Vanners, Bucklebury Common, Bucklebury, West Berkshire

Summary

A timber-framed dwelling of the C16 or C17, with alterations of the C18, C19 and C20.

Description

Vanners is a vernacular dwelling of the C16 or C17, with alterations and additions of the C18, C19 and C20.

MATERIALS: timber-framed, with brick elevations and tiled roofs.

PLAN: historically a two or three room plan, with a C18 rear outshot, subdivided and extended in the C19 and C20 and subsequently remodelled as a single dwelling in the mid C20.

EXTERIOR: a two-storey, three bay building constructed of red-orange brick, generally laid in Flemish bond, with some differential brick patching where openings have been altered. The gable roof has clay tiles and two brick ridge stacks without pots; the stack to the right (north) was probably external until the construction of the late-C20 extension. An external stack is attached at the south gable end (see below). All of the windows are C20 casements.

The east-facing façade has a mid-C20 partly glazed, brick porch with a gable roof at the north end of the historic building; the C20 panelled entrance door is flanked by C20 windows. To the right (north) of the porch is the 1974 two-storey extension; ground floor window openings to the left (south) of the porch have inconsistent segmental heads, or C20 straight heads. The former doorways to the middle and the south cottage are wholly or partly blocked. The first floor C20 windows, close to the eaves, have straight heads.

The south gable end and the external, shouldered, C18 stack are constructed from narrow, red bricks laid in stretcher bond. The stack protrudes above the tiled, pent roof of the C20, single-storey weatherboarded addition. A relict queen-post truss and the ends of side purlins are exposed in the gable end. The rear (west) elevation has a catslide roof extending over the outshot. The external wall of C19 brick has near continuous bands of C20 fenestration to the centre, with a C20 plank door at the north end. In the rear pitch are three recessed “velux” windows, and a dormer window has been added at the north end. The two-storey, ‘T’-shaped north addition of 1974 is of standard brick construction for the time and is excluded from the listing.

INTERIOR: a pegged and jointed timber frame of large scantling, dating to the C16 or C17, is exposed internally; at the ground floor the frame is replaced with brick at the front (east) elevation and was remodelled during the late-C20 conversion into a single dwelling. At the ground floor, in the right-hand (north) bay, the historic north gable end is dominated by the C19 fireplace, to the east of which is access into the 1974 extension. A mid-C20 stair has been inserted against the partition with the central bay, necessitating the partial removal of the bridging beam here, but the chamfered, axial bridging beam extends from the stair opening to the north wall. Both it and the floor joists have lambs tongue stops. The partition with the central bay has been partially rebuilt, but retains a central post at the ground floor and is near complete at the first. At the rear of the north bay are two studs in a partition wall, to the left of which is a blocked doorway with ogee braces to the head. A modern opening leads into the outshot where the original rear wall has been partly removed, but its position is marked by a wall post, to the left of which is another blocked doorway. The outshot retains a corner post and a partition wall comprising a sole plate on a brick plinth, a midrail and studs. A doorway leads into the outshot at the rear of the central bay; the lower purlin to the catslide roof is encased.

The stopped and chamfered bridging beam continues into the central bay and beyond to the rear of the remodelled former entrance halls to the central and south cottages where the stopped end abuts the simply moulded bridging beam to the south bay. In the central bay the studs, midrails, and wall posts are apparent on the partition cross frame with the north bay, and at the rear where some of the timber frame has been embedded in plaster. A blocked door is apparent at the rear south-west corner of this bay. The partition cross wall to the south is dominated by the inglenook fireplace, much rebuilt with a bresummer. Between the central and southern bay are the former entrance halls of the central and southern cottages; the entrance hall to the central cottage has been enclosed, but the hall to the south cottage has a pamment floor which leads to the back of the building, through the rear wall of the earliest phase and into the outshot where the sole plate, some studs and the lower purlin to the roof are exposed. Although the wall studs were removed when the entrance halls were formed, a midrail with empty mortices and posts marks the position of the earliest partition cross frame. A rebuilt brick partition wall defines the southern bay, where, apart from the bridging beam, there is no timber frame exposed. An inserted doorway at the rear leads to the back of the bathroom extension where the pegged box frame of the southern gable end is enclosed by a modern cupboard.

