Late 18th century timber framed cottage, Old Whitmans Farm Cottage, Hackman's Lane (EHER 81724)

A cottage known as Old or Little Whitmans. The building is a one bay, two storey, timber framed cottage of late 18th and early 19th century date with late 19th and 20th century additions. The cottage has some remaining late 18th or early 19th century weather-board cladding, the rest being 20th century replacements. The cottage has a hipped, mansard roof with peg tiles and a late 19th century central ridge stack, rebuilt at the top. The cottage has a simple three room plan with rear winding stair. The present farm includes many 20th century building and a few timber framed outbuildings. Since the demolition of the farmhouse, the cottage has lost its historic context as a farm cottage.

NRHE data transfer: CONTEXT. An application to list Old Whitmans Farm Cottage, formerly known as Barking Cottage, has been received by English Heritage. The building has recently been refurbished and is not under any known threat. HISTORY. A farm known as Old or Little Whitmans has been in existence since at least the 1770s, clearly indicated on the Chapman and Andre map of Essex of that period. Map evidence of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century shows a small group of farm buildings to the west of the farmhouse (the latter was demolished very recently) and suggests that a structure adjoined the cottage to the north. Photographic evidence of the late nineteenth or early twentieth century in possession of the owner suggests the farmhouse was of early nineteenth century date and that the cottage, located to the north-west, was weather-boarded with a tiled, hipped mansard roof. The present farm includes many twentieth century buildings, and a few timber framed outbuildings. The cottage itself appears little altered since the photograph was taken. The weather-board cladding has been exposed having been covered with render on a mesh backing. The sash windows are late nineteenth century and early twentieth century in date and the garage/utility extension to the north-west is a later addition. DESCRIPTION. The building is a one bay, two storey cottage of late eighteenth century/early nineteenth century date with late nineteenth century and twentieth century additions and alterations. The cottage has a late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century timber-frame with oak weather-board cladding. Some of the weather-boards have been replaced like-for-like during the recent refurbishment of the property. The cottage has a hipped, mansard roof with peg tiles and a late nineteenth century central ridge stack, rebuilt at the top. The single storey twentieth century garage and utility room to the north has a pantile covering and twentieth century double garage-doors. The façade has an off-centre door and two eight-over-eight light vertical sliding sash windows of late nineteenth century date. The south elevation has a dormer with pent roof at first floor and three sash windows on ground floor, two of which may be later insertions. The north elevation is blind apart from a small casement window in the garage extension. The west elevation has a small single storey outshot with a late nineteenth century or early twentieth century six-over-six light sash window above. INTERIOR. The cottage has a simple three room plan with rear winding stair. On the ground floor there are a number of transverse bridging beams, with light chamfer, and three pairs of wall posts supported by substantial curved brackets, pegged in place. There is no exposed studwork on the ground floor, or first floor frame, but it is said to remain beneath the lathe and plaster. There are timber battened doors and simple open fireplaces without grates. The roof has a ridge piece and raking shores, and is substantially mid nineteenth century and later in date, with some twentieth century rafters. ASSESSMENT. Most buildings dating to between 1700 and 1840 are likely to merit listing on the basis of their age, coupled with architectural quality and intactness. For buildings post-dating 1840, progressively greater selectivity is required when considering designation. For vernacular buildings, retention of the original plan-form, construction and fabric are additional factors for consideration. Old Whitmans Farm Cottage is a humble building which has, since the demolition of the farmhouse, lost its historic context. The recent sympathetic renovation has restored the original weather-board cladding and the cottage retains the external appearance of the late nineteenth century or early twentieth century. It is claimed that the cottage is seventeenth century, but the proportions and light chamfer of the bridging beams suggests a late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century form and although the late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century wall frames apparently survive, the roof, chimney, window frames and internal doors are mid to late nineteenth century date or later. The use of brackets in a domestic context is unusual and may suggest that the floor was inserted and required additional support. Coupled with the atypical plan-form, it is possible that the cottage may have been an agricultural building, converted into a cottage in the mid to late nineteenth century when the floor was inserted and roof constructed. The mid to late nineteenth century remodelling of the cottage, and replacement of a substantial amount of the fabric, is a significant alteration to the late eighteenth century building. As such, the cottage has been too altered to satisfy the listing criteria for a building of this age and type. CONCLUSION. Old Whitmans Farm cottage has been too altered in the national context to have special architectural and historic interest and should not be added to the statutory list. <1>