19th century stable at Aylmers Farm, Sheering Lower Road, Sheering (EHER 81074)

The stables at Aylmers Farm are built of yellow London Stock bricks and date from the 19th century.

June 2019. Level 3 building survey. The stables has been built of yellow London Stock bricks which reached the height of their popularity in the 1830s to 1840s but continued in popularity until the end of the 19th century. The roof is made of machined rafters of a regular 2.5x4in section at 14in centres to support a heavy pan-tiled roof and this would suggest a date later in the range. It is likely the building was built as a stable but all the fittings including the doors and weather-boarding are late 20th century. The loose box was originally open-sided and twice as long as shown in the 1874 OS map. Only some of the frame and the tie-beams appear original and these have been heavily modified in the mid 20th century. The Ootshut was rebuilt with London Stock brick walls, a cast iron window and a remodelled sawn softwood roof. The buildings illustrate the transition from a small holding known as Nethertown in 1777 and Ivy House in 1840 to a fully developed Victorian High Farm. The barn was originally built in 1615 at the same time as the House and would have been the principal dwelling at that time. Is importance was diminished by the building of Dorrington Hall to the north-east whose owners became the landowners and Aylmer’s Farm became tenanted. The barn is a fine example of its type and is in good near original condition. It is highly likely it has lost a bay from the eastern end when the farm was reconfigured in the early 19th century. The other buildings are typical of their type and while the stables has been looked after the outshut and loose box are ramshackle buildings in poor repair. <1>