Reasons for Designation
The Manor House at Long Clawson is designated at Grade II* for the following principal reasons:
* The history of the house is complex and its decline from an aristocratic residence into two much humbler dwellings is illustrated in its fabric. Both architecturally and historically the house is of more than special interest, and therefore meets the criteria for listing at Grade II*.
* The house contains some remarkably intact original features, for instance the large open fireplace in the north wing, which are of a quality that fully warrants a Grade II* designation.
Details
1835/34/58
CLAWSON, HOSE AND HARBY,
LONG CLAWSON,
WEST END (South side),
MANOR FARMHOUSE
(Formerly listed as:
WEST END
LONG CLAWSON
OLD MANOR HOUSE)
14-JUL-53
II*
House, formerly impropriate rectory house, then a farmhouse. Late C16 and early C17, altered slightly in the C17, C18, C19 and C20.
MATERIALS: The house is built mainly in ironstone, with limestone surrounds to windows, brick in three main gables, timber to small gable, and Swithland slate roof.
PLAN: The house is L shaped in plan; a main south range and north wing with a stair turret set between them.
EXTERIOR: The house is of two storeys with attics. There is a single storey porch set slightly to the east of the centre of the south elevation with a chamfered plinth and plain stone capped parapet. The porch has a doorway on the west side with rounded arched head and hoodmould, and to both south and east it has hollow chamfered stone mullioned windows, each with two lights. The house seems to have been built in two phases: in the centre of the south elevation, above the porch, is a straight joint, on either side of which there are differences of detail. To the west there is no chamfered plinth, but to the east the chamfered plinth of the porch continues. The windows are also different; to the west end of this range in both south and north elevation the windows are Ancaster Weatherbed Limestone with hollow chamfered mullions, while those to the east of the joint are Ancaster Hard White Limestone with ovolo moulded mullions. To the west, the pair of windows furthest west have four lights, while the pair closer the centre have three: there is graffiti carved into the surround of the window closest the porch. The taller thin oak mullioned and transomed window between the two ground floor windows is a later, probably C17, insertion. To the east of the joint are four taller three light windows and a small two light window above the porch; the first floor window furthest east is blocked with brick.
The chamfered plinth continues round the east gable of this range, where the windows, one to both ground and first floors, are similar to those at the east end of the south elevation, but with six lights. The east elevation continues with the north wing, in the centre of which is a massive stone chimney stack. A single storey lean-to extension has been built over the stack, at the north end of which is an open sided wood store. Through the lean-to is a side entrance to the house, originally a window. To the south of the stack at first floor level is a two light mullioned window, while to the north is a three light window; both are similar to those at the east end of the south wing. The three windows in the gable end and the three in the west elevation of this north wing also have ovolo mouldings. The three light window in the first floor of the west elevation has its outer lights blocked with brick. The gabled stair turret has a doorway with Tudor arch facing the street, and three irregularly sized and spaced windows lighting the stairwell: the largest of these, with three lights, has hollow chamfered mullions. Immediately to the west of the stairwell in the north elevation of the main range is a massive chimney stack, which contains a small window at ground floor level. All gables have small windows under the apex; and except for these all windows have drip moulds over. All seven chimneys are set diagonally.
INTERIOR: The entrance through the south porch leads into a stone flagged passage with two framed door openings without doors to the west, and a partition with two panelled door to the east: straight ahead is a cupboard, now used as a wood store. Through the two framed openings is a further brick floored passage, to the west of which is a large room currently used as a kitchen and living room. The wood surrounds to the paired openings are chamfered on the west side, indicating that the west was once the higher status end, the two doors originally giving access to service rooms at the east end. Later subdivisions have been removed from the west room to restore its open space. It contains a large open fireplace to the north into which is set a brick fireplace and stove. At either end and across the centre of the room are transverse stop chamfered beams supporting joists. There is a blocked door in the external west wall. To the east, beyond the pair of passages, is a living room containing a stone fireplace and transverse beam: the joists are ceiled over. These rooms occupy the main south range.
In the corner between the south range and the north wing is the stair turret with front door and closed-well stair. The north wing has one main room. In its east wall is a Tudor arched stone fireplace with relieving arch over, on the north side of which is the blocked opening for an oven: the back wall of the fireplace is brick. This fireplace appears never to have been used, but to have been sealed over soon after its construction. In the north wall of the room is a door that gives access to a narrow room once used as a dairy.
The first floor and attics have gypsum floors, as does the east ground floor room. The first floor main south range has two main rooms separated by a small bedroom, bathroom, landing and cupboard. The west room is divided in two by a C19 boarded partition, a central door connecting the two halves; in the north wall is a stone fireplace with moulded Tudor arch and early C19 grate: the east room has a chamfered stone fireplace, also with early C19 grate. The north wing room has been subdivided to make a bathroom: it contains a small C19 fireplace. The ceilings have stop chamfered beams and joists. This floor also has C18 fretted panelled screening transferred from ground floor to make cupboard doors. Early graffiti, the names of residents and visitors, survives carved into the wall plaster.
In the attics, the gables can be seen to be red brick, replacing timber framing. The roof space of the main range has been divided into rooms, the east room of the main range containing the seventh fireplace with chamfered stone surround. The roof has butt purlins between principal rafters and tie beams, and residual dormers survive to the south: there is no ridge piece. The roof trusses are sequentially numbered throughout.
SUBSIDIARY ITEMS: The barns to the east of the house are modern, but incorporate C19 mud walls. The perimeter mud wall at the north end of the site is modern. The barns and the wall are not of special architectural interest.
HISTORY: Manor Farmhouse in Long Clawson was built between 1580 and 1620 for Richard, the second son of Sir Henry Hastings, Sheriff of Leicester, who had sometime before this acquired the rectorial tithes of Clawson. In July 1641 his oldest son, also Henry, was married from the house, and the event may be commemorated by a poem to his bride carved into the plaster of the Great Chamber window. After the wedding the family seems to have had very little use for the house, although there is evidence that Henry lived at Long Clawson before he died. From promising aristocratic beginnings the house quickly fell into neglect, becoming simply part of the exchangeable financial assets of the estate, changing hands several times in the course of the C17, C18 and C19. Both its fabric and social standing were allowed to decline. At some time the house seems to have been divided into two dwellings, possibly as early as before the Hearth Tax of 1668, which records two dwellings in Clawson with four hearths and one with three, but the seven hearths of Manor Farmhouse are not recorded. The wood mullioned window inserted in the ground floor south elevation in the early C18 is probably a reflection of this, indicating the creation of additional rooms by subdividing the west end. By the late C18 or early C19 the house appears to have been in single occupancy once more. C19 changes included further internal subdivision: for example the partition dividing the west bedroom into two is quite precisely datable to 1840s from the newspaper behind the boards. The lean-to extension against the north-east elevation is first shown on the OS map of 1903, and is built around the external chimney stack shown on the 1884 OS map.
In 1910 the house was bought by the sitting tenant, J.C. Wilford. Very few changes were made in the C20 except for those involving some basic modernisation, which included the installation of electricity and a bathroom. The house as it is today has survived almost completely intact from the early C17, with only minor losses and alterations. Recent work undertaken by the current owner includes repair of the roof; the reconstruction of the east chimney stack and of all the upper stacks; the discovery and restoration of the fireplaces in the ground floor of the north wing, and the east room of the south range; and the refurbishment of windows and surrounds. The names and initials carved by past owners, occupiers and visitors into window sills, stonework and plaster, has been carefully preserved.
