Description

SOMERTON CP
LOWER SOMERTON
(North side)

ST42NE

4/157

30-SEP-1985 Court Hay Cottage and No 1 Court
Cottage

GV II

Pair of late-Georgian cottages. Coursed blue lias stone construction with a pitched slate roof. There is an intact central shared stone stack and further stacks, which have been lowered, to the gable ends. The right hand stack to Court Cottage has been subsumed by a late C20 extension which has a further, late C20, stack to its gable end.
PLAN: Single depth plan. The late C20 two storey, two bay extension and further single storey addition built onto the east side of Court Cottage in matching materials are not of special interest.
EXTERIOR: Each cottage has a symmetrical front elevation of segmental arched, openings set under flat lintels, stone to the ground floor and timber above. The sash windows, of sixteen panes and un-horned, are positioned to either side of the entrance door at ground floor, with a further two sashed windows at first floor to each cottage. The late C20 two storey extension of two bays that has been added to the east side of Court Cottage has similar windows although the lintels at ground floor are concrete. At the west end of Court Hay Cottage is a single storey range with a clay tile roof. The rear elevation has a single casement window to each cottage which lights the upper landing.
INTERIOR: Court Cottage retains its original plan downstairs, with central hall and stairs rising opposite the door. Each of the main rooms had a fireplace, now replaced with modern surrounds. Upstairs, the right hand room has been made narrower to provide a passageway and access to the late C20 extension. Despite this realignment of space on the upper floor, the basic 'two up, two down' plan is apparent in the cottage.
The interior of Court Hay Cottage was not inspected.
HISTORY: The cottages are present on the 1841 Tithe Map of Somerton. They are considered to be former estate cottages, built in the early C19, by the owners of Somerton Court, a Grade II listed building, located to the south.
SUMMARY OF IMPORTANCE: This is a pair of late-Georgian, pre-1840 cottages of blue lias stone construction in which the external appearance and essential plan form survive well. The front elevation is a carefully considered composition with its small paned sash windows, stone dressings, and a pilaster to define the division between the two properties. Both cottages retain their essential character as simple cottages housing estate workers and their families.

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26594158

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

• 
  Bristol (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990: Updated version
• 
  For the Record
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  London 1: The City of London: City of London v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990