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Summary

The Red house, 25/26, Bridgeland Street, Bideford. Listed with no 24 as two 1690 houses with late c19 machine made brick facing, gabled dormers, patent tile rooflets. No 25 and 26 was one house originally. It has first floor sash windows with flush frames, original eaves cornice and doorcase with reeded pilasters.(doe). One of the few devon examples of mathematical tiling.(lomas). Vis=16/9/1983 (thorp, j. And timms, s. ). The red house, which is shortly to be auctioned, is one of the late c17 bridgeland street houses and retains much of its original plan and fittings. These include the staircase, extensive panelling and cupboards with bolection moulding, plaster cornices, a bolection fireplace with abraham and isaac painting over (in first floor right rear room) and main roof trusses. The original plan was l-shaped, with one room on each floor in the rear wing. No plaster ceilings survive. The c19 refronting, interior rearrangement and raising of the roof are clearly discernible. Detailed photographic record made by thorp. House will probably be recorded by bideford community archive.(timms).

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1025046: THE RED HOUSE

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SS42NE/18
• Old Listed Building Ref (II): 375754

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• HOUSE (Post Medieval to XXI - 1540 AD to 2009 AD (Between))

Full description

Devon County Council Conservation Section Collection. (Photograph). SDV349756.

Department of Environment, 19/03/1973, Bideford, 15 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV341487.

The Red House, 25/26, Bridgeland Street, Bideford. Listed with number 24 as two 1690 houses with late 19th century machine made brick facing, gabled dormers, patent tile rooflets. Number 25 and 26 was one house originally. It has first floor sash windows with flush frames, original eaves cornice and doorcase with reeded pilasters.

Timms, S. C., 1976, The Devon Urban Survey, 1976. First Draft, 92 (Report - Survey). SDV341346.

Timms, S. C., 1977-1981, Bideford Development Control Consultations, 23/9 (Un-published). SDV346164.

Seventeenth century town house with 19th century mathematical tiling. Good internal 17th century features.
Visited 16th September 1983 by Simon Timms and John Thorp prior to auction of the house on 20th September 1983. Very good internal panelling, doors, cornices etc. Visited 1st December 1983 by Simon Timms. Proposal for change of use and alteration on 2nd floor.

Lomas, J., 1978, Eighteenth and 19th Century Building in Towns, 43 (Article in Monograph). SDV12410.

One of the few Devon examples of mathematical tiling.

Adams, P., 1983, Sale Brochure with Photo (Un-published). SDV12414.

Torridge District Council, 2003, Bideford Townscape Heritage Initiative Stage 2 Bid, 10 (Un-published). SDV345899.

The use of mathematical tiling at numbers 24 to 26 apes the few remaining brick elevations that originally must have dominated Bridgeland Street in the late 17th century.

Torridge District Council, 2009, Bideford Conservation Area Appraisal, 16 (Report - non-specific). SDV351295.

Front remodelled circa 1900.

English Heritage, 2010, Historic Houses Register (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV154869.

