The Belfry, including gate piers and gates

Summary

A large detached house, designed and built in 1892 by Lainson & Sons, of Brighton, in Vernacular Revival style.

Reasons for Designation

The Belfry, a detached house of 1892 by the Brighton firm of Lainson & Sons, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:
* as a house of well-articulated and varied elevations in good quality materials with interesting exterior features including moulded brick date plaque, ribbed chimneystacks, varied window types, turret with domed cupola, large wooden balcony and carved stone porch;
* for its good quality well preserved interior including stained glass, tessellated floors and joinery, including panelling, window seats and fireplaces;
* for its intact plan, which includes an unusually impressive full-height entrance hall including a staircase and gallery for entertaining.

Historical interest:
* social historical interest as an unusually intact later C19 middle class house;

Group value:
* the contemporary entrance gate piers and gates in the same style contribute to the special interest of the ensemble.

History

Gardens are shown on this site on the First and Second Edition Ordnance Survey maps of 1874 and 1899.

Belfry House was built in 1892 and was designed by Lainson & Sons of Brighton. The client was a lawyer, Barclay Watson, and the house was built on behalf of his sister Mrs Dodd. The builder was Alfred Chilton, who also built a parade of shops on the eastern side of Uckfield High Street. The property is first shown on the Third Edition 25'' Ordnance Survey map of 1910 where it has its current outline.

The Dodd family lived here for nearly a hundred years and the building was also used for a time as boarding accommodation for a local school.

Details

A large detached house, designed and built in 1892 by Lainson & Sons in Vernacular Revival style.

MATERIALS: red brick in English bond with some tile-hanging to the upper floors and gables, with alternate bands of plain and curved tiles, a partial band of roughcast below the eaves, some stone window dressings, wooden windows and balcony and tiled roofs with brick chimneystacks.

PLAN: an asymmetrical house of two storeys, attics and cellar. The ground floor has an entrance porch leading to a staircase hall, dining room, drawing room, sitting room, living room and service rooms. The first floor has six bedrooms. There are two further bedrooms in the attics. There is also a cellar.

EXTERIOR: the south-west or entrance front is asymmetrical and comprises three sections. The four-centred arched stone entrance has pilasters, balustrading and a ten-panel door with side-lights. It is attached at the side of the central section which is of two storeys and attics, the top floor hung with pointed tiles and with a Venetian window, the lower floors with a two-storey six-light splayed bay with stone mullions and transoms. The lower two-storey southern section has a first floor wooden balcony with decorative wooden posts and panels of balustrading. It ends in an octagonal two-storey corner bell tower, the upper floor tile-hung and with round-headed casement windows, the ground floor with lancet windows, which is capped by a domed cupola with an iron finial. The northern section is of two storeys. The upper floor has alternate several courses of pointed and plain tiles and a large projecting ribbed brick chimneystack with stone details and an elaborate moulded brick date plaque. There is a first floor three-light casement window and a ground floor curved bay window with a semi-domed roof.

The south-east side is of two storeys and attics with tile-hung upper floors, a Venetian window in the attic and a seven-light two storey square bay with stone mullions and transoms below. There is another mullion window on the ground floor.

The north-east elevation is of two storeys with three gables supported on brackets. The upper floor has three Ipswich windows, the ground floor a four-light mullion window and a round-headed service entrance.

The north-west elevation is of three bays and has a recessed centre with a Venetian window in the attic and a wide mullion and transom window below. It is flanked by projecting gables with four-light mullion and transom windows.

INTERIOR: entrance through the front porch leads to an inner entrance with an elliptical fanlight with leaded lights and stained glass with foliate patterns and a panelled door with side lights into a full-height reception hall with dado panelling, a bolection-moulded fireplace with cast iron fire grate, a series of five-panelled doors with moulded architraves and cornices, a double half-glazed door with strapwork motifs and leaded lights. Both the porch and entrance hall have a tessellated floor with floral designs.

There is a straight flight staircase over two storeys with dado panelling and Jacobean type balusters with built-in cupboards on the landing. It leads to an open gallery on the first floor with a ribbed and panelled ceiling, similar dado panelling and balusters, square newel posts with finials and round-headed arches with wooden reeded pilasters.

The Drawing Room at the south-west end of the ground floor has a similar ribbed and panelled ceiling, painted dado panelling and a window seat. The fireplace in a round-headed recess has eared architraves and attached elongated console brackets, a moulded shelf, an overmantel and blue tiles adjoining the fire grate. Leading off is an octagonal turret recess.

The Sitting Room at the south-east end has a moulded cornice, similar dado panelling and a fireplace with a Gibbs surround.

The Dining Room to the west of the Reception Hall has a similar panelled ceiling, painted dado panelling, a window seat and a fireplace with tapering Ionic pilasters, moulded cornice, original tiles and fire grate and a mirrored overmantel.

The room to the east of the reception hall was originally a reception room but more recently became a kitchen.

The ground floor service end has a separate service staircase with moulded balusters and retains original room divisions.

On the first floor the large west bedroom has a fire surround with a Gibbs surround and an inter-war mottled tiled grate.

The south-west bedroom has a wooden fire surround with a moulded cornice.

The south-east bedroom has a moulded cornice, a small tiled fire grate and a built-in wooden cupboard.

The eastern bedroom has a moulded cornice, a similar tiled fire surround to the south east bedroom and deep moulded skirting boards.

The attics retain their room divisions.

SUBSIDIARY FEATURE: on the street boundary to the south-west of the house opposite the main entrance are a pair of 1892 gate piers and gates. The gate piers are of red brick with a moulded brick base, a stone band near the top, and moulded stone pyramidal tops with ball finials. They are linked by a pair of cast iron gates with dog rails, scrolled side panels and scrolled overthrows.

Sources

Books and journals
Antram, N, Pevsner, N, The Buildings of England: Sussex East with Brighton and Hove, (2013), p640

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