7 Baberton Mains, Baberton

7 Baberton Mains, Baberton

This is a B-listed farmstead comprising a late 17th century courtyard plan farmhouse with steading, and an early-to-earlier 19th century new farmhouse, now converted to housing. The complex is arranged in a U-plan west range and Z-plan east range.

West Range

The north block is a symmetrical, 2-storey, 3-bay rectangular plan farmhouse of the late 17th century, with a pantiled 2-storey wing to the west and a single-storey wing (now garages) to the east. The farmhouse is harled with polished dressings and chamfered reveals. The south (courtyard) elevation features a central ground floor doorway with a boarded timber door and letterbox fanlight surmounted by a lamp, with regular fenestration to the flanking bays. Gabled windows break the eaves on each bay of the first floor, with timber bargeboards. On the east elevation, the ground floor is obscured by the adjoining garage, but there is a small off-centre window to the right of the first floor. The north elevation is symmetrical, with a replacement central ground floor doorway reached by 2 steps, a boarded timber door with letterbox fanlight, and regular fenestration to the flanking bays and first floor.

The west block comprises 2-storey and single-storey pantiled ranges, with 3 flight-holes to a dovecot in the 2-storey range. The south block is a single-storey rectangular plan with a cottage at the southwest corner. This cottage (No. 7) is single-storey with an attic, on a T plan, constructed of random rubble with predominantly replacement polished dressings and a tall pantiled roof with catslide dormers.

East Range

The north block is a 2-storey and attic, 3-bay, rectangular plan earlier 19th century farmhouse with a 20th century addition to the rear. The east elevation features tooled squared and snecked sandstone with stugged dressings, while the remainder is random rubble with broached dressings. It has projecting cills, replacement double glazed windows, and long and short quoins. The east elevation is symmetrical, with an architraved doorway to the centre of the ground floor containing a recessed replacement panelled door with letterbox fanlight, windows to the flanking bays, and regular fenestration to the first floor. Rectangular box dormers are positioned to the left and right bays of the attic. The north elevation is asymmetrical with a single bay and a small harled lean-to to the centre of the ground floor, plus a single-storey lean-to to the right with a doorway linking the east range to the west range. The west elevation features a harled lean-to to the ground floor, an advanced bay to the outer right, and a flat-roofed advanced bay through the first and attic floors with hung slates to the attic floor. The south elevation is asymmetrical and painted, with exposed quoins.

The south block comprises a row of single-storey rectangular plan cottages, predominantly of random rubble with replacement polished dressings and broached quoins. The north elevation is asymmetrical, with a window to the centre flanked to the right by a glazed timber door and an iron gate to the outer right linking the ranges. A harled block to the outer left links the south block to the north block. The west elevation is asymmetrical with 11 bays: 3 bays to the right are harled with exposed quoins, while the centre and flanking 2 bays to the right have droved dressings. There are small single pane windows to the 3rd bay from the left and 2nd bay from the right, with regular fenestration to the remainder. A harled wall with semi-circular coping advanced between the 3rd and 4th bays from the right links the ranges. The south elevation is blank. The east elevation is asymmetrical with 7 bays: the centre bay is obscured by an advanced harled bay, with a window off centre to the right, gabled left and right returns, and 3 windows to the left return. A harled porch with a boarded timber door is positioned to the re-entrant angle with the penultimate bay to the left, and a boarded timber door to the penultimate bay to the right, though the rightmost bay is obscured by a lean-to of the north block, with regular fenestration to the remaining bays.

Throughout both ranges, windows are predominantly 12-pane timber sash and case. Both farmhouses have grey slate roofs with lead ridges; the remainder have red pantiled roofs with terracotta ridges, with the southwest cottage roof being piended. Stone skews are present, and there are harled and squared and snecked rubble coped gablehead stacks with circular cans. PVCu rainwater goods are fitted.

The interior has not been seen as of 1998.

Boundary Walls and Gatepiers

Rubble walls with semi-circular coping protect the southwest and west of the southwest cottage; a rubble wall with flat rubble coping is to the southeast, with remains of a rubble wall to the east. A harled wall with flat coping and long and short quoins to the north of the farmhouse is swept down to centre. To the west is a rubble wall with semi-circular coping, coped square plan gatepiers, and ironwork gates.