Post Office Cottage and the Post Office and Adjoining Wall in School Lane

Details

SS 90 SW THORVERTON BULLEN STREET, Thorverton 8/123 Post Office Cottage and the Post - Office and adjoining wall in School Lane GV II House and 2 adjoining cottages, now 1 property incorporating the Post Office. Late medieval origins, remodelled in the circa late C16/early C17 now in use as Post Office; kitchen wing added in the C17; 2 small C17 cottages adjoining the kitchen wing have been incorporated into the accommodation. Whitewashed and rendered, blocked out on the School Lane elevation. Various materials of construction; the range facing School Lane is said to be cob on stone rubble footings; a photograph of the Bullen Street elevation during re-rendering shows that the right end of the main block is stud with brick nogging above stone and the kitchen wing is stone to first floor level, cob above. Thatched roof, gabled at left end, gabled at end of wing; left end stack, axial stack and rear lateral stack to main range, all with brick shafts; axial stack and end stack to wing. Plan: L plan on the corner of School Lane and Bullen Street. Late medieval core in the north/south block along School Lane with evidence for a 3 room and cross passage plan, lower end to the left. It is not possible to establish whether the block was open to the roof from end to end or whether it was part-floored originally. When the hall was floored the hall stack was added backing on to the putative cross passage. In the C17 a kitchen wing was added at right angles to the inner room (along Bullen Street). 2 small C17 cottages, adjoining the end of the kitchen wing have been incorporated into the house. The main range was refurbished in the circa late C18 with a stair added against the rear wall of the old hall. Exterior 2 storeys. Asymmetrical 3 window front elevation to School Lane with a C19 entrance to right of centre directly into the old hall, with panelled reveals and a rectangular fanlight above the door; C20 porch on posts; C20 casement windows with leaded panes. Local stone wall, the masonry brought to course, adjoins the left end and is capped with tiles. The Bullen Street elevation is 4 windows with a C19 shop window; Post Office door to left of shop window, second door to right of window. 2 first floor and 2 ground floor 6 pane sashes at the right, 2 first floor C20 windows with leaded panes. Interior : The hall has an open fireplace with an oak lintel and ashlar jambs; boxed in axial beam. The rear of the chimney, formerly backing on to the putative passage, is remarkable : the volcanic ashlar stone is carved with 2 wide recessed panels, presumably in imitation of a plank and muntin screen. The parlour fireplace has an odd shouldered stone lintel, difficult to date. The lower end room fireplace is volcanic ashlar with an oak lintel with chambered jambs; a second flue rises from a small alcove next to the fireplace. On the first floor in the south gable end wall there is an aperture c. lm high and 0.8m wide with a rebated timber frame. It has been suggested that this is a gardenrobe since there is a large cavity below, adjacent to the lower end stack. A part of one jointed cruck is visible over the hail (apex not inspected). The hall/inner room partition is a large-framed closed truss with wattle and daub infill (part of which is exposed behind glass), sooted on the hall side. The partition is similar to that in no 10-11, Fore Street, Silverston (Thorp). The kitchen wing has a massive open kitchen fireplace with a rough, probably replaced oak lintel. It contains a large ash pit and the remains of at least 1 oven (the back has been partly rebuilt). At the right end a small blocked segmental arch at hearth level connects to a walk-in smoking chamber. 2 crossbeams, 1 chamfered with scoll- stops, 1 roughly chamfered. There was formerly a newel stair adjacent to the kichen stack. The first floor fireplace above has plain volcanic stone, jambs and a scroll- nick stopped lintel. The block to the west of the kichen was formerly a pair of small cottages, the 2 ground floor rooms divided by a timber frame containing 2 doorways. The exposed doorway is chamfered with scroll-stops. A plain stone fireplace in the right end wall has an oak lintel. The cottages appear to have functioned as an outbuilding at the time : a tethering post is said to have been found behind the wall plaster during renovations. An evolved house with many interior features of interest. Thorp, J., Typescript notes.

Listing NGR: SS9250602083

Legacy

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Legacy System number:

438805

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LBS

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