Description

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1724/0/10052

LEAMINGTON HASTINGS
Broadwell
THE GREEN (north side)
The Old Forge

04-FEB-10

II
A village blacksmith's or farrier's shop, dating from the early C19.

MATERIALS: the building is constructed from red brick laid in stretcher bond, under a plain clay tile roof, with brick stacks.

PLAN: the building, a simple rectangle on plan, is orientated east-west, and divided into two rooms: a forge to the west and probable shoeing room to the east.

EXTERIOR: the forge is a single storey range, with a pitched roof. The main elevation, facing the road, is of three bays, the two to the left housing the forge; there is a rectangular window opening to each bay, each under a timber lintel, with an original timber external shutter. There is a ridge stack to either end of this room, that to the west end having lost its top two courses of brickwork; that to the east has a projecting course close to the top. To the right is a double-door opening, under a wide timber lintel; the doors have been removed though the hinges remain in situ. The gable ends are blind.

INTERIOR: the interior retains two brick hearths with arched openings below the furnaces, and brick-built smoke hoods, leading into internal stacks. One has a later-C19 floor-standing bellows linked to the furnace by fixed pipework.

HISTORY: Broadwell is a small hamlet in the parish of Leamington Hastings. Whilst it had its own manor until the C16, the settlement seems to have been small, essentially a cluster of houses centred on the wide village green. The hamlet is now characterised by a number of later C18 and C19 houses, with some post-war housing. The old forge building is prominently situated on the green, with a small apron of land in front of it, which would have provided space for the tethering of horses waiting to be shod, and the display of wrought goods; it is adjacent to a row of cottages of similar date (unlisted). The building dates from the early part of the C19, and this is evident stylistically in the fabric. It was certainly in place by the time of the 1841 census, when John Fletcher and his son Frederick were the blacksmiths.

Reasons for Listing

The Old Forge at Broadwell, an early-C19 village forge, is designated at Grade II, for the following principal reasons:
* Historic interest: as a good survival of a forge dating from before 1840
* Architectural interest: a building which clearly reflects its use as a forge in its elevations and internal fittings
* Intactness: the building is largely unaltered since its completion, and retains its two hearths and chimneys as well as external timber work

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26672804

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)
• 
  Nottinghamshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Oxfordshire: North and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)