Hill Farmhouse

Hill Farmhouse is constructed of local red sandstone rubble, except for the upper floor of the cart shed which is built in red brick. The roofs are covered in Welsh slate, apart from the farmyard-facing slope of the additional house which retains stone slates on the lower courses. The building is a long rectangular block developed in-line on quite a steep slope, comprising six units, each with a different roofline. The entrance front faces north towards the farmyard.

From left to right, the units are: a lean-to donkey stable, probably built in the late 19th century and likely the final unit constructed; an 18th-century stable; a 19th-century cart shed built between two existing buildings with additional accommodation for the house above the open cart shed; the original 17th-century house, heightened in the 18th century; a second house built in the 19th century; and a bakehouse built in the 19th century.

The Original House

The original house appears to have been a fairly standard two-room early 17th-century dwelling, but does not appear to have had gable entry. There is little sign of a doorway in the gable, now in the cartshed. A Victorian window opening onto the yard clearly occupies the position of an original doorway, with plain blocking visible. This window has 2+2 pane casements but retains its original 17th-century dripmould above. To its right is the original 4-light unglazed oak-framed window with diamond mullions and dripmould above. This window shows little sign of ever having been glazed. Above the windows the walling changes noticeably, with large quoins giving way to smaller ones, indicating the original height. The raised upper floor has two 2+2 19th-century casements and a moderately pitched roof with a brick stack on the right gable and the stack for the 17th-century fireplace rising from the left gable.

The garden elevation, which became the entrance front in the 19th century, has a plank door to the left, a window opening to the right, and a stair window at half-storey level. Above the main window is a 19th-century 2-light casement.

The Cart Shed

The cart shed is fitted between the existing house and stable. It is open, with the upper floor supported on timber beams clearly fitted into the existing walls. Above is a red brick wall with cross timbers and two 2-light casement windows beneath a plain roof. The rear wall is entirely stone with one 2-light casement at upper-floor level.

The Stable

The stable has a plain door in the front and a window on the rear.

The Lean-to Donkey Stable

The lean-to donkey stable has its entry facing the lane rather than the farmyard.

The Secondary House

The secondary house was always entered from the garden side. The yard side has one small 2-light window below. The entrance on the garden side has a plank door to the right of a window opening with brick jambs, with another window above and a brick stack on the left gable.

The Bakehouse

The bakehouse is a lean-to against this gable, with a plank door, red brick side wall, and rear stack for the oven.

Interior

The interior of the house was divided in the 19th century so that the living room became larger than originally; the mortices from the post and panel partition are plain in the cross beam. The partition was removed further from the fireplace to form a dairy, which is complete with slate slabs and has a red brick partition wall. The living room has chamfered cross beams with run-out stops. The fireplace is wide and massive with red sandstone jambs and an enormous oak lintel. The opening has been infilled with a Victorian brick fireplace with iron range and timber surround; to the right is a bread oven, and to the right of that a fire stair. The upper floor clearly shows that the walls were heightened, as the partitions and roof construction are 18th century. A late Georgian iron grate is present in the bedroom. Additional bedrooms are located in the room over the cart shed, which is approached from the same stair, and in the second cottage, where the bedroom has a Victorian grate and surround. The additional cottage is a single room only with an iron grate. The stable and donkey stable have traditional fittings. The bakehouse retains its brick oven with iron door.