Lewis Hill

Details

DUNSFORD REEDY HILL, (south side), Dunsford SX 88 NW

6/61 Lewis Hill

11.ll.52

GV II *

House. Circa late C15 origins, circa late C16 remodelling, substantial C20 renovations. Whitewashed rendered cob; thatched roof hipped at left end, hipped at end of wing; axial stack with granite ashlar shaft projecting front lateral stack with similar shaft. The present plan is a main range, 3-rooms wide, formerly with through passage, the hall stack backing on to the passage and a front lateral stack heating the inner room to the right; rear kitchen wing; right-hand cross wing formerly partly in use as hay barn. The early core is a high status medieval open hallhouse, probably divided by low screens. The house was floored over in several phases, probably beginning with the inner room which was provided with a fine first floor chamber with an ornamental plaster ceiling and a co-eval fireplace served by the front lateral stack. The 2- storey porch may also date from this phase;finally the hall with a stack inserted backing on to the through passage and a granite newel stair adjacent to the stack. The function of the cross wing is puzzling. The remains of a cobbled floor indicate an internal open drainage system and there is a truncated cob stack on the right-hand wall. The rear kitchen wing may be an C18 addition. Substantial restoration work carried out in the C20 includes refenestration. 2 storeys. Irregular 4-window front to the main range, the right-hand end with a slightly higher roofline and a 2-storey gabled porch to the former passage left of centre. Fenestration of C20 artificial stone mullioned windows of 1, 2, 3 and 4 lights; 2 first-floor gabled dormers, l transomed stair window to left of porch. Interior A number of individually outstanding features survive. Of the medieval house 2 arched brace jointed cruck trusses (1 brace missing) with some wind braces are visible on the first floor. The jointed crucks are neatly pegged with 5-face pegs. No access to apex at time of survey (1985) but smoke-blackening is said to extend the full length of the hall and inner room ie: on either side of the ornamental plaster ceiling over the inner room. The cambered lintel of the inner doorway of the porch may also be medieval. The C16 decorated plaster ceiling to first floor room right is notable. A moulded cornice is carried out round the principals and in the centre rustic animal motifs are divided by foliage stem ribs (Period One, French). A former fireplace had a stylistically similar overmantel, fragments of which have been reused as the overmantel of the room below, which has a fireplace with a replaced lintel but some rare surviving chequered plasterwork on the internal walls of the hearth. The cross beam and 2 half beams in this room are particularly fine, ovolo-moulded with moulded bar step stops. The open hall fireplace has 1 granite monolith and one stone rubble jamb; chamfered stopped lintel. The adjacent newel stair has granite steps. An oak plank and muntin screen on the other side of the stack partitions the hall from the former passage. The outer doorway of the porch has an ovolo-moulded lintel. The fireplace in the cross wing has a chamfered timber lintel carried down on to the stone rubble jambs. A section of cobbles in front of this fireplace includes the evidence of an open stone drain which formerly ran diagonally across the floor of the wing. Other features of interest survive, not necessarily in situ. The quality of the C20 joinery is high. An important medieval house with some notable later features.

Listing NGR: SX8135089256

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

400727

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.