South Outbuilding at Chamberbane Cruck-framed Cottage, Strathtummel, Pitlochry, Highland, Perth and Kinross

Description

Chamberbane (or Chamberbhan) is a single-storey, cruck-framed cottage (now a store) dating from the 17th or 18th century with 19th and 20th century alterations. It is roughly rectangular on plan and four bays wide. A steeply-pitched turf roof remains beneath corrugated iron coverings and the roof is carried on four pairs of timber cruck couples. There is also a separate single storey and attic, rectangular-plan outbuilding to the south.

Located on a sloping site, which rises to the north and falls away to the south, the property sits on a rubble stone platform. The cottage is built of coursed rubble stone with naturally square and flat stones used at the corners and around the openings. The walls are battered and are built on projecting footings of large rounded boulders. The openings in the front (south) elevation are irregular in size and position. There is a single window to the western part and a door opening to the eastern part which is flanked by two windows. The gabled east and west elevations have no openings. The single opening in the rear (north) elevation was added in the 20th century.

The windows are eight-pane lying timber sashes and one six-pane sash. The recessed timber door is two-leaved. The roof is clad in sheets of corrugated iron with boxed timber skews and eaves, and turf beam filling to the wallheads. The chimney stack on the south pitch of the east gable is perforated metal and is thought to have been constructed from a biscuit tin. The yellow brick chimney stack to the left-of-centre dates from the 20th century.

The interior of the cottage was seen in 2017. The cottage has been used as a potato store from the latter-half of the 20th century. It is divided into two rooms by a rendered rubble stone chimney breast flanked by timber partitions and a door. The walls and ceiling of the smaller western room are fully lined with timber boarding. There is a standard cast iron fireplace and the floor is timber boards. The room to the east has been altered, with the internal partitions removed. The walls are largely lined with timber boarding and the floor is concrete. The roof structure is exposed and comprises three pairs of pegged timber cruck blades, which are joined by yokes to support the ridge tree. The purlins (spanning between the crucks) and the cabers (running from ridge to eaves) comprise timbers with the bark still attached, and these carry the turf roof covering. Later sawn timber beams have been added, spanning between the wallheads. The east chimney breast is blocked and that to the west contains an early 19th century style fireplace with a wrought iron swey.

The outbuilding to the south dates from at least the mid-19th century. It comprises two attached buildings which step down the hillside and are accessed at different levels. It has random rubble stone walls and corrugated iron sheeting on the steeply pitched roofs. The north gable has a high-level door accessed by a short stone forestair.

Immediately to the rear of the cottage and separated by a ditch, is a single storey, rectangular rubblestone outbuilding (now garage/wood store) with a corrugated iron roof. The farmhouse lies to the north and was extended in the mid-to-late 20th century.

In accordance with Section 1 (4A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 the following are excluded from the listing: the farmhouse and outbuilding (garage/wood shed) to the north.

Statement of Interest

Chamberbane cruck-framed cottage is a traditional farmhouse that pre-dates the agricultural Improvement period. It is of a type once prolific across the central region of Scotland but is now extremely rare. It shows traditional building methods and the use of locally sourced materials. The rubble stone walls, the narrow plan form, and the small deeply-recessed openings are all typical features of rural vernacular buildings.

The roof structure and the projecting footings are of particular interest as they are the earliest components of the building, dating from at least the 18th century. As very few examples of cruck-framed buildings survive in Scotland, in anything approaching their original state, Chamberbane is of outstanding architectural and historical importance. Survival of the turf layer to the roof is also exceptionally rare and is among a relatively small number of thatched or turfed roofed buildings across Scotland.

The simple local nature of the building means that it has been partially altered over the centuries. This reflects changes in farming practices and living standards, as well as developments in building techniques and the availability of materials. These changes do not impact significantly on the authenticity of the building and the early character remains clearly evident. The associated outbuilding to the south contributes to the historic setting of the cottage.

