Thwaite Farmhouse

Thwaite Farmhouse is a mainly 18th-century farmhouse, though one bay may be earlier. It is located in Howgill, overlooking the River Lune. The farmhouse is built of white-painted roughcast on a rubble stone base, with a roof of green slate upper courses and stone slate lower courses. It has chimneys of rubble stone with pitched slate weather courses. The building follows a linear plan, consisting of three elements on a north-south axis: a main range of three unequal bays, an earlier bay at the north end, and a peat-house built into higher ground at the south end.

The main range is slightly higher than the ends and almost symmetrical. The front elevation has a 20th-century gabled porch offset to the right, a 12-pane sash window above it, and two square 16-pane sash windows on each floor, all retaining exposed boxes and hornless sashes. The earlier north bay has a doorway with plain reveals next to the junction, one square window on each floor (a 6-pane tilting casement at ground floor and a 12-pane fixed window above), and a gable chimney. The peat-house on the right has a doorway leading to a passage beside the main range’s gable wall, with a 20th-century door, and a 9-pane window above.

The rear elevation has irregular window placement, including a stairwindow with two wooden mullions and two horizontal glazing bars creating nine panes, a small 6-pane fixed window below and to the left of this (both with slate drip-bands), and a very small 4-pane window to the right. A prominent gabled porch protects a batten-and-board door in the north bay.

Internally, there is a lateral passage leading to a quarter-turn staircase with a closed string, square newels and turned balusters. An old panelled door leads to a pantry beneath the stairs. The former housepart in the north bay contains a covered beam approximately 2 metres from the north gable wall, and the room above has a large "beef-box" approximately 0.5 metres high. The site is considered picturesque and historically significant, with “thwaite” derived from Old Norse, denoting a clearing.