Description

SX 68 NE CHAGFORD

3/72 Teigncombe Farmhouse including
- garden walls to north-east

GV II

Farmhouse. Early or mid C16 with major C17 alterations, last major modernisation
circa 1924. Walls of granite stone rubble with large dressed granite quoins,
plastered on front; granite stacks, all with their original granite ashlar chimney
shafts; slate roof, thatch until circa 1924.
Plan and development: L-shaped house. The main block faces north-east and is built
down a slope. It has a 3-room-and-through-passage plan with the inner room at the
uphill right (north-western) end. The original house was open to the roof, at least
in the hall, and probably heated by an open hearth fire. By the end of the C17 it
was floored throughout. It is tempting to suggest that it was built as a Dartmoor
longhouse but there is no positive proof. About the middle or end of the C17 an end
fireplace was built on the lower end and certainly since then the lower end room has
been in domestic use. The hall has an axial stack backing onto the passage and the
inner room has an end stack with a newel stair alongside. Probably in the C18 a
dairy block added to rear of the inner room, and in C20 rear of passage blocked by
insertion of bathroom into what looks like a former porch. Now 2 storeys throughout.
Exterior: Irregular 5-window front of various C19 and C20 casements. Those at the
left end contain small rectangular panes of leaded glass whilst the 2 first floor
windows on the right end contain mostly diamond panes of leaded glass. Rest have
glazing bars. The front passage doorway left of centre contains a late C19-early C20
door as too does the inserted doorway to the inner room at the right end. Roof is
gable-ended. Newel stair projects a little from the right end, and left end wall
contains a presumably C17 2-light granite window with chamfered mullion. Although
the rear faces south-west there are few windows and no obvious signs of blocked
openings.
Interior has surprisingly plain early features where they are exposed. The lower end
room has a granite fireplace with replacement lintel and the crossbeam has a slight
soffit chamfer with runout stops. Is it really as early as the C17? The hall
fireplace has a granite ashlar back in the passage with a soffit-chamfered cornice
but the actual fireplace is blocked by a C20 grate. The hall crossbeam is boxed in
and the upper end oak plank-and-muntin screen is plastered over this side; only the
plain-finished reverse is exposed in the inner room. The inner room has a plain
chamfered crossbeam and the fireplace is all granite with a chamfered surround. A
flight of stone newel stairs rise alongside. The joinery detail is C19 and C20.
The roof is basically a replacement construction of circa 1924. Only the truss at
the upper end of the hall survives and the lower part of it is buried in a first
floor partition. Nevertheless it is probably C16. It has a cranked collar and is
definitely smoke-blackened on the hall side at least, which indicates an original
open hall-house heated by an open hearth fire.
The small front garden is enclosed by late C19 low granite rubble boundary walls.

Listing NGR: SX6718887177

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26439792

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  County Durham (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England) by Elizabeth Williamson Nikolaus Pevsner(1983-03-11)
• 
  Old House Care and Repair
• 
  Listed Buildings and Other Heritage Assets
• 
  Suffolk: East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Gwent/Monmouthshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Wales)
• 
  Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper