More information : Stonecroft is one of a number of similar cottages in the small village of Binton which were built in the 17th century and 18th century as estate cottages for the Ragley Hall (NMR number 328507) estate. It appears to date from the 17th century, with alterations in the early 20th century and the late 20th century. The house was occupied during the period 1910-1913 by Kathleen Bruce, the sculptress wife of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, the celebrated polar explorer. Kathleen's brother, Rev. Hervey Bruce was the rector at Binton, and the Scotts frequently visited him there; they were staying at the Rectory when Scott departed to meet his ship, the Terra Nova for his final and ultimately fatal expedition, to the South Pole. Just after Captain Scott left, Mrs Scott and her young son came to live at Stonecroft, where they stayed until 1913.The expedition on which Captain Scott and his fellow travellers died is commemorated in a large stained glass window by Kempe, in the west wall of the parish church at Binton (NMR number 331071). The cottage remained part of the Ragley estate until the 1950s. A one and a half storey extension was added to the rear and one side in the late 20th century, largely on the footprint of an earlier single storey lean-to extension.
Stonecroft is a detached cottage apparently dating from the 17th century. The one and a half storey house is constructed from local lias limestone rubble brought to course, with some 19th century brick repairs and a 20th century brick extension and brick stack; the roof is covered in plain clay tile. The original cottage was of single depth plan, divided into two rooms, one unheated; the large extension to the rear has created a substantially larger plan. The main elevation has a door to the right, with a central bay window inserted in the early 20th century, both under a pentice roof; to the left is a 19th century timber casement in what is apparently an original opening. Set back to the right is a single storey garage, part of the late 20th century extension to the rear of the property. The first floor has a single gabled dormer window in a segmental headed opening, added in brick in the 19th century. The east gable end is blind, and is partly rendered; the west elevation has an early 20th century window inserted in the gable, which was rebuilt in brick in the late 19th century or 20th century. The rear elevation dates entirely from the late 20th century; it is constructed from brick, with timber casement windows set under timber lintels. To the interior, the main room has a small segmental arched fireplace, rebuilt in the 19th century or 20th century. The partition dividing the two ground floor rooms is built from square timber framing with organic infill. There are some later modifications to the internal timber elements, particularly in the ceiling of these two rooms. There is a part winder stair located towards the rear of the original building. To the first floor, parts of the original timber framing are evident in the landing, with wall plates surviving in the bedrooms, together with fragments of the wall framing. One bedroom has a Victorian cast-iron fire grate which has lost its original timber surround. The exposed purlins appear to date from the 19th century. The roof is largely inaccessible but appears from the limited inspection possible to have been largely renewed in the late 19th century or later. The large modern extension to the rear is entirely late 20th century in character.
Stonecroft was originally a relatively modest estate cottage, one of a group of similar cottages built by the Ragley Hall estate to provide housing for its workers in the 17th century and 18th century. The original house was a two-roomed, one and a half storey building, with stone external walls and internal timber partitions, and these survive fairly well in the current building. The current layout makes it difficult to discern the original plan of the ground floor; the position of the stair and the entrance doorway appear to have been altered. The original entrance may have been to one side of the chimney breast, where a blocked doorway is evident, and the current entrance door is contained largely in the depth of the wall at the other side of the chimney breast; this may have been the original site of a winder stair, but this is not certain. The present stair, however, may be a replacement for an earlier ladder stair in the same position, though there is nothing in the fabric to confirm this. This modest cottage was altered in the late 19th century or early 20th century, with the addition of the segmental bay window and doorway to the ground floor, with their pentice over, and a large dormer; these alterations are vaguely Arts and Crafts in inspiration and clearly of their time. It may be that the west gable was rebuilt in brick at the same time, possibly replacing a timber framed wall, and a new window inserted. The increasing comfort of the house at this time is reflected in the addition of the Victorian fireplace in what was formerly the larger first floor room. Later 20th century alterations associated with the refurbishment of the house and its extension include the insertion of modern ceiling beams in steel and concrete, and the reinforcement of the timber structure where it still exists. The addition of the late 20th century extension to the rear has increased the volume of the house considerably, and has necessitated some rather intrusive alterations, including the addition of large concrete piers between the rear wall of the original cottage and the modern extension, which is entirely 20th century in character. It is clear, therefore, that despite the survival of a good portion of the original fabric, there have been significant losses and alterations, as well as the large extension to the rear. The cottage does have group value with the other former Ragley estate cottages in the village; the obvious comparison is with the nearby numbers 171 and 172 Main Road, which were originally very similar to Stonecroft, number 173. This pair of cottages, listed at Grade II (Listed Building number 483103), appear to survive in much closer to their original condition than Stonecroft: they have thatched roofs, indicating that they retain much more of their original roof structures, and although they have 19th century dormers similar to those at Stonecroft, they have not been extended. In addition, and more significantly, they retain more of their early interior details than is the case at Stonecroft: No. 171 has a large fireplace with bressumer beam intact, together with chamfered ceiling beams and wide boarded cupboards. These details indicate that the level of survival of the early structure and decorative elements is greater for these cottages than for Stonecroft, and demonstrates that they accord more closely with the principles of selection for this building type. On balance, therefore, these cottages do have greater claims to special architectural interest than is the case for Stonecroft. (1) |