Description

WEST ALVINGTON
SX 74 SW
5/182 Cholwells
II

Farmhouse. Probably early - mid C17 remodelling of an earlier house with C18 and
C19 alterations. Slatestone rubble walls, rendered at rear and side. Gabled
natural slate roof. Brick axial stack and rendered rubble projecting stack at
left gable end with brick shaft.
Plan: complex development of plan. At present 3 rooms with wide through-passage
but this does not represent the original arrangement. The one room which probably retains its form from the early house is the central one which functioned throughout as the hall. Originally, however, the passage was at the lower right-hand end of the hall (which had a stack backing onto it) where there is now a C19 kitchen. That this was the former position of the passage is revealed by the existence of a 2 storey porch at the front of it, the doorway of which has been blocked up. Apparently the whole of the lower end and passage were demolished in the C17 when the house was extended at the higher end. The thinner walls of the kitchen, built in place of the passage, reveal its later dote, The extensive C17 remodelling involved taking down the end wall of the house and extending it so that there was a passage and smaller heated room byond the hall. This passage may be in the position of the previous inner room but the room beyond it appears to have been built as a parlour. The hall therefore appears to have adopted the extra function of kitchen. Behind it a dairy was added in the C18 and a wide porch was built onto the road side of the new passage, probably at a similar date. Between them a C19 outshut was built.
Exterior: 2 storeys. Asymmetrical 5 window front, facing away from the road,
with small gabled 2 storey former porch projecting from right-hand end C20. 1, 2
and 3-light mainly small-paned casements. C20 French windows to left of centre
with C17 stone hoodmould over. There is a similar feature over the blocked window at the left-hand end whereas the window to its right has a simple stone
dripcourse. Stone eaves cornice. C20 conservatory to right of centre with small
stair outshut beyond, abutting wing. The wing has a C20 glazed door on its inner
face and a chamfered stone plinth interrupted by its original round arched doorway of South Hams type, now blocked, on its end wall. This is concealed by a C19 outbuilding in front of this wing. Rear roadside elevation has a half-hipped dairy wing projecting to left, with outbuilding added in front of it. To right of centre is a 2 storey porch with pigeon holed below the eaves. C19 leanto between porch and wing. Slate rubble garden retaining wall at front of house.
Interior: central room has 2 roughly chamfered cross beams and chamfered and
step-stopped joists. C17 plank and muntin screen at its higher end has scratch
moulded muntins and a moulded headbeam. The higher end room also has a plank and
muntin screen, the bottom of which has not survived, with similar decoration. The axial ceiling beams have the same roll and hollow moulding as the screen headbeam, with scratch moulded joists. Fireplaces in both rooms have been rebuilt. In one of the first floor rooms is a C17 hanging cupboard with good panelled door which has butterfly hinges. One C17 roof truss survives with evidence of a dovetailed collar, the other trusses have been cut off, although one of early appearance survives over the original porch where loft access is difficult.
The appearance of this house from the roadside belies its good quality internal
features and complex structural development.

Listing NGR: SX7132641531

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26402191

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

• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair by Hunt. Roger ( 2008 ) Hardcover
• 
  [(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Care and Repair
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects, Supplement 2014