Description

BICTON C.P. ISLE LANE (west side)
SJ 41 NE
6/35 Bicton Grove Farmhouse
-
GV II*

Farmhouse. Circa 1700, refenestrated and extended in the early C19. Red
brick with hipped slate roof. Square plan. Two storeys and attic.
South-east front: plinth with chamfered stone top and moulded wooden eaves
cornice. Pair of brick stacks to return ridges. Pair of hipped dormers
with moulded wooden cornices and C20 wooden casements. Two-window front;
boxed glazing bar sashes with gauged-brick heads. Central C18 boarded
door with beaded oak frame and C20 architrave. Decorative panels to
interior, with wrought-iron strap hinges and old lock. Formerly 3 bays (see
blocked windows). Late C20 lean-to conservatory in front of door and left-
hand window. Left-hand return front with single hipped dormer, pair of
first-floor sashes, and ground-floor sash to left. Rear: 2:1 windows;
right-hand first-floor window blocked and left-hand ground-floor window
altered in the early C19 (see head) and with C20 casement. C18 boarded
door (with wrought-iron strap hinges to interior) between first and second
windows from right with flat hood on shaped brackets. Early C19 two-
storey kitchen wing to north-east. Brick ridge stack; 2-light windows to
each floor to left and boarded door to right. Interior: fine fixtures and
fittings of c.1700. Entrance hall: raised and fielded dado panelling
(wall between hall and left-hand ground-floor room removed). Panelled
cupboard to left of fireplace. Round archway into staircase hall with
cable-fluted Doric antae, panelled soffit, panelled spandrels and moulded
cornice, breaking forward over central keystone. Staircase hall: raised
and fielded dado panelling. Unusual and very fine c.1700 oval-well
staircase rising to attic with single swept flight to each storey, consisting
of closed string, tapered treads, cable-fluted bottle-shaped turned balusters
and foot newel, and ramped toad-backed walnut handrail; ramped and fielded
dado panelling. The balusters to lower flight are of a more unusual wood
(possibly walnut) and the balusters to the upper flight are of oak. Right-
hand ground-floor front room: former C18 kitchen. Large elliptical-arched
fireplace with staff moulding. Left-hand ground-floor rear room: complete
c.1700 fittings (except for fireplace). Oak raised and fielded panelling
with shaped heads, fluted Doric pilasters and moulded cornice (breaking
forward over pilasters). Cupboard to left of fireplace with raised and
fielded panels and shell niche to right of fireplace with shaped shelves.
Left-hand bedroom with raised and fielded panelling, dado rail and moulded
cornice. Oak doors throughout with raised and fielded panels and panelled
reveals. Further first-floor rooms not inspected. The staircase is
similar (although more elaborate) to the staircase at Fitz Manor (q.v.),
Bomere Heath C.P.,and both were probably made by the same joiner. The
striking swept-flight form is unusual in minor houses of this date. This
house, although plain for its date, is made particularly special by the
survival of its rich c.1700 interior fittings.

Listing NGR: SJ4512315020

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17551076

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

• 
  Herefordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
• 
  Norfolk 1: Norwich and North-East: Norwich and North-east v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy
• 
  Lancashire: Manchester and the South-East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Worcestershire Revised Edition (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)