Hannel Farm

Summary

A C16 vernacular lobby-entry dwelling with cruck frame, raised in height in the C17 and altered during the C19 and C20.

Reasons for Designation

Hannel Farm is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural and historic interest: it is a good example of a C16 cruck-framed vernacular dwelling which was raised in height during the C17;
* Alterations: the alterations to the building from the C17 onwards have added to its interest, and can be understood from the surviving fabric;
* Survival: the building retains a high proportion of original and historic fabric.

History

Hannel Farm is thought to date originally from the C16; the first documented reference to it is in 1617 when the farm was sold to its tenant at that time. The farm features in Hearth Tax returns of 1662 and 1665 paying taxes for one hearth, and by the early C18 the property had become part of the nearby Swythamley estate.

The building was originally a single storey structure, with evidence showing that it was raised in height to provide a second storey during the C17. Early maps show the building as a linear structure; the attached cow shed which is at a right angle to the main building was erected in the early C20. The map evidence suggests that there was an outbuilding at this end of the house prior to the erection of the main cow shed, although what survives today appears to have been at least partially rebuilt. The adjacent pig-sty was built in the late C19.

Details

A C16 vernacular lobby-entry dwelling with cruck frame, raised in height in the C17 and altered during the C19 and C20.

MATERIALS: the building is built from sandstone with an internal timber frame with two crucks, under a stone slate roof. The adjacent outbuildings are also of stone with some brick, and slate roofs.

PLAN: the house is orientated NE-SW, with the cowshed projecting from the N end to the SE. The pig sty stands to the NE.

EXTERIOR: the house is entered on its NW elevation, with the door at the N end and four regularly-spaced casement windows. These replaced the original mullioned windows, possibly in the C18 or C19. The bottom right window has remnants of stonework showing the shape of the original window. There is a clear change in the stonework between ground and first floor level showing the height of the original building, with the larger and more regular stones at first floor level showing the additional height added in the C17. The roof is of stone slates. The main house is flanked on the S end by a small stone stable, and at the N end by the cow house extension, also in stone with two doors and a lean-to extension in breeze block. Both stone extensions have tile roofs. The gable end at the S end of the house has a blocked mullion window and the line of the original roof can be seen in the stonework.

To the rear, the elevation has a number of surviving C16 and C17 windows with stone surrounds and mullions. The windows are more irregular and include a blocked window at first floor level with one central mullion surviving and two further mullions which have been truncated. A two-light window at ground right marks the position of the hearth within. The other windows all show evidence of their original shapes, and the ground floor windows have flat hoodmoulds. The cow house has an opening at its far end and a brick extension with a metal sheet roof. On its N elevation it has a row of windows. The cow house is of lesser interest.

INTERIOR: the main entrance to the house opens into a small lobby, with a door to the right giving access to the main room of the house. This room contains a cast iron range in the hearth, with a tall surround and timber mantel. There are cupboards to the left. The ceiling is supported on chamfered and stopped timber beams, probably dating from the creation of the upper floor in the C17. The central wall has two doors; that to the left in a C16 moulded surround with cambered head giving access to the stairs with the base of one of the crucks exposed behind, and a C20 door to the right to the room beyond. This room has a stone flagged floor and chamfered beams which may be original beams which supported a loft. There are stone slabs around the room from its use as a dairy, one with the surviving base of a cheese press. The area under the stair is enclosed by timber boarding forming an under stair cupboard, with a door frame of re-used timbers.

The upper floor is divided into two rooms. The N room has sections of one of the cruck blades exposed, with a cut-off cruck spur on one of the blades. The stack from the hearth below rises through this room. The S room has a cast iron fire grate.

The SW outbuilding retains a stone sett floor and small stable with timber feeding trough. The cow house has concrete stalls which are not of interest; the roof retains two queen-post trusses with a later replacement roof above these. The pig sty to the north is of stone at ground floor level with a brick storey added on top, thought to be a hen house. There are two arches in the outer walls of the sty for pouring feed through.

Sources

Books and journals
Brunskill, R W, Timber Building in Britain, (1994)

Websites
British History Online - Heaton Parish, accessed 25.10.16 from http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/staffs/vol7/pp186-191#anchorn23

Other
Dr Faith Cleverdon, 'The Hannel, Heaton', May 2014

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