Description

Probably 18th century origin; renovated, extended and rethatched late 20th century. Single storey, three-bay vernacular cottage retaining small openings and early appearance externally. Rubble with some large base stones, some forming distinct batter.

Symmetrical entrance (south) elevation with 2-leaf boarded door at centre and small windows in flanking bays. Rear elevation with tiny centre window and further window at right. Low glazed bay with grassed roof at east gable links to single storey and attic timber, harled and slated extension. Small single storey piend-roofed rubble outshot at west gable.

Six-pane glazing pattern in replacement windows. Thatched roof with concrete ridge. Rendered gablehead chimneystacks with cans.

Interior: comprehensively modernised.

Statement of Interest

Once part of the estate of the Menzies of Castle Menzies, East Cottage is an integral element of the small fermtoun, formerly known as Nether Tullicro. It is a good example of a vernacular cottage which retains its small openings and probably dates to the 18th century. Such survivals are increasingly rare and are important sources for informing our understanding of rural life and work in Scotland prior to the 20th century. Unusually, the exterior of the cottage and the collection of buildings at Tullicro appear much as they would have when first built. This contrasts vividly with the paucity of remains at the once similar clachan of nearby Upper Tullicro.

At Whitsunday 1839 a record of the Rental of The Estate of Menzies in Appin of Menzies (or Dull) notes that Upper Tullicro was tenanted by Angus McGregor at a rental of £70 per annum, and Nether Tullicro was divided between John McGregor and Duncan Menzies, each at £32 per annum.

This type of small fermtoun or clachan, a collection of dwellings and farm buildings, was not uncommon before the sweeping changes introduced by the Highland Clearances and agricultural Improvement period. During the 18th and 19th centuries farming traditions dating back thousands of years were lost or subsumed in an agricultural revolution as significant to rural landscapes as was the industrial revolution to urban development.

It is among a relatively small number of traditional buildings with a surviving thatched roof found across Scotland. A Survey of Thatched Buildings in Scotland, published in 2016 by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), found there were only around 200 buildings of this type remaining, most of which are found in small rural communities. Thatched buildings are often traditionally built, showing distinctive local and regional building methods and materials. Those that survive are important in helping us understand these traditional skills and an earlier way of life.

Listed building record updated and category changed from B to C in 2008. Listed building record revised in 2019 as part of the Thatched Buildings Listing Review 2017-19.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q56615843

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.

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