Description

NORTH MOLTON
SS 7229-7329
18/170 Court House and garden wall
9.6.52 adjoining to north east
GV II*
House. 1553, remodelled and enlarged in the late C17. Mid C18 outshut at rear and
minor late C19 additions. Minor late C20 additions. Dressed sandstone (almost of
ashlar quality with sandstone ashlar dressings to openings. Dressed sandstone to
rear, in alternating deep and shallow courses. Scantle-slate roof, in 2 parallel
ranges to right. Hipped over projecting wings to front and over left-hand of stair
block. Catslide over later outshut to rear. Weatherboarded C19 lean-to at rear with
corrugated-iron roof. C17 dressed sandstone stacks.
Plan and development: Facing south. C16 plan, consisting of hall with through
passage to left and upper room to right. Axial stack between hall and upper room.
Two-storey porch to passage and matching 2 storey square bay at right-hand (upper)
end. Probably formerly with service room to left of passage, either demolished or
incorporated in late C17 addition. The house was probably floored from the
beginning, possibly with a first-floor great chamber. Extensive remodelling and
addition of the late C17, including probably complete reroofing, addition (including
probable partial rebuilding) to left with integral end stack, and short parallel
block added to rear of right-hand end containing staircase. Outshut to. rear of left-
hand end, possibly a mid to late C18 addition (note that it partly obscures a now
blocked window in the rear wall, although it could be a blocked C16 window). Minor
late C20 alterations including flat-roofed one-storey additions to left. Two storeys
and attic.
Exterior: Chamfered plinth to C16 range. Continuous moulded wooden dentil eaves
cornice of the late C17, and stacks also probably of late C17 (right-hand ridge stack
larger) with weatherings, string courses and battered caps. Circa Late C17
(probably restored) square wooden bellcote on ridge to left of porch with shaped-
headed openings and ogee lead cap with weathervane and bell. C16 range to right with
symmetrical front of 1:4:1 bays, the end bays projecting and the centre bays widely
spaced (because of stack). C16 square-headed stone windows consisting of depressed-
arched lights (3-lights to centre and 2 lights to wings) with panelled spandrels,
chamfered mullions, moulded reveals and returned hoodmoulds. Windows retain C17
leaded lights, including opening casements with original catches etc.. Moulded
Tudor-arched entrance to porch consisting of 2 orders of shafts with moulded capitals
and bases, continuous cavetto moulding, restored hoodmould and dressed stone
relieving arch above. Interior of porch with diamond-set quarry tiles, plastered
walls, and splayed jambs to side openings. C18 wooden side benches with shaped legs
and 2 raised and fielded panels to the back of each. C15 continuously-moulded Tudor-
arched inner doorway; mid C19 six-panelled door (beaded-flush lower panels, sunken
middle panels and glazed upper panels. Probably introduced C17 wooden surround with
cable-fluted Doric pilasters on panelled square pedestals, and overdoor consisting of
segmental arch with ornamented spandrels, resting on half balusters flanking central
coat of arms, flanking short fluted pilasters and strapwork frieze and cornice. Late
C17 left-hand range with symmetrical front of 4 bays; leaded wooden cross windows
(C20 replacements) with dressed-stone flat-arched heads. Downpipes in angles of
wings with late C17 moulded lead rainwater heads. Rear : 5 hipped late C17 wooden
dormers, with 2-light leaded wooden casements. Two late C17 first-floor windows with
dressed-stone flat-arched heads, 3-light leaded wooden casement to right and blocked
to left (rendered). Entrance of blocked window to right (see straight joint to right
of right-hand window), partly obscured by right-hand outshut. Ground-floor C19
weatherboarded lean-to outshut with two 4-pane sashes and boarded door set back to
left. Rear through-passage doorway with C19 six-panelled door, top 2 panels glazed
(Moulded Tudor-arched doorway visible internally). Late C18 staircase block
projecting to left has first floor leaded wooden cross window to left with flat-
arched head, and first-floor 3-light wooden mullioned and transomed window with flat
arched head to right-hand return front. Late C17 boarded door with rectangular
overlight in right-hand return front too (now inside C19 lean-to addition but visible
from staircase hall inside). Further late C19 lean-to additions front of staircase
block. Outshut to right has 2 hipped eaves dormers with 3-light leaded wooden
casements and 2 ground-floor 3-light C20 wooden casements to left (in old openings)
with wooden lintels, one leaded. Large recess in gable end to east. C20 flat roofed
additions to west. Late C17 garden wall adjoining staircase block to north-east,
between rear garden and churchyard; dressed sandstone, with hollow-chamfered plinth.
Interior of house: Through passage with quarry-tiled floor and C15 moulded Tudor-
arched former rear doorway. Ground-floor room in c.1700 range to left of passage has
dressed-stone depressed-arched fireplace and panelled window shutters. Two-ground
floor rooms to right of through passage and the 2 bedrooms above were completely
remodelled in the late C17 with bolection-moulded panelling, including moulded dado
rail and moulded cornice, and 2 panelled doors with moulded architraves (some have
C18 H-hinges with shaped ends). Fireplace in principal ground-floor room to right of
passage formerly had an elaborate C17 overmantel (introduced from Poltimore House,
South Devon, in the C19), which is now in Court Hall (q.v.). The other 3 rooms
retain late C17 bolection-moulded chimney-piece with panels above. Right-hand
bedroom has late C17 painting in-situ over chimney-piece depicting a hunting scene
including an idealised coastal landscape with a castle in the background. Ground-
floor room to right of passage has 3 probably C18 glazed cupboards to rear wall.
Plain panelling in projecting bay of right-hand ground-floor room, with dado rail.
Late C17 dressed-stone depressed-arched fireplaces in all 4 rooms. Early C18
staircase in rear block; staircase hall approached by 4-panelled door from principal
front room. Dog-leg staircase with half landing, open string with cut brackets,
moulded nosings, barleysugar balusters (2 per tread), moulded ramped handrail and
square newel posts with moulded caps and pendants. Balustrade returning to landing.
C18 cupboard on half landing has 2-panelled door with H hinges. Moulded plaster
cornice to staircase hall. Late C17 rear doorway at foot of stairs, with boarded
door, beaded frame and 3-part leaded rectangular overlight. First-floor rear
corridor has C18 two-panelled doors with pegged frames. Old dog-leg attic stairs,
with winders. Roof of the late C17, with trusses consisting of principal rafters,
lapped collars and threaded purlins.
Sources: N. Pevsner. The Buildings of England North Devon, p. 130.

Listing NGR: SS7362829920

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17532501

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

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  Old House Care and Repair
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  County Durham (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England) by Elizabeth Williamson Nikolaus Pevsner(1983-03-11)
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  This Old House: Restoring, Rehabilitating, and Renovating an Older House
• 
  London 3: North West: North West v. 3 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Herefordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)