Farm Buildings At Lower Lock Farm

A range of farm buildings, dating from circa 1840, forms part of Lower Lock Farm, situated near the Grand Union Canal in Stoke Bruerne. The buildings are constructed from coursed squared limestone with hipped slate roofs, arranged in a U-shaped plan. The main range is a 3-bay barn with opposed double doors; the door facing the front has an elliptical arch above it. The barn is flanked by single-storey, 1-bay wings, each containing a stable door with a stone lintel and keyblock. Return wings, also single-storey, feature 3-bay shelter sheds open to the yard, characterised by segmental-arched brick arcades. One wing includes stabling at one end, while the other contains a small, 2-bay cart-standing open to the field, supported by timber posts and lintels. The interior of the barn is brick-lined. Lower Lock Farm was formerly part of the Grafton estate, and the farm buildings' layout resembles that of the model farm buildings constructed between 1839 and 1844 for the 4th Duke of Grafton, designed as part of a wider agricultural improvement program.