Description

BRIXHAM

SX9056 CHURSTON ROAD, Churston Ferrers
1946-1/5/63 (West side)
11/11/52 Churston Court
(Formerly Listed as:
CHURSTON ROAD, Churston Ferrers
Churston Court)

GV II*

Large house, now hotel. Probably mid or late C16, remodelled
early C17 and late C17. C18 and C19 additions with large
addition of 1985-7 at rear. Basic fabric may be late medieval.
Solid rendered walls. Slated roof. 2 red sandstone ashlar
chimneys with tapered caps on ridge. Large, old rendered
chimney with red sandstone mouldings on left gable-end;
another to rear of it. C19 rendered chimney on right
gable-end. The 'cottage' attached to left end of building has
a front gable-end chimney of red brick, partly rendered;
chimney-breast projects on corbels. Added rear wing behind
inner room has rendered gable-chimney with off-sets and
tapered cap.
Plan: basically 3-room and cross-passage, except that the
cross-passage leads to a C16 stair turret at rear; gabled wing
in front of junction of hall and inner room. The lower room
appears to have functioned as a parlour in late C17; chimney
in rear wall. Hall has chimney at upper end. Inner room (now
kitchen) has gable-end chimney. In front of inner room is an
addition with back staircase, probably of late C17. A short
enclosed passage links the inner room to the 'cottage', a
former outbuilding at right-angles to the frontage.
Exterior: 2 storeys; in late C17 with garret; cottage
single-storeyed. 7 windows wide with a further window in the
cottage. Front doorway has chamfered, round-headed surround of
painted stone. Except for window over doorway and in the
additions, all the front windows have painted stone mullions.
In the main range these are of 4 lights with king-mullions;
the ordinary mullions are hollow-moulded and the king-mullions
ovolo-moulded, except in left ground-storey window where the
king-mullion is ogee-moulded. This window, the one to right of
it, and the second upper-storey window from the right, each
have an old metal casement.
The wing has a 2-light painted stone-mullioned window in each
storey, and a matching 3-light one in upper storey of
right-hand side; mullions hollow-moulded; upper-storey windows
have hoodmoulds; ground-storey window has old metal casement.
Gable decorated with a pair of plaster S-scrolls and a
fleur-de-lys. Addition to left has 2-light wood casement
window in each storey, that in upper storey possibly late C17.
Rear wall has 3-light stone-mullioned stair window with
hollow-moulded mullions. Elsewhere a window with 6-paned
sashes and some small-paned wood casements.
INTERIOR: cross-passage and right-hand ground-storey room
originally had raised bolection-moulded panelling now
reconstructed with salvaged panelling on modern studwork; the
room has panelled shutters and chamfered plastered
ceiling-beams. Tudor-style carved stone chimneypiece probably
C19 or later; decorated iron fire-back. Flanking the
chimneypiece are paired wooden Ionic columns, possibly old,
supporting a wooden lintel carved with lion heads.
Open-well late C17 wood staircase, rising to garret; bottom
flight reinstated to match original. Closed pulvinated
strings, twisted balusters, square newels with ball-finials
and turned pendants; dado of bolection-moulded panelling.
Hall (to left of cross-passage) has old Tudor-arched moulded
fireplace of red sandstone; elaborate C19 wood surround with
detached columns. In front of it, oddly positioned, is a
screen originally with 4 twisted wood columns; probably C19;
composite capitals; decorated with tendrils of foliage.
Panelled shutters. In corridor behind this room is a late C17
door with 3 bolection-moulded panels.
Between inner room and wing is a stone doorway with pointed
arch and quarter-round mouldings; late-medieval, possibly
surviving from an early stair-turret; C18 or C19 plank door
with strap-hinges. Addition has possibly late C17
straight-flight wooden stair with turned balusters. In upper
storey the 2 rooms to right of staircase (now sub-divided)
have raised bolection-moulded panelling. Several doors with
raised-and-fielded, one-fillet, ovolo-moulded panels and brass
catches. Roof of main range (inspected only over hall, lower
room and staircase) has unblackened jointed-cruck trusses with
cranked collars, threaded purlins and ridge.
Churston Court belonged to the Yarde family from C15-C18. They
were succeeded by the Bullers who, however, lived at Lupton
House, Churston Ferrers (qv). In 1850 White's Directory
records that the eldest son of Sir JBY Buller lived at the
house, 'the ancient seat of the Yardes, which has lately been
modernised, and has tasteful grounds.' Sir John Buller became
Lord Churston in 1858; his descendant sold the house in 1967.
(Tregaskes J H: Churston Story: Paignton: 1989-; The Buildings
of England: Cherry B: Devon (2nd edition): 1989-: 834; White
W: Directory of Devonshire: 1850-: 431-2).

Listing NGR: SX9039356414

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Churston Court Inn at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q5118320

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

• 
  This Old House: Restoring, Rehabilitating, and Renovating an Older House
• 
  Nottinghamshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Development and Design of Heritage Sensitive Sites: Strategies for Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas
• 
  Cambridgeshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Hampshire: Winchester and the North (The Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Bristol (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)