Castle Farm

Summary

Farmhouse, C16, with C16 and later additions and modifications of stone, timber and brick.

Reasons for Designation

Castle Farm, Castle Lane, Codnor is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* for its surviving historic fabric, dendrochronologically dated to between 1539 and 1560 and second phase dendrochronologically dated to between 1560 and 1585;
* for its C17 and later surviving fabric, illustrating the development of a vernacular farmhouse.

Historic interest:

* for its associations with Codnor Castle and the Zouch family;
* for its associations with Richard Neile, Archbishop of York and Sir Streynsham Master.

Group Value:

* Castle Farm has group value with the scheduled Codnor Castle (National Heritage List for England entry 1007047) and the Grade II-listed Farm Building to South of Castle Farmhouse (NHLE entry 1109026).

History

Castle Farmhouse was built in the mid-C16 in the Lower Court of Codnor Castle either as additional accommodation for the castle owners or to house a tenant farmer. Accounts of the owners of Codnor Castle describe them as living in the castle long after the castle buildings themselves became ruinous, so the house may have been home to Richard Neile, Archbishop of York and, in 1692, Sir Streynsham Master.

The earliest parts of Castle Farmhouse were built between 1539 and 1560, originally as a two-bay structure with visible timber framing. As the building was placed immediately adjacent to the main approach to Codnor Castle, the timber-framed gable ends were designed to be visible and contained ostentatious close studding.

Shortly after the first phase was built, an additional three bays were built to the south, between 1560 and 1585. The building was refenestrated in the early C17, with the insertion of three windows with ashlar reveals on the west elevation.

The upper storeys of the farmhouse were rebuilt in brick, probably in the C18. The east windows and staircase were replaced either at the same time or shortly after. Later in the C19, the rear outshot was rebuilt in brick and the house renovated.

The farm operated as a dairy farm from 1862 to 1969 under the ownership of the Butterley Company and continued as a dairy farm until it was acquired by the National Coal Board (later UK Coal) in 1978. The farmhouse passed into private ownership in 2011.

Surviving historic timberwork within the house was sampled for dendrochronological dating by Historic England in 2015. Analysis showed that the timbers for the northernmost (earliest) phase of the house were felled in the late 1530s, with the southern three bays constructed of timber felled between 1560 and 1585.

Details

Farmhouse, C16, with C16 and later additions and modifications of stone, timber and brick.

PLAN: The building is of five bays with a single room outshot to the rear. The two northernmost bays are slightly longer than the southernmost three. A second staircase has been inserted at the southern end of the building (under a catslide roof). The building has been subdivided, with the two southernmost bays forming a separate dwelling. A number of partitions have been inserted to create corridors, toilets and separate bedrooms. There is a small, single-storey structure attached to the north-west corner of the building.

EXTERIOR: The principal (west) elevation comprises a sandstone ground floor with a brick first floor above. Quoins, doorcases and ground floor windows are in stone, while upper floor windows have concrete lintels and cills and brick reveals. The north elevation is of stone with brick gables and a brick chimney stack. The east elevation is of brick on a sandstone plinth. There is a large stone and brick chimney stack and a brick outshot. The south elevation is of brick on a sandstone plinth. Fenestration is mixed, with two large square four light stone windows and a two light stone mullioned window on the ground floor of the west elevation and a mixture of timber and iron sash and top-hung casements elsewhere. The roof is tiled.

INTERIOR: The floor frame for the first floor of the house is exposed in the northernmost dwelling. The principal room contains a large chamfered binder holding square cut joists and a chamfered double tie beam. The fireplace is a small, sandstone-quoined opening in a much larger chimney breast. A number of joists are visible in the northernmost bay, running perpendicular to the joists in the principal room. The joists are chamfered, with plain stops.

The roof structure is exposed within the attic space. The roof trusses comprise a king post with raking struts. The second truss from the north contains diagonal studding, indicating that this was once the external wall of the building. The second truss is doubled, with an additional truss placed immediately adjacent. The roof has staggered purlins and wind braces.

Legacy

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

Legacy System number:

79045

Legacy System:

LBS

Sources

Books and journals
Hartwell, Clare, Pevsner, Nikolaus, Williamson, Elizabeth, The Buildings of England: Derbyshire, (2016), 277-278
Stevenson, W, The South Court of Codnor Castle in Derbyshire Archaeological Journal, Vol. 42, (1920), 46-59
Kerry, C, Codnor Castle, and its Ancient Owners in Derbyshire Archaeological Journal, Vol. 14, (1892), 16-33

Other
Glenn, C, 'A Provisional Historic Buildings Analysis of the Farmhouse at Codnor Castle, Ripley, Derbyshire' Unpublished report (2018)
Arnold, A and Howard, R 'Codnor Castle, Castle Lane, Codnor, Derbyshire. Tree Ring Analysis of Oak Timbers from the Farmhouse and Barn' Historic England Research Report 38-2015

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