to the fireplace, with a replaced lintel. There are no ceiling beams in the inner room. The roof structure over the lower end appears to have been replaced in the 19th century. The through-passage has a flagstone floor.