Age and Rarity

The form, materials and construction techniques seen at Chamberbane show that it was built before the agricultural Improvement era from the mid-18th century. The retention of the cruck couples and projecting footings suggests an 18th century construction date, however, the building may have earlier origins. It is first shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey Map (surveyed 1861), as part of a small farmstead with a number of other buildings to the north and south.

In its earliest form, it is thought that Chamberbane would have been a byre dwelling in which both the family and cattle were housed under a single roof. This was a well-established and practical solution, common in many areas of the Highlands during the 18th century. Local variations in available materials and building techniques resulted in a very diverse building typology. Walker states that the west end of Chamberbane may have formerly housed a byre because of the large and flat bow-shaped stone beneath the current west window. The shape of the stone suggests it would have been ideal as a threshold, and it correlates with the jambs of the existing opening (1985, p.41-42).

In terms of surviving 18th century fabric, it is likely only the cruck couples and the projecting footings of the present building survive from this period. Walker notes that the walls would have been constructed in turf and the roof would likely have been piended with an outer covering of bracken or broom thatch. The kitchen would have had a central hearth, possibly with an offset smoke hole in the roof. The kitchen was separated from the byre to the west by boxbeds and access would have been through a single door, shared by both animals and people (1985, p.41-43).

By the mid-19th the building would have been altered as a result of the changes brought about by the agricultural improvements. These began in the Lowlands in the late 18th century but reached Highland Perthshire around the 1830s or 40s. The appearance would have been similar to the present building but without the metal roof coverings and brick chimney (Walker 1985: p.41-42). Internally there would have been no ceilings and the living quarters would have been accessed separately from the byre, via the present door. The kitchen hearth had a large canopy chimney and would have been protected by a screen in line with the door. The bedroom at the east end would have had the present stone chimneybreast to the gable.

By the early 20th century the external appearance would have broadly matched that of the current building, with the corrugated iron covering and brick chimney having been added to the roof. Internally the walls and ceilings would have been finished with timber linings. The west end of the building would have no longer functioned as a byre, and a window replaced the byre doorway. A bedroom occupied the former byre, separated from the kitchen by the present double-sided chimneybreast and timber partitions. As noted by Walker, the dimensions of the present eastern room, combined with the position of the two fireplaces, suggests that this space would have once formed two rooms with a but-and-ben arrangement (an outer and inner room). These rooms would likely have been separated by a mid-closet or by built-in or back-to-back box beds (1985, p.39).

The use of thatch or turf as a roofing material on traditional dwellings has a long tradition in Scotland. They are often single storey cottages or crofthouses and traditionally built, reflecting pre-industrial construction methods and materials. The survival of this building type into the 21st century is extremely rare. A Survey of Thatched Buildings in Scotland, published in 2016 by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), found that were only around 200 buildings with thatched or turfed roofs in Scotland. Those which retain their traditional vernacular character, including plan forms and construction techniques may be of special interest in listing terms.

The industrial and agricultural revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries transformed areas of the central, southern and eastern regions in a very short period of time. As a result relatively few thatch or turf buildings survive here, with approximately 30 remaining within Perth and Kinross (SPAB, p.293-354). Improvements in transport during the 19th century, with the introduction of railways making the transport of materials to formerly rural areas cheaper and more accessible, had a significant impact on the use of thatch and turf as roofing materials. In some places this led to the mixing of skills and styles between regions with thatchers serving wider areas. By the end of the 19th century in central, southern and eastern Scotland the majority of buildings no longer had thatch or turf roofs. The tradition did continue in some towns and rural areas, possibly due to the availability of skilled thatchers or a preference for the style.

Cruck framing was a building technique used throughout Scotland prior to the agricultural Improvement era, with the exception of the islands where timber was scarce. This method of construction was made obsolete when improvements in transportation routes made standardised building materials cheaper and more widely available. As a result, surviving examples are now extremely rare and are of interest in listing terms.

