Early to mid 19th century shelter shed at Hoe Mill Barns (EHER 81966)

A brick-built shelter shed which forms the west extent of a farm complex at Hoe Mill Barns. It was probably built in the 1830s-1940s and may have been refitted in the 19th century. It is subdivided into 10 bays: the four northernmost bays probably used as cart sheds and the end bay perhaps used as a loose box.

October 2007. Heritage assessment. The shelter shed has a typical linear plan form and is open-sided to the east. The west wall is built into the hillside and delimits the western extent of the farm complex. It is brick-built and contains mostly machine-sawn timbers in the roof, suggesting the original shed was probably refitted when the new cowhouse and shed were constructed. The shed is divided into ten 3m-wide bays. In contrast to the other farm structures, this is brick-built, as the rear wall acts as a retaining wall against the bank behind. Indeed, the lower part of the wall appears to have suffered from the weight of the soil behind it and has been rebuilt in modern concrete blocks. Inside, there is an earth floor and trough on the rear wall. A central partition continues beyond the shed as the main north-south yard division. The four bays to the north of this are further fenced-off into two, two-bay compartments, whose apparent lack of feeding apparatus suggests a different function, perhaps as cart sheds. The end bay is railed-off at the side and front to form a smaller enclosure. Here, the presence of a partial trough frame suggests this functioned as a loose box, away from the main herd at the southern end. Investigations concluded that the barn, granary (see EHER 81964), stables (EHER 40856), shelter shed and chicken coop (EHER 81965) were built in around the 1830s-1840s, along with three other largely unidentified structures, around a single square yard. A farmhouse (EHER 81966) and hackney stable (EHER 81967) were also built on high ground to the south, but were not subject to the recording condition. During the latter part of the 19th century the farm concentrated more on cattle rearing and the shelter shed was refurbished (perhaps with cart bays included), a large cowhouse built and a new cowshed constructed against the barn. The main yard was subdivided into four separate yards. The farm is a rare, well-preserved example of a planned timber-built Essex farmstead, dating from the beginning of the Victorian Golden Age of Agriculture and has an important place in the history of East Anglian farming.<1>