Description

SX 86 SW LITTLEHEMPSTON

5/61 Post Cottage

2.6.77

- II

House, once the Post Office. Circa late C16; remodelled circa early C17; altered and extended circa early C19 and C20. Painted and roughcast stone rubble. Thatched roof with gabled and hipped ends; slate lean-to roofs to outshuts. Stone rubble lateral, gable-end and corner stacks with set-offs and later brick shafts.
PLAN: 3-room and through-passage plan, the hall heated from a fireplace in a lateral stack at the front, the kitchen on the left [east] with a gable-end stack and the inner room on the right [west] with a stack on the rear corner. The late Medieval house was originally open to the roof from end-to-end and heated by an open-hearth fire at the left [east] end. In about the late C16/ early C17 the house was remodelled, a stack was built at the centre of the front to heat the central hall that might have remained open to the roof; floors were inserted, possibly in phases, creating attic chambers. In about the early C19 a staircase was built at the back of the hall and an outshut was added to the rear of the inner room and hall. Later in the C19 an outshut was built at the left [east] end and in the C20 a small addition was built behind the kitchen.
EXTERIOR: 1-storey and attic. Asymmetrical 3-window north front, small C19 2-and 3-light casements with glazing bars and timber lintels; attic windows under eyebrow eaves. Large projecting lateral stack at centre with thatch to left carried down over integral porch; circa early C19 4-panel inner door; outshut on left [east] end with lean-to roof and C20 casement; semi-circular projection on right corner with conical slate roof. At rear [south] outshut with slate lean-to roof, C20 casements and C20 flat roof 1-storey extension to right.
INTERIOR: Through-passage with stone floor and plank-and muntin screen to right with moulded muntins. Hall has chamfered cross-beam with hollow step stops and fireplace with unchamfered timber bressumer, stone oven and small integral unglazed and blocked window to right with 2-light wooden frame. Inner room and kitchen ceiled, inner room front window with panelled shutters. C19 plank doors. Circa early C19 straight staircase rising from hall with stick balusters. Bed chambers ceiled, but principals and purlins exposed. 6-bay Medieval roof completely smoke-blackened from end-to-end with concentration of soot at left [east] end, collar-trusses, the principals set on wall tops, but two centre trusses have simple jointed-crucks; two tiers of threaded-purlins, common-rafters, battens and some smoke-blackened thatch survives.
A good example of a small late Medieval house, originally completely open to the roof and heated by an open-hearth fire.

Listing NGR: SX8152262703

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26402284

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

• 
  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Drawing up a Local Listed Building Consent Order: Historic England Advice Note 6
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Department for Communities Listed Historic Buildings of Northern Ireland: Information Guide for the 2nd Survey of Historic Buildings
• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects by Harwood, Richard (2012) Paperback