Fern Hill

Fern Hill is a two-storey house of white-painted stucco with close-eaved hipped slate roofs, arranged in a U-plan around a narrow rear courtyard. Originally L-shaped, the house has its main front facing the garden to the south-east with a former kitchen wing to the north-east. The third wing on the north-west side of the courtyard was probably a lofted outbuilding, disused and without floor in 1972, but was later converted to garage and kitchen with accommodation over.

The garden front displays stucco lined as ashlar and a 3-window range, now of plastic windows replacing tripartite sashes to the outer bays and a single sash to the first floor centre. A centre plastic door replaces an original 6-panel door with 4 glazed panels. The porch has 2 round columns, 2 half-octagonal responds and a flat roof with small modillions to the cornice. End walls of roughcast carry chimneys. Former sash windows with Gothic tracery are now imitated in plastic throughout.

The rear features a centre stair tower with hipped roof positioned in the angle to the north-east range, which was slate-hung as shown in 1967. The windowless rear wall to the right sits above a later 19th-century rubble stone and brick structure known as the hangman's cell. This has a flat roof, parapet, centre ledged door and vent loops, with a small vent loop repeated in a row above. The stair tower has a first floor window over the door, now within a lean-to on the back of the north-east wing. This lean-to is rubble stone and in 1967 had a Gothic window like those on the end walls, but now has a long plastic window and glazed roof. The main wall above also had a Gothic sash to the left, replaced in plastic, and was slate-hung in 1967. A red brick chimney stands on the left roof hip. The garden side of the north-east wing has an imitation Gothic sash to the left and a blank opening to the right, with a 20th-century inserted small window between and a ground floor long window below. A door is positioned to the right.

The north-west range, much modernised, has a hipped gable to the south and plain gable to the north, only slightly overlapping the end of the north-east range. Three first floor windows face the courtyard; these were wooden casement pairs before 1983, now plastic, positioned over a ground floor door and 2 windows. The left end wall has a late 20th-century garage door. The right end has a new door and large window above in what was formerly a loft door. The rear wall carries a colourwashed brick lean-to and, at right angles, a former cow-house in colourwashed brick with asbestos sheet roof, featuring two large square 15-pane windows flanking a door.

Interior

From the porch, a small hall with reeded ceiling border and large plaster rose opens via a broad elliptical arch with fanlight to the stair hall. Both halls feature similar reeded ceiling borders. The staircase has stick balusters, moulded tread ends and a handrail ending in a scroll. Two flights rise from the stair hall. The front right drawing room contains a 19th-century fireplace originally from Pibwrwen, Llandyfaelog, and a cupboard with panelled doors. The left room has a depressed-arched recess with panelled soffit on each side of the fireplace, a picture rail at impost level, and a sideboard recess to the right with flat head and curved angles. An ornate cornice with staff mould entwined with acanthus leaf runs beneath small leaf moulding. The cellar has stone flagged floors and ceiling beams, retaining 2 original windows: a 12-paned sash and a Gothic sash. The first floor landing has 2 doors, one 4-panel and one 6-panel.

In the north-east wing, the former kitchen retains iron hooks in the ceiling, panelled cupboards in the wall, and a brick fireplace, though a stone fireplace and winding stair were recorded in 1974. The first floor contains small rooms and a corridor leading to a door into the north-west range. The left former dining room has a fireplace reeded with paterae.