There are approximately 40 listed examples of cruck-framed buildings in Scotland, in various states of survival. These include Camserney Longhouse and Peat Shed (LB5732), Sunnybrae Cottage in Pitlochry (LB39866) and Briar Cottage in Lochearnhead (LB4173). A very small number of these, such as Moirlanich Longhouse in Killin (LB8263) and Auchtavan Cottage in Aberdeenshire (LB50074), survive with their historic interiors largely intact, with features such as a hanging lum or box-bed recesses. Within Perth and Kinross there are seven listed cruck-framed buildings.

Chamberbane is a farm cottage, which has been partially altered but largely shows 18th and 19th century building methods and materials. It retains a number of features demonstrating its pre-Improvement origins, such as the plan form, rubble stone walls and projecting footings. It is a very rare and an important survival of traditional cruck-framed construction with turf roofing, which characterised Scotland's rural buildings in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The interest of Chamberbane is enhanced by the associated outbuilding which is retained to the south.

The farmhouse to the north is a late-19th century building, which has been extended at some point during the mid-to-late 20th century. It is of standard design for its date and building type, which has been altered and is not considered special in listing terms. It is excluded from the listing.

Architectural or Historic Interest

Interior

The interiors of these traditional cottages were often simple. Many of them have been refurbished and the survival of historic fixtures is rare.

The layout and fabric of Chamberbane has been subject to a series of alterations throughout the history of the building. However, the interior retains a number of traditional features that are of particular interest as they provide information about how the building previously functioned. The most notable of these features are the rare surviving four cruck couples that support the roof structure. Along with the projecting stone footings, they are thought to be the earliest components of the building and likely date from the 17th or 18th century. These crucks may provide evidence of how the building was laid out during different phases in its history.

Other later features are also of interest. There is a kitchen fireplace in the east room, with brick cheeks, a fireback and a wrought iron swey (a moveable bracket over a fire on which pots etc. can be hung). Such fireplaces were a typical feature in the early 19th century but its use endured when a cast iron range was beyond the means of the occupants (Walker 1985: p.39). The remaining plasterwork (largely behind the later timber boarding) to the walls may also reveal how the interior was previously subdivided.

Plan form

Externally the footprint of the cottage has remained unchanged since at least the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map (published 1867). It is a long and thin rectangular plan form, which is slightly uneven.

The narrow depth is typical of traditional farmstead buildings throughout Scotland, as the expense of suitable timbers for the roof, restricted the distance which could be spanned. The organic nature of the plan form, which responds to surrounding natural features, is a typical characteristic of pre-Improvement vernacular buildings. The survival of this vernacular footprint is of interest.

The cottage is orientated with the principal elevation facing south, in order to take full advantage of the natural light, while the rear is protected by the retaining wall of another raised platform.

Internally the layout has been periodically altered overtime, however, this has not significantly impacted upon the overall character of the building. These changes are of some interest as they reflect developments in both farming practices and living arrangements.

Technological excellence or innovation, material or design quality

Chamberbane is constructed and repaired using materials and methods that are characteristic of this part of Scotland. The interest of these vernacular buildings is discussed in the Regional Variations section below.

The simple local nature of such a building meant that it could be altered to suit changes in building methods, the availability of materials and the needs of the tenants. This is reflected in the series of alterations which have been carried out over its history.

The use of cruck framing was a building technique used throughout Scotland during the pre-Improvement era, with the exception of the islands where timber was scarce. The cruck couples are made up of small, often naturally curved timbers, which are jointed and pegged to provide continuous roof support. At Chamberbane the four cruck couples are not carried on the walls but are supported on the projecting stone base. As they are independent of the walls, this means that the original walls were likely to have been built of a non-load-bearing and perishable material such as turf, which was constructed over the projecting stone base. The walls were then later built up using locally available rubble stone, clay mortar and lime. Chimneys were added and openings were inserted and enlarged to give the present appearance of an Improvement period cottage.

The changes and improvements at Chamberbane are of interest. They show how the building has been altered to accommodate improvements in agriculture and living standards, as well as changes in the availability of materials and the development of construction techniques. Alterations to the internal layout and finishes do not significantly impact on the overall authentic character of the building.

