East Barton

Details

MOLLAND SS 82 NW 15/48 East Barton - II Farmhouse. Circa 1550, altered in the early to mid-C17, and extended or partly rebuilt probably in the C18. Minor late C20 alterations. Rendered over stone and cob. Gable-ended asbestos-slate roof. Axial and end stacks. Tops of stacks rebuilt in C20 brick. Plan and development: 2 or 3 room through-passage plan, facing south. Late-Medieval open-hall house, consisting of hall with former through passage to left and service room beyond. Possibly also formerly with inner room to right. Formerly open to the roof, continuously from end to end. C17 alterations included the insertion of the first floor and the insertion of an axial stack at the right-hand end of the hall. Eaves probably also raised at the same time. Kitchen added (note narrower width and lower roofline) at right-hand end, probably in the C18, with external brick end stack. This room possibly replaced a former unheated inner room; alternatively the medieval house might always have been only of 2 rooms. Late C20 alterations included the removal of the ground-floor wall between through-passage and hall (and also probably the blocking of the front doorway to the passage), insertion of staircase to rear of hall and the rebuilding of the left-hand gable end. It is not known whether the former service room ever had a stack (end wall since rebuilt). It is possible that this room never became a kitchen, that function being taken over the C18 kitchen of the right-hand end (possibly a rebuilding of an inner room). Late C20 lean-to addition at rear. 2 storeys. Exterior: Asymmetrically-fenestrated front; C20 3-light wooden casements, 4 to first floor and 3 to ground floor. Boarded door (to kitchen) between first and second windows from right. Blocked former through-passage door between first and second windows from left. Stack in right-hand gable end with slate offsets. Interior: Hall has C17 chamfered cross beam and half beam with stepped runout stops. Old joists to left of cross beam removed when wall between hall and through passage was taken out and steel beam inserted. C17 open stone fireplace (reduced in width in C20) with chamfered wooden lintel. C19 matchboarded dado, and window seat. Inner room to left with plastered C17 chamfered cross beam. Kitchen with plastered square cross beam, segmental-arched stone fireplace, and window seat. Old doors throughout. Right-hand end wall of hall is cob and extends up to eaves level. Remains of lightly smoke-blackened late-Medieval roof including 2 principal-rafter trusses, over middle and left-hand (upper) end of hall, each with cambered collar halved over principals and pegged mortice and tenoned apex. Diagonally-set ridge- piece. Formerly there was a late-Medieval truss at the right-hand (upper end of hall too (see gap in cob wall), probably removed when the stack was inserted. Trenched purlins. Some smoke-blackened rafters survive also. Trusses with halved collars are rare in late-Medieval houses in Devon.

Listing NGR: SS8372125687

Legacy

The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.

Legacy System number:

397877

Legacy System:

LBS

End of official list entry

All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.