Orchard House And Vine House

Orchard House and Vine House are a house, originally one dwelling, later divided into two, dating to the 16th or 17th century with early 19th-century additions. The main house is constructed of coursed and squared Ham Hill stone, with a slate roof featuring stepped stone coping and rendered stacks to the gable ends and the left-of-centre of the ridge. The right-hand range and the rear wing are now the separate dwelling, Vine House. The main house has a three-unit through-passage plan accompanied by a rear right wing.

The exterior is two storeys with attics and has a four-window front. The windows are 19th century replacements. The first floor has flat, gauged stone arches over two tall, three-light casements on the left, and wooden lintels over horned 6/6-pane sashes to the right. The ground floor features an 8/8-pane sash to the far left, a large 20th-century replaced three-light leaded casement facing inwards to the left and a circa 1840 doorcase with key-patterned tops to panelled pilasters and a moulded cornice. The door has five panels, one horizontal in the middle, all displaying 19th-century bolection moulding and raised panels with cut-out corners; ground-floor windows are present to the right. The rear wing is trapezoid in shape, with the gable end canted to match the rear lane.

The room to the left internally has a chamfered axial beam. A 19th-century staircase with a closed string, stick balusters, a stepped and swept pine rail, and turned newels is located at the rear left. The wall to the right of the front door is particularly thick, approximately 2 metres, with a 20th-century fireplace in the central room, which was likely formerly an open fireplace. This room also features oak floorboards, an early 19th-century reeded cornice, and elliptical arches flanking the fireplace. A 17th-century door with H hinges leads to the attic stairs, which have oak floorboards. The plastered and rounded top of the ridge stack remains visible. An early 18th-century small, square hatch giving access to the eaves space has one raised and fielded panel. The wide front door has raised and fielded panelling to the back and may have been remodelled in the early 18th century. The rear right wing has a stone-flagged floor and a chamfered cross beam.