While authenticity of material can be an important factor in assessing the significance of thatched buildings, those which have been repaired over time (perhaps with new roofing material or rethatched) can also be listed. The retention of the overall traditional character of vernacular buildings is therefore important in determining their special architectural or historic interest.

The overall appearance of Chamberbane is that of a 17th or 18th century farm cottage that has been altered in the 19th century during the Improvement period. It retains a number of important features which are characteristic of the pre-Improvement period, including the projecting footings, the battered walls and the cruck-framed roof structure. The survival of this seemingly modest farmstead informs our knowledge and understanding of vernacular building traditions within the central region.

Setting

The location and setting of historic farmsteads provides information about changing settlement patterns, agricultural development and rural land-use. The group of buildings known as Chamberbane are located in their own small plot of land on the northern banks of Loch Tummel. The site naturally slopes downwards to the southwest and the buildings are built on roughly level platforms which step down the hillside. These platforms were created by using the common cut-and-fill method of earthmoving.

The surviving buildings at Chamberbane were once part of a larger complex managed by two tenant farms by the mid-19th century (Valuation Rolls, 1855). At this time these would have been croft farmsteads. However, it may be that the original pattern was that of a fermtoun (a group farm settlement containing several tenant farmers' dwellings and outbuildings, with an area of common arable land).

As is shown on the 1st and 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey maps (published 1867 and 1900 respectively) there were a number of associated outbuildings scattered over the site, including a lime kiln that was described as 'old' on the 1st Edition map. The majority of these buildings are now largely demolished or have been replaced by the present house, which was built around the end of the 19th century and extended in the 20th century. These changes to the immediate setting are not considered to have an adverse impact on the special character or interest of Chamberbane.

Some footings and walls of these previous buildings do remain evident, as do the earth and rubble stone platforms on which they were sited. The survival of the associated outbuilding to the south of the cruck-framed cottage, which may have been a byre, aids our understanding of the wider farm complex and traditional farming practices in this area.

Regional variations

The design and construction of the building, the method of thatching and the thatching material used was a distinctly localised practice. The best examples of local vernacular buildings will normally be listed because together they illustrate the importance of distinctive local and regional traditions.

The central region of Scotland is fairly well protected from the extreme weather prevailing in the Highlands and Islands. Consequently thatched roofs did not require heavy duty fixings to keep the thatch in place. Most thatches were pegged into position, which involved bunches of straw being placed onto the roof in courses. One or two split wood pegs would be pushed through the holding band to secure the thatch in place. This method was usually carried out over a turfed underlay, which remains at Chamberbane. (Scotland's Thatched Buildings, p.27)

In Perth and Kinross timber skews have been used to contain the thatch at the gable ends, which is virtually unheard of outside of the central region. (Scotland's Thatched Buildings, p.27). The survival of this technique at Chamberbane is of particular interest.

The replacement of thatch and turf roofs with stone slates or tiles began gradually from the mid-17th century. However, the use of thatch and turf remained a major roofing material of 17th -19th century rural settlements in Scotland. The present turf roof covering at Chamberbane is of some age, however, due to its nature, it would have been periodically replaced or renewed. It is unclear as to whether the turf would have formed the outer coating of the roof, or if it was used as an under layer to a weather covering of thatch, as was common. It is likely that the present corrugated iron covering was added as additional weather protection in the late 19th or early 20th centuries.

If it did have a thatch covering, the original thatching material used at Chamberbane would likely have been oat straw, as this was the common material within this area, and also across much of Scotland. The Tay reed beds were planted in the 18th century and they may have been used in the rethatching of Chamberbane.

Originally the roof would have been piended and later became pitched when the rubble stone walls and gables were built. The secondary roof structure, which comprises the purlins, cabers and turf layer, is not original but is of some age, likely dating from at least the second half of the 19th century. Displaying traditional methods of cutting, shaping and joining, it is of interest in listing terms.

Close Historical Associations

There are no known associations with a person or event of national importance at present (2018).

Statutory address, category of listing changed from B to A and listed building record revised in 2019. Previously listed as 'Chamberbane Crucked Cottage (now store)'.

External Links

Historic Environment Scotland Listing

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