Description

DIPTFORD
SX75SW

8/226 Newhouse Farmhouse
including barn and
out-building
adjoining west

II

Farmhouse and adjoining barn and outbuilding. Circa mid C17 with early to
mid C19 alterations and additions. Slate rubble, rendered at the ends and
at the backs; along the front a roughly chamfered slate plinth. slate roof
with gable end to right and hall hipped end to left. 2 rear lateral chimney
stacks with later rendered brick shafts projecting and right hand gable end
stack with C19 brick shaft.
Plan: an interesting C17 plan; 3 rooms and cross-passage between the right
and centre rooms; the lower end to the right behind which is a wide but
shallow integral wing containing a framed stairs rising from the back of
the passage and a small unheated room to the right of the stairs behind the
lower end room. The lower end room is heated from a gable end stack
without an oven. The central room, (the hall) has a large rear lateral
stack which is blocked but may have had an oven. The inner room to the
left may have been a moderate size parlour, the same size as the hall and
like the hall it is also heated from a rear lateral stack. The original
use of the room is unclear. Was the hall used as a kitchen and the lower
right hand room unheated originally? However in the early to mid C19 the
plan was rearranged the lower right hand room was upgraded to a parlour,
the inner room at the left end became the kitchen with an oven in its rear
lateral stack, and an unheated outshut was built at the back of the higher
end room; this outshut continued to the left behind the outbuilding and
farm building which were added at the left end of the house probably at the
same time in the C19. In the C20 part of the passage/hall partition was
removed and a small entrance lobby formed and the space between the rear
wing and the outshut was filled with a small one-room plan 2-storey
addition. In the 1980's the front window of the left hand room (now a
kitchen) was made into a French window. the house is situated on the steep
south facing side of a valley, the ground falling away at the front and
rising steeply at the back. The ground at the right hand lower end falls
away gently.
Exterior: 2 storeys. Regular 4-window range. First floor has 3 early to
mid C19 horizontally sliding sashes with glazing bars and to the left one
C19 2-type casement with glazing bars, all with slate cills. Ground Floor:
to right an early to mid C19 16-pane sash with a flat red brick arch; the
large hall window at the centre has been replaced with a C20 casement with
a concrete lintel and to the left what was probably a C20 sash has been
replaced with a late C20 French window but retains its flat red brick arch.
To right of centre a wide fielded 6-panel door, the bottom panels flush and
a C20 concrete canopy on brackets.
At the back a wide hipped 2-storey wing to left and a single storey outshut
to the right with a C20 2-storey flat roof addition between. The two large
rear lateral stacks are concealed behind the outshut and C20 addison. All
C20 casements at the back except for an early C19 fixed-light window with
glazing bars lighting the stairs at the left hand wing; this window has a
C17 wooden lintel with a stopped chamfer.
Interior: the hall rear lateral fireplace is blocked with a C20 brick
fireplace and the right hand room gable end fireplace has dressed slate
jambs but the timber lintel has been replaced with a granite lintel. The
lateral fireplace at the rear of the left hand room (kitchen) has a range
inserted but there is said to be a bread oven behind. On the first floor
landing and at the bottom of the stairs into the unheated room in the rear
wing there are 2 C17 chamfered wooden doorframes with true mitres and ogee
and hourglass stops, the ground floor doorway has an early C18 fielded 2-
panel door. On the first floor there are some circa early C19 fielded 4-
panel doors. The wide C17 framed staircase in the rear wing has square
newels with shaped tops very heavy square handrail and thick square
balusters. Apart from the above interior features and a few C19 plank
doors the interior has few features and the ceilings are relatively high,
without exposed ceiling beams.
Roof: the roof over the main range is C20, but over the rear wing there is
an earlier structure its collars are lapped and pegged to the faces of the
principal rafters.
Including an early to mid C19 barn linked to the west end of the house by
another outbuilding with a lower roof level; the barn is shale rubble with
a slate half-hipped roof, the ground floor has 2 shippon or stable doors
and a left door to the first floor to the right. The ground at the back
was at higher level until it was excavated recently. The short link
building is 2 storeys with one C20 casement at each floor.
Said to have been called the New House in a deed of 1640.

Listing NGR: SX7393453453

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26402099

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Derbyshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hampshire: South (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Cornwall (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  England's Post-War Listed Buildings
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy