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Summary

Picturesque thatched cottage dating from the 17th century.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1281876: OLD MAIDS COTTAGE

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SS44NE/32
• Old Listed Building Ref (II)

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• COTTAGE NON SPECIFIC (Post Medieval to XXI - 1540 AD to 2009 AD)

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1938, Revision of 1932 with additions in 1938, 4NE (Cartographic). SDV74386.

Department of National Heritage, 1994, Ilfracombe, 14 (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV341326.

Old Maids Cottage. Formerly listed as Three Old Maids Cottage. House. Probably mid C17, altered and extended in C19 and C20. Rendered, understood to e cob, but probably with slate rubble with some cof; thatched roof. 2-unit plan with central cross passage with stone or cob internal walling. One and a half storeys. Scattered fenestation: three 2-light half dormers and two 2-light ground floor windows with another at eaves level. Diamond leading throughout. Rustic tiled porch. Cusped bargeboarding. C20 kitchen to rear.
INTERIOR: not inspected but the 1973 List description mentions sto-chamfered ceiling beams and hewn roof trusses.

Collings, A. G. + Manning, P. T. + Valentin, J., 2007, The North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Phase 1. Archaeological Survey. Summary Report, No. 820 (Report - Assessment). SDV339712.

Gaimster, M., 2010, Post-Medieval Fieldwork in Britain and Northern Ireland in 2009: Devon (Article in Serial). SDV354871.

Building recording at the cottage. Once regarded as a national treasure (W.H. Goss issued a model of it in 1893), it is now close to collapse. Analysis showed that it was first a single-room cottage, perhaps of the 18th century (the probable date of its roof); its picturesque qualities arise largely from late 19th-century remodelling. (citing Parker, R. W. + Collings, A. G. , Exeter Archaeology).

Parker, R., 2013, Old Maids' Cottage, Lee, Ilfracombe (Report - Watching Brief). SDV355868.

The house is a small cottage of mixed cob and stone under a thatched roof, lying on a plot of land just to the west of the school and the parish church of St Matthew, Lee, with the cliffs and woods behind the house rising steeply to the north and west. The unusual situation and picturesque appearance of the building made it something of a tourist attraction for excursionists visiting Illfracombe and North Devon during the late 19th and early 20th century tourist boom in the area, and the house soon became extremely well known. By the 20th century it was marketed as the home of the (probably fictional) 'Three Old Maids of Lee', subject of a late 19th century popular song by Frederic Weatherley. The interior of the property, suitably furnished to evoke the character of the spinster ladies could be visited and the exterior was featured in thousands of picture postcards. The house remained a tourist attraction well into the 20th century but was later compromised by the inappropriate alterations and subsequently fell into decay.
The property can be traced back to the 1780s, and that the landholding had earlier formed part of the the manor of Lower Warcombe, the original name for this part of the present hamlet.
The survey and watching brief concluded that the building does appear to have been constructed in two main phases, beginning with a very modest cottage of one room only, or perhaps of one ground-floor and one upper room. At some time before the tithe survey was made in 1840 the house was extended to the west by the addition of a substantial wing, on a slightly different alignment. It is probable that this western extension was of two storeys from the beginning, for its eaves and ridge were at a slightly higher level than that of the earlier building. The resulting hump-backed profile of the roofline was visually very appealing and no doubt assisted with the later re-invention of the house as an 'icon' among English cottages equal in standing with Ann Hathaway's Cottage, Shakespeare's Birthplace and the Old Post Office at Tintagel.
The picturesque elements of the house appear to have been emphasised in a major remodellin in c.1870, when barge-boarded gables, leaded lights and the rustic porch were added. This remodelling was not only romantic, but also practical, since a large rear lean-to extension seems to have been constructed to provided service rooms. This was approached by a narrow passage which crossed the building on the site of its original west wall.
The building had reached its zenith of its popular appeal in the 20th century, but subsequent changes were not kind to it. Alterations were made to the cottage in the context of the addition of a large concrete block extension at the rear of the house, now demolished and replaced with a still larger building. The decline of the North Devon tourist industry in the late 20th century may be felt to be reflected in the fortunes of the cottage, which had fallen into a parlous state of repair in 2009. It has now been fully restored as a holiday cottage, with a bright modern interior.

Ordnance Survey, 2014, MasterMap (Cartographic). SDV355681.

Watts, S., 2015, Old Maids Cottage, Lee, llfracombe (Ground Photograph). SDV358343.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV339712	Report - Assessment: Collings, A. G. + Manning, P. T. + Valentin, J.. 2007. The North Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Phase 1. Archaeological Survey. Summary Report. Exeter Archaeology Report. 06.22 (rev.1). A4 Stapled + Digital. No. 820.
SDV341326	List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest: Department of National Heritage. 1994. Ilfracombe. Historic Houses Register. A4 Bound. 14.
SDV354871	Article in Serial: Gaimster, M.. 2010. Post-Medieval Fieldwork in Britain and Northern Ireland in 2009: Devon. Post-Medieval Archaeology. 44. A4 Stapled + Digital.
SDV355681	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 2014. MasterMap. Ordnance Survey Digital Mapping. Digital. [Mapped feature: #84318 ]
SDV355868	Report - Watching Brief: Parker, R.. 2013. Old Maids' Cottage, Lee, Ilfracombe. Richard Parker. 2013.03. Digital + A4.
SDV358343	Ground Photograph: Watts, S.. 2015. Old Maids Cottage, Lee, llfracombe. Digital.
	Linked images:1
SDV74386	Cartographic: Ordnance Survey. 1938. Revision of 1932 with additions in 1938. 6 inch Provisional Edition. 4NE.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6380 - Watching Brief, Old Maids Cottage, Lee, Ilfracombe (Ref: 2013.02)

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