Abbotsmeadow House

Abbotsmeadow House is a Classical house built around 1826 by John Smith of Darnick. It is a two-storey building with a basement and a three-bay rectangular plan, featuring an advanced pedimented central bay and a piended roof. The exterior is constructed of small-sized dark whinstone rubble with cream sandstone ashlar dressings, while the rear elevation has red sandstone dressings. The front and side elevations have a base course, and there is an eaves course. The windows have tabbed margins, with regular fenestration on the front and irregular fenestration on the rear.

The main entrance features a single-leaf, six-panelled timber door with sidelights and a fanlight. There is a tripartite window at the first floor level, and the pediment is decorated with a segmental recess. A round-arched staircase window is located at the rear, and there is a small circular structure built into the retaining wall at the northwest rear corner of the house, likely a coal cellar.

The windows predominantly feature 12-pane glazing in timber sash and case style. The chimney stacks are margined with yellow clay cans, and the roof is covered with Welsh slate. The property also has cast-iron rainwater goods.

Inside, the house retains much of its early 19th-century character. There is an enclosed stone-flagged porch that provides access to the public rooms. A curving stone stair at the rear, with iron balusters and a narrow mahogany handrail, connects the basement to the upper floor, with a stair window flanked by niches. The upper hall features segmental-headed arches supported by decorative brackets. The dining room has a panelled dado and remnants of a buffet niche in the cornice. The original plasterwork is preserved throughout, particularly in the principal rooms, and there are six-panelled doors.

To the west of the house, there is a walled garden situated on sloping ground, enclosed by rubble walls with rounded coping and an entrance gate at the southeast corner.