At the south-west corner of the southern bay is a winder stair leading to the first floor where the wall plates, corner posts (some jowled), midrails and tie beams are exposed throughout. Modern partitions are inserted in the north bay to create corridors and bathrooms, but the earliest partition cross frames throughout the first floor are in situ and have substantial arched braces. The position of the doorways in the cross frames is original; those at the north end of the building having chamfered heads. In the central and northern bays, wide floorboards remain. The roof structure comprises a simple ‘A’ frame, pegged at the apex, with exposed side purlins and windbraces. The outshot has a timber frame of lighter scantling, with an exposed wall plate, posts and tie beams.

History

Vanners is a timber-framed building, probably dating to the C16 or C17, with later alterations and additions. The surviving historic fabric suggests that it was built as a single dwelling, probably with a two or three room plan, with the principal fireplace located in the central room. The third room at the south (left-hand) end is perhaps a later addition, or given the simplicity of the mouldings to the transverse bridging beam, was probably the service end of the original dwelling. The bricks of the south gable end and the external stack are a deeper red colour, laid in a different bond, and probably C18 in origin. The scantling of the timber frame of the rear outshot suggests that it was added at a similar time. Rocque's map of 1761 shows a schematic view of a building in a yard in approximately the same position; there are documentary references to Vanners or “Fanners Piece” noted from 1739.

The dwelling was historically subdivided into three cottages, probably in the C19, when the timber frame at the ground floor of the principal east elevation was replaced with brick and the framing to the first floor, and the rear elevation, were encased with brick. An external chimney stack was added to the north gable end at this time, now obscured by the 1974 addition. In 1922, Bucklebury Estate sold the property as three freehold cottages, describing them as “brick built and tiled…..having large gardens and possessing magnificent views of the surrounding country. Two of the cottages contain living room, back kitchen, two bedrooms….the other has one bedroom only.” It is understood that siblings lived in the cottages during the first half of the C20, adding the single storey, weatherboarded extension at the south end; each cottage had a winder stair at the rear, but only that in the southern cottage remains.

In the mid-C20, the cottage was turned back into one dwelling. Externally, the entrance to the southern cottage was blocked and that to the central cottage partially so, the upper part of the opening used as a window; other window openings have been enlarged to allow replacement fenestration. Three recessed “velux” windows have been inserted into the rear pitch, and one dormer window has been added towards the north end. In 1974 a large, two-storey extension was built to the north replacing an early C20 shed. Internally, a main stair was inserted in the right-hand room of the historic building. Partitions were replaced on the ground floor and inserted at the first floor to create an access corridor leading to a number of rooms. The outshot, which was previously sub-divided, has been opened up to form kitchen space.

Reasons for Listing

Vanners, a vernacular dwelling of the C16/C17 with alterations and additions of the C18, C19 and C20, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:
* Architectural interest: the remaining timber frame constitutes a significant proportion of historic fabric. It is constructed with good quality timber and well-crafted;
* Intactness: although the front elevation was replaced with brick in the C19, and the rear elevation encased, the main components of the building's timber frame survive, including the rear wall frame, most cross frames, the floor frames and the roof. The plan-form remains largely intact and legible;
* Interior: the survival of the original floorboards to the first floor, and decorative treatment to the bridging beams and joists on the ground floor, and doorways to the first floor, adds to the interest of the building;
* Historic interest: the building campaigns of the C18 and C19 illustrate the evolution of the building from one of middling status in the early post-medieval period, through to sub-division into smaller, humbler cottages of the C19 and early C20, demonstrating social and economic change over a number of centuries.

External Links

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.