Wern Tarw and attached Cowhouse

Wern Tarw is a long house with an attached cowhouse, dating back to the 17th century, with later 19th-century alterations and additions. The house is constructed of rubble masonry under a slate roof, featuring two end stacks and a ridge stack. The western unit is the oldest part, with walls approximately 1.5 metres thick, originally forming part of a one-and-a-half-storey building. The western gable stack has been rebuilt in blue brick and retains its original position. The front (south) elevation features a simple planked door at the east end of the 17th-century unit, which opens into a passage. To the left of the door is a large, raked buttress, the top of which supports a flat timber canopy forming a porch. Further to the left is a deeply recessed three-light wooden window with ovolo mouldings and small panes, slightly skewed and with a timber lintel.

In the 19th century, a symmetrical three-window range was added to the east, and the roofline was raised to create two storeys. A two-light wooden casement with small panes was inserted above and partially into the 17th-century unit at first-floor level. The eastern range features a centrally-placed panelled door and a blind window above, both flanked by twelve-pane sash windows with sills, but without lintels. The east gable end has no windows, while the west gable end has no openings above the level of the attached cowhouse. The rear of the house is partially built into the hillside, with an outshut to the rear of the 17th-century unit and one blocked opening visible. Single-storey lean-tos extend from the rear of the 19th-century range; the one on the east has a brick stack in its northeast corner.

The attached cowhouse is constructed of rubble masonry under a corrugated iron roof. It originally had four planked doors at the front, though a fifth door may have existed on the west side, where the wall has collapsed. A single casement window with a brick sill, but no glass, is centrally positioned. The attic of the cowhouse contains a loft opening at the east end and a smaller opening towards the centre. Joints in the masonry suggest the building was raised to create the loft and was extended eastward. This is further indicated by the eastern doorway, which has a flat head with voussoirs, unlike the others that have simple wooden lintels, suggesting the cowhouse may originally have been a free-standing, single-storey building with three doors. The rear of the cowhouse is built into the bank, providing direct access into the hayloft. Two openings are present at the rear: the east one with planked doors and the west one with a brick head. No access to the interior of either building was possible at the time of inspection.