LORNA DOONE FARM AT SS 7916 4775

A farmhouse, originally two cottages, and now a house and shop, likely dating to the early to mid 17th century, though possibly incorporating an earlier structure. It was altered and extended in the 18th century, further enlarged in the late 19th century, and remodelled in the mid to late 20th century. The walls are rendered, likely over coursed rubble. The stacks are rendered, with offsets at the ends. The roof is gabled and has 20th-century interlocking tiles. A rear range, dating to the 19th century, is constructed of uncoursed rubble, partly rendered, with a hipped roof to the south. The original plan was a three-room-and-cross-passage layout, aligned north-south. It may have been a remodelling of a medieval open hall house, though evidence for this remains unconfirmed. Original features include a lateral stack to the rear of the hall, an integral lateral stack to the front of the service end on the right, and a former end stack to the left. A possible 18th-century addition exists at the higher end, featuring an external end stack. A late 19th-century addition is located at the rear. The east front is largely refenestrated with 20th-century windows: six first-floor windows with two lights, and three large ground-floor shop windows with a glazed door to the left (likely dating from when the house was divided into two cottages). A small ground-floor wooden casement window is located on the right, with a boarded door to its left, and likely represents the former cross passage entrance. Internally, all ground-floor dividing walls have been removed, except for the wall between the hall and service end. The hall retains a blocked fireplace and a chamfered cross-beam with scroll stops. An inner room has a chamfered cross-beam with broach stops. A doorway with a pegged frame, originally round-arched, divided the hall and inner room. The service end and first-floor rooms were not inspected, and the roof is presumed to have been altered or rebuilt in the 20th century, evidenced by sawn purlin ends. The property is situated close to another former farmhouse, by Badgworthy Water.