25 and 26 (The Red House). Formerly Listed as: Bridgeland Street (South side) Nos.24-26.
Large house, the ground storey converted to a shop. Probably 1692 or 1693, the front remodelled in about 1900. Rear wing added early or mid 19th century; minor 20th century additions to the rear of the main range.
Solid walls (probably of brick), the front clad with mathematical tiles, the rear wall rendered. Roofs covered with circa 1900 tiles. Chimney at each end of ridge: old red brick with rebuilt top to left, late 20th century red brick to right.
Plan of 3 rooms wide and 2 rooms deep with central through-passage in ground storey (rear blocked by a later addition); middle room on upper floors simply a closet with 1 window. Staircase in place of rear left-hand room; small room behind it (against party-wall), that in second storey altered to provide access to rear wing. Right-hand front and back rooms combined into one on all 3 floors; some of the dividing wall remains in ground storey.
2 storeys with attic; 5-window range. Ground storey has wide central doorway with late 18th century or early 19th century wooden doorcase: reeded half-column at either side supporting frieze with raised-and-fielded, 2-fillet ovolo-moulded panels; flat moulded hood on scrolled brackets; this has been strengthened top and bottom by scrolled iron brackets; reveals and soffit of doorcase panelled; 6-panelled door (bottom 2 panels flush, top 2 now glazed) with fixed, matching 3-panelled leaf to left of it. To right of it a single-storeyed canted bay window of similar date; 3 pairs of sashes, the upper sashes 6-paned, the lower ones 2-paned.
The other ground and second-storey windows have similar sashes, but probably early 18th century with box-frames, the 6-paned sashes with thick ovolo-moulded glazing bars; some contain old glass. Raised cement band at sill-level in ground storey, possibly disguising an original brick band. Heavy wooden eaves-cornice, late 17th century in style but with the lower part cut to a double ogee over each window. Roof-line broken by a continuous line of circa 1900 flat-topped dormers faced with mathematical tiles, the roof-tiles swept down over them; 5 wood casement windows of 2 lights each. Rear walls considerably altered.
Main range has an upper-storey sash-window with margin-panes; 2 dormers with 2-light wood casements, each light of 2 panes. Rear wing has 6-paned sash window in upper storey.
Interior contains a good proportion of the original fittings, with alterations in early 18th century or early 19th century; some of this later work possibly moved from its original position. In ground storey the front section of passage has late 18th century or early 19th century tall panelled dado; doors to front rooms of similar date with 2 raised-and-fielded ovolo-moulded panels. Late 19th century half-glazed screen with coloured glass. Right-hand front room has on left and rear walls a panelled dado (possibly re-set) like that in passage; right wall has early 18th century raised-and-fielded ovolo-moulded panelling.
Right-hand rear room has panelling with a raised moulding (probably late 17th century) around chimneybreast, including cupboard with shaped H-hinges; wide fireplace, probably for original kitchen; moulded cornice and 2-panelled door with strap-hinges and raised mouldings leading to passage. Left-hand front room has raised bolection-moulded panelling with box-cornice. To right of chimneybreast an early 18th century cupboard with moulded architrave, panelled doors and base, this last with a panelled pilaster at each end; matching window-shutters.
Wooden dog-leg staircase rising to garret. Closed moulded strings, square newels with flat moulded caps, turned balusters, broad handrail with chamfered top. In second storey the right-hand front room has on right wall early 18th century panelling matching that in room below; simple Art Nouveau wooden chimneypiece with yellow tiles and cast-iron grate.
Rear room has coved cornice, raised bolection-moulded panelling on right wall; matching wooden chimneypiece, the overmantel-panel with oil painting (probably original). Left-hand front room has moulded cornice; early or mid 19th century reeded stone chimneypiece (now painted) with Gothic cast-iron grate; 2-panelled door with raised mouldings. Both main front rooms have panelled shutters. Stair landing has small 18th century wall cupboard with panelled door on H-hinges. Plank door with tall ovolo-moulded panel leading to middle front room.
In garret, right-hand rear room has small early 18th century chimneypiece with ogee-moulded surround, the arch segmental with fluted keystone; 19th century cast-iron grate.
On landing an early 18th century cupboard (possibly re-set) matching that in ground storey. Plank door with tall ovolo-moulded centre panel leading to left-hand front room; old wooden coat-pegs on the inside. 2-panelled, ovolo-moulded door with shaped H-hinges leading to left-hand rear room; latter has cupboard with similar doors. Plain plank door to right-hand rear room.
This was Bideford Bridge Trust propery first leased to John Courtis of Bideford, carpenter. He is mentioned as the lessee in a lease of the neighbouring house, No 24, dated 29.12.1692, and in a lease of No 27 on the other side it is said that he built Nos 25-26. The first surviving lease of the latter, however, is to Richard Wadland, mariner, on 6.2.1700. A later lease, of 20.7.1864 says it has been converted into 2 houses.
On 24.9.1899 the lease was granted to the architect, G Malam Wilson, who advertised it for sale in June 1901. It was then described as 'a double-fronted family residence ... recently reconstructed, and occupied by G Malam Wilson, Esq. (Architect)'. The rooms were listed and also certain fittings, including, on the ground floor, 'a screen with leaded lights' in the entrance-hall and 'Dining Room divided by folded screen'.

Ordnance Survey, 2012, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV348725.

Timms, S. C., Unknown, Untitled Source (Personal Comment). SDV12411.

Visited 16/9/1983 by Simon Timms and John Thorp. The Red House, which is shortly to be auctioned, is one of the late 17th century Bridgeland Street houses and retains much of its original plan and fittings. These include the staircase, extensive panelling and cupboards with bolection moulding, plaster cornices, a bolection fireplace with Abraham and Isaac painting over (in first floor right rear room) and main roof trusses. The original plan was L-shaped, with one room on each floor in the rear wing. No plaster ceilings survive. The 19th century refronting, interior rearrangement and raising of the roof are clearly discernible. Detailed photographic record made byJ. Thorp. House will probably be recorded by Bideford Community Archive. Photographs from the site visit (16/9/1983) are now in the possession of J. Thorp, formerly of Exeter Archaeology.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events: none recorded

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