Knoll House

Knoll House is a house built in 1935 by Ronald Vallis in Frome. It features white painted rendered brick and has flat roofs with oversailing eaves. The entrance is located on the southeast side, leading into an axial passage and stair hall, with drawing and dining rooms on the southwest garden front, and a kitchen, scullery, and integral garage at the rear on the northeast.

The exterior is two storeys tall and almost symmetrical on the southwest garden front, which includes two large French windows on the ground floor and a bay window on the right with a corner window. Above, there is a balcony with a solid balustrade that wraps around the corners and features a fluted band at the top. The first floor has symmetrical fenestration, with a central window flanked by two glazed doors and large corner windows at either end. All windows have metal Crittal frames. On the left corner, there is an open-fronted sun room, added around 1950, which is quadrant in shape. The southeast return has a central doorway with a flat cantilevered canopy supported by three shafts in the wall above, along with glazed doors featuring wrought-iron grilles, small ground floor windows, and a first floor corner window on the right. The rear northeast side has a stair window at the centre and projecting wings to the left and right, with a single-storey service wing on the right and an integral garage on the left, which has plank double doors.

The interior of Knoll House is remarkably unaltered, featuring veneered and tiled chimneypieces, original gas fires in the bedrooms, Bakelite light switches, and servants' bells. The fitted kitchen includes cupboards and a sink, along with large scullery sinks. The staircase has a solid balustrade with a bronze handrail, and the landing stair window has yellow and orange cast glass. The original interior joinery remains intact, including doors, curtain pelmets, and cupboards, as well as fittings for a china pantry and tank room. The bathroom, lavatory, and cloakroom are all tiled. Overall, Knoll House is an unusually well-preserved example of a 1935 Moderne style house.