Fishweir Farmhouse

Fishweir Farmhouse is a substantial 16th-century gentry farmhouse of two storeys plus attic, built in coursed rubble with a steeply pitched slate roof. The roof is fitted with three chimney stacks—two positioned at the gables and one axial.

The front elevation presents a three-windowed range with a central gabled porch added later. The first floor contains two four-light hollow chamfered mullioned windows with hoodmoulds and square labels. At the far south-west end is a later three-light casement set beneath the original hoodmould. The ground floor has undergone alteration, with later casements inserted, though at the south-west end the right-hand jamb of a two-centred doorway survives, now blocked. Evidence of an earlier hoodmould remains visible to the right of the porch, and a complete hoodmould survives above the extreme right-hand window. On the east gable at high level are two single-light square-headed windows with plain chamfers and hoodmoulds, these being bisected by the pitched roof of an attached cottage.

Attached to the east end is a lower two-storey 19th-century cottage with four windows and a central door.

The rear elevation contains a later single-storey extension abutting the original stair outshut, which houses a natural spring with modern extension to the far north-west end. The rear fenestration has been much modified, though the first floor retains one original two-light mullioned window with hoodmould and square label stops at the north-west end. At ground floor level are two original four-centred openings, now fitted with later casements. At the west end only low rubble stone walls remain of a third western cell, now demolished.

Internally, the house is arranged as a two-unit offset entry plan with a later third cell at the west end. Entry on the south elevation, through a modern porch, leads into the hall cell which has inserted timber partitions forming a lobby. The hall contains a fireplace with a stone voussoired arch at its east end and a large niche to the north of the fireplace. The ceiling has exposed beams with medium chamfers and hollow stops. A smaller fireplace stands at the west end. A four-centred dressed stone doorway with diagonal stops provides access to the kitchen, which features a massive voussoired arch fireplace on the east wall with a bake oven on its north side. Three exposed beams with medium chamfers and hollow stops span the space. The final bay of the original kitchen has been partitioned to form a modern kitchen. Lateral entry stone stairs on the north side of the kitchen, accessed via a dressed stone four-centred doorway with diagonal stops, lead to the great chamber at first-floor level and the attics above. Within the 19th-century rear single-storey addition are three blocked ovens in the south wall beneath the stone stairs.

The great chamber occupies the west cell and remains undivided. It has a substantial plain dressed stone fireplace at the west end with simple chamfer and a two-centred doorway to its right, now blocked, and a large niche on the left, also blocked. Fragmentary plaster frieze survives on the north-east and north-west corners, featuring fleur-de-lys and Tudor rose detail interspersed with foliate motifs, each set within fielded panels. A small later fireplace at the east end is now blocked. The east chamber is accessed via a four-centred doorway on the south-east side of the west chamber and is now subdivided into two rooms.

The attic storey retains the original 16th-century roof structure, with principal rafters having curved feet and mortice and tenon jointed collars. A small chamber on the south side of the stack, accessed via the west attic, may have served as a smoking or drying room.