Little Nash, Nash, Near Presteigne, Herefordshire

Summary

A house, which includes two pairs of cruck trusses within its structure and may date to the late-medieval period. Later additions include the insertion of a first floor and hearth in the hall and cross wings dating from the C18 and C21.

Reasons for Designation

Little Nash, a vernacular house dating from the C15 or earlier, is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural and historic interest: the inclusion of two trusses with cruck blades with arched wind braces, all of which show soot blackening, indicating a late-medieval hall house of some stature;
* Intactness: the different phases of construction are well-represented by the blackened timbers, inserted hearth and first floor and the adaptation of the north-east end to form a cross wing in the C18, all forming a legible building.

History

The spinal range of Little Nash contains cruck blades and is of C15 date, or earlier. To these, a gabled cross wing was added at the North-East end, which appears to be an C18 adaptation, incorporating earlier material. A floor was inserted in the hall range, most probably in the C17 or C18, together with a cross-axial chimney stack. Cast iron fenestration with lattice glazing, of C19 date, was brought from elsewhere and incorporated in the late C20, and a further, gabled wing was built at the south-west end in the early C21.

Details

A house of C15 date or earlier with additions of the C18, late C20 and C21.

MATERIALS: the building is timber framed with brick and rendered infill and also areas of rubble stone to the exterior walling. The roof covering is of slates.

PLAN: the building is single-storied with an attic. A spinal range runs south-west to north-east with gabled cross wings at either end. The spinal range has two sets of full, cruck blades forming trusses at its south-west end. There is a cross passage, which may be an original feature, immediately to the north-east of this, perhaps indicating a former screens passage. Soot-blackened timbers, including arched wind braces, above this part of the house indicate the likelihood of an open hall, into which a floor and cross axial stack were inserted in the C17 or C18. On the north-east of this is the C18 cross wing, which incorporates earlier material. To the south-west is the C21 cross-wing, which has a lower ridge and includes a large, two-storey living room and staircase.

EXTERIOR: the south-east front has rubble walling to the lower body and timber framing with brick and rendered infill to the gables. Windows are two and three-light metal casements and there are two, two-light gabled dormer windows with casements to the central roof. The north-west front has the C21 addition projecting at right with an oriel window to the ground floor and a jettied gable above, incorporating planted timbers. The central bays have small-framed walling at ground floor level with a projecting bay to left of centre, with a catslide roof. Attic windows are gabled dormers, and ground floor windows are metal-framed casements with cast-iron lattice glazing. Attached to the north-east end is a lean-to of C18 or C19 date.

INTERIOR: the inserted floor has a central, heavy spinal beam and square-edged joists. The first floor shows that the cruck blades rise to connect with cambered collar beams, one of which has cracked and been augmented by an upper collar with metal clamps. The curved wind braces are overlaid by three ranks of purlins. Although there are signs of blackening to all of these elements of the roof, it is possible that the placing of the purlins has been altered at some stage and that the arched braces and trusses are the only in situ soot-blackened parts. The cross wing to the north-east contains heavy roof timbers, which appear to be planted, and staggered purlins, with jowled posts and metal ties.

It should be noted that an outhouse c.10m to the north-east of the house incorporates a series of heavy, adapted, cruck blades, similar to those inside the house which may well indicate that a larger, cruck building previously stood on the site.

Sources

Other
Royal Commission on Historic Momuments of England, Inventory, North-west Herefordshire (vol.7),

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