Barn Complex And Waterwheel Abutting East Side Of Dutch Garden

The barn complex and waterwheel, located on the east side of the Dutch garden at Hestercombe, was built around 1904 to 1909 and altered in the mid-20th century. It was designed by Edwin Lutyens for the Honorable EWB Portman. The structure features local slate ragstone laid in courses where visible from the gardens of Hestercombe House, while the rest is made of random rubble. The barn has a pantiled roof with double Roman tiles.

The barn is oriented north-south and is set into the hillside at its northern end, with its west front forming the boundary of the Dutch garden. The waterwheel is situated on the northeast front. The north gable end has a single-story plank door with a divided leaded light above, adjacent to a wall of the Dutch garden that rises to the west. The south front is two stories high and features four-light mullioned and transomed leaded windows with wooden lintels; there is an altered opening below. The west wing has been altered, and additional buildings that are not of special interest are included due to these alterations.

In the northeast corner, there is an overshot cast iron waterwheel, which was noted to be in poor condition during a survey in April 1984. This building likely housed the machinery for supplying water to the gardens from a higher pond located about 10 meters to the north.