Smithy, Drybridge

The Smithy at Drybridge is a cruciform-plan range of single-storey buildings constructed from rubble. It was given its current form in the later 19th century but includes elements from an earlier building dating to the late 18th century. The most unaltered sections face the road to the east, comprising an east-west longitudinal range and a north wing from the later 19th century, while the south wing is from the late 18th century.

The earlier south wing, located on the left of the front, is the only recognizable part of the original structure. It features a slated roof, with some areas patched with corrugated iron, and has a low, broad gable to the south, lacking skews. The quoins are roughly squared and taper into rubble. There are asymmetrical openings close to the ground, including a small square window in the south gable and another window on the east elevation, along with a tiny off-centre opening in the west elevation.

The east-west oriented range and the north wing, likely built around 1870, showcase distinctive extruded brick detailing in their segmental-arched openings and gable apices. The east-facing gable features a brick cross detail, and there are brick relieving arches and margins around a small segmental opening in the north gable apex. The structure is built from rubble with tooled and squared long and short quoins, broad concrete skews, and a corrugated iron roof.

The east-west range has an advanced gable that faces the road and extends behind the cross-arm for five bays, with a cross-wall dividing two and three bays. The western end is truncated, where a modern extension connects to a single-storey and attic house. The south elevation has two windows in the eastern section, which retain original hopper glazing, and three bays on the left with a door to the right. The north elevation features two windows in the western section, all with concrete lintels.

The north range includes a segmental door with brick detailing to the left on the north elevation and a single window to the right. The north elevation is blind except for a brick-detailed apex window, while the west return elevation has a single square window with modern glazing. The plain single-storey and attic house to the west of the smithy range, likely built in the later 19th century, has undergone modern alterations, including rebuilt end stacks in brick and a modern concrete lean-to addition at the front, to the left of the door, as well as two dormer-headed windows at the rear.