Mid 19th century barn and milking shed at Lodge Farm (EHER 40857)

Mid 19th century timber-framed barn and brick built milking shed were recorded during a building survey in 2007.

2007. Building survey. The two historic buildings examined were clearly once part of a larger complex, although many of the associated buildings shown on historic maps have disappeared. Both the barn and the lesser milking shed are consistent in materials, style and form with a labourer’s cottage standing nearby, which displays a date-stone indicating construction in 1864. The barn is typically 19th century, though demonstrating a basic framing form and robustness more indicative of industrial warehouses. It clearly functioned in a more complex and versatile way than a traditional barn. The existing structure is aisled, with an upper floor occupying the central nave. Heavy lifting tackle and a subsidiary framework suggest the lifting and storage of heavy produce. The outer walls have been heavily modified, with partial loss and truncation on the west, while much of the original weatherboarding and roof materials have been replaced with corrugated sheet metal. In form, the barn demonstrates the transition between the pure framing tradition and the introduction of industrial methods, materials and engineering, in the use of occasional iron stanchions and complex bracing. The barn is also conspicuous for a quantity of Baltic marking, which allows the provenance of much of its timber to be confidently ascribed to the Hanseatic port of Danzig. The milking shed has survived in relatively poor condition, but has brick and roof form consistent with the date of the barn. Several external features such as windows remain, together with some functional dairy rooms, but few internal features have survived comprehensive refurbishment. <1>