Barn north of Ibthorpe Farm House, Ibthorpe

Summary

A large cob barn, probably constructed in the mid to late-C18, with later C19 brick and flint repairs and alterations.

Reasons for Designation

The mid to late-C18 Barn north of Ibthorpe Farm House, Ibthorpe, is listed for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* a well-constructed and legible mid to late-C18 cob barn, altered in the C19, which displays its regional characteristics through its construction material and form;

* evidence of a first floor, and the presence of low-set window openings, suggest a former use as housing for animals.

Historic interest:

* an increasingly rare example of a building constructed from cob, which was once a common building material;

* demonstrates the evolving form of an early-C18 loose courtyard farm, which was then improved in the early C19.

Group value:

* with Ibthorpe Farm House (NHLE reference 1339371, listed at Grade II*) and the multiple adjacent Grade II agricultural buildings.

History

The cob barn north of Ibthorpe Farm House, was probably built for the adjacent Ibthorpe Farm, and would have originally had a thatched roof. Ibthorpe farm is visible on the 1838 Tithe map, along with the cob barn, which is shown as L-shaped, and with an eastern projection at the southern end. The cob barn is allocated the same apportionment number as Ibthorpe Farm House, which indicates that the barn was owned by this farm in 1838. Ibthorpe is noted for having a cluster of farms within the village centre, which has resulted in the concentration of an unusually large number of barns, many of which are listed. Freehold Estate Records for Hampshire record that Ibthorpe and its farms were owned by Corpus Christi college in 1517.

While Ibthorpe Farm House is an early-C18 building, the other buildings and structures on Ibthorpe Farm are dated as early-C19. However, based on the thick-walled cob construction material, the carpentry of the roof, and apparent adaptation for use as housing for animals, the cob barn is probably mid to late-C18, and altered in the C19. Cob walls were built by 'mud-wallers' who prepared a paste of broken-up chalk mixed with water, to which straw was added. The walls were then slowly built-up on a foundation of flint, bound by sand and lime mortar. Only a few inches of wall height would be have been added each day. The walls were susceptible to rain damage and therefore needed to be protected by a roof with a wide overhang. Due to the low-set windows, it is likely that the barn was created or later updated, to house livestock at ground level, and store their fodder above on a mezzanine floor. The Historic England report on Historic Farmsteads and Landscape Character in Hampshire notes that generally, within the chalk areas of the county, cattle rearing was concentrated within the river valleys, such as the Test where Ibthorpe is located.

It is probable that the cob barn was improved as part of the C19 development of Ibthorpe Farm, perhaps including the removal of the eastern projection, and the addition of brick and flint panels to the principal elevation. By 1873, the Ordnance Survey map shows the cob barn in its current footprint. The changes made by this time would have included the introduction of a brick gable wall to the southern end. Further repairs and alterations to the southern gable occurred in the later C20, including the widening of the entrance, which resulted in the removal of two of the mezzanine floor supporting beams. Strengthening timbers made from stripped tree trunks have also been added to support the roof, the covering of which has been replaced with a corrugated material. The cob barn is still in use as an agricultural storage building, and is owned by Yew Tree Farm (2018), which stands adjacent to it to the west.

Details

A large cob barn, probably constructed in the mid to late-C18, with later C19 brick and flint repairs and alterations.

MATERIALS: the barn is mainly constructed of cob, with repaired sections in brick and flint. The roof is formed of timber, and covered in a corrugated material.

PLAN: the barn is orientated north-south, with the open entrance offset to the southern end, and facing east.

EXTERIOR: the principal elevation faces east, and is formed of five bays including the entrance (bay two), which is open, and framed in late-C20 brick. To the south there is a single bay (bay one), which is constructed primarily of cob. It is brick-faced in a Flemish bond to the far south-end, and has a central and low-set window opening. To the north of the entrance, the third bay is blind and characterised by flint panels with brick surrounds. The brick component becomes more patchy towards the fourth and fifth bay, where the cob material behind becomes more evident. Bays four and five also have two low-set window openings.

The western elevation is similar to the eastern, but there is no entrance. The original window openings have been externally in-filled with C20 brick, and a C20 metal casement window has been inserted on the northern end. This elevation is almost entirely formed of visible cob, with some knapped flint strengthening.

The northern elevation is also formed of cob and has a central high-set window opening. It is gable-ended, and is surmounted by a half-hipped roof. The southern end of the barn is constructed as a full gable in brick. The brick is laid in English bond at the lower level, transitioning to Sussex or Flemish bond further up the gable. Overall, the roof is steep and single pitched. It is covered in a corrugated material and has broad low eaves, which overhang the cob walls.

INTERIOR: the cob walls are around 1.5m thick, and have a rounded top. Two courses of brick are built into them at around 2m above the ground level. The roof structure divides the barn into seven bays. Substantial timber cross-beams span the width of the barn at approximately 2m above the ground level, and are set into the cob walls. The beams are roughly square in section and have chamfered edges of around 4cm in depth. The top of each beam is notched for floor joists, but the floor is no longer extant. Two cross-beams either side of the entrance have been cut out. All window openings have rudimentary timber surrounds and most have vertical timber-bars. The example to the north end also has a horizontally-sliding shutter.

The roof is supported by roughly squared-off tie-beams which have shallow chamfers and form the seven internal bays of the barn. The roof is not built of conventional triangular trusses, presumably to allow head room. Instead, the principal rafters are bedded into the cob, and in effect it has two sets of collars, with the lower tier pegged into the rafters around 1m above the top of the wall. The upper collar is supported by a pair of queen posts, and the apex of the roof has a central ridge-piece. The supplementary rafters are slight, and there are two sets of discontinuous purlins, which span individual bays. The original timber roof components are largely connected using timber pegs, and some have a halved and lapped joint, as opposed to using a mortise and tenon joint. Some timbers have been selected for their natural curved shape.

Additional C20 tie-beams and struts have also been added, in the form of stripped tree trunks. A number of the original timber components have also been replaced using this material.

Sources

Books and journals
Waight, S, Composite Freehold Estates of the Post-medieval period in Hampshire in Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society, Vol. 56, (2001), 239-240

Other
Tithe Map of Ibthorpe dated 1838
English Heritage article, B Edwards, 2005, entitled 'Historic Farmsteads and Landscape Character in Hampshire' (pages 97, 109, 115, and 120)
The hamlet of Ibthorpe Its history buildings and people by A.W. Coysh and others

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