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Summary

House probably of early 17th century date or earlier, extended and rearranged in the early 18th century and refashioned and extended again in the mid 19th century.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1097181: GREENHILL HOUSE

Other References/Statuses

• Old DCC SMR Ref: SX78NE/302
• Old Listed Building Ref (II): 85088

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• HOUSE (Constructed, XVII to Late 20th Century - 1601 AD (Between) to 1999 AD (Between))

Full description

Heath, R. O., 1976, Untitled Source (Personal Comment). SDV350017.

Site visit 13th December 1976. Greenhill House (23 Ford Street), near the church. The earliest foundations are circa 1720. The owner, Samual Lightfoot, a felt maker and leading baptist, built a meeting house on the present site to house baptists. There is a trough (now under the kitchen floor leading to a well). There are many documents and deeds in the possession of the present owner.

Department of Environment, 1987, Moretonhampstead, 114A (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV337636.

Greenhill House.
House. Probably early 17th century or earlier, extended and rearranged in early 18th century (1720 according to R. O. Heath) and refashioned and extended again in circa mid 19th century. Plastered granite rubble. Thatched roof with gabled ends. Rendered gable end chimneystacks, right-hand stack to front range has offsets
Plan: what is now the rear wing was probably the higher end of a 17th century or earlier 3-room plan house, and its gable end stack would have originally heated the inner room and chamber above. In circa early 18th century the house was reorientated and a wing, which is now the main front range, was built at right angles to the lower end where the lateral stack because the gable end stack of the early 18th century range. This early 18th century front range in 2 storeys and attic with a symmetrical 2-room plan with a central through-passage leading to a staircase behind the left-hand room making the left room smaller than the room to the right. In circa mid 19th century the house was refashioned and a flat roof single storey kitchen and scullery addition was built at the rear in the angle of the early18th century front and the earlier wing. 2 storeys and attic. Symmetrical 2 window range. Rusticated stucco quoins and stringcourse at first floor level. 19th century tripartite sashes with horizontal glazing bars only. Ground floor windows in moulded stucco architraves, the cills on small brackets. Moulded architraves removed from first floor windows. Central doorway with stuccoed pilasters with round-headed panels and later wooden moulded cornice, moulded panel reveals and rectangular fanlight with margin glazing bars. 19th century moulded 4-panel door.2-light attic casements with small panes in gable ends. Rear wing has 19th century 2-light casements with glazing bars, first floor windows break eaves to form eyebrows, the right-hand casement with arched top light. Large flat roof single storey addition in the angle at rear.
Interior: most of the mid 19th century internal joinery etc survives, including panelled doors, moulded doorcases and first flight of staircase with stick balusters and column newel, and simple marble or slab chimneypiece in left-hand room. Chimneypiece in right-hand room replaced but flanked by elliptically headed alcoves. The staircase from the first floor to the attic is 18th century and has moulded string, moulded stick balusters and heavy hand rail. Many 18th century 2-panel doors and 1 cupboard survive on first floor and attic. Also on first floor single c19 chimneypieces with their original iron grates. In rear wing a section of 17th century panelling reused as partition. Mid 19th century rear addition has large kitchen fireplace with bracketed shelf which is flanked by large early 18th century corner cupboards with doric entablatures, giant fluted pilasters and round-arched panelled doors. These cupboards were moved from front of house. Roofs: over early 18th century range the roof space is ceiled but it seems to have retained its original structure. Over the earlier rear wing the roof is also ceiled and there is no access to roof space, but over what might have been the hall there is a high plastered ceiling revealing the shape of the trusses with collars and 1 heavy purlin.

Cox, J. + Thorp, J. R. L., 2006, Greenhill House, Moretonhampstead, Devon, 1-36 (Report - Assessment). SDV365277.

In-depth assessment of the house and associated thatched building to the rear was undertaken in 2006. The north-east wing is identified as being no later than c.1650 in date and may have been the rear wing of a range that extended across the whole width of the plot (and possible further north). It's likely the house was originally larger with other rear ranges, given its central position and substantial plot size. All internal partitions in wing, first and ground floor are 18th century or later. Possible 17th century panelled wainscotting (much altered) noted on the east wall of the front range corridor.
Details of 18th century and Georgian remodelling and refurbishment given; house probably re-roofed and raised to three storeys with front rebuilt. Extensively re-planned in more than one phase during these alterations. It is suggested that the Baptist Chapel was built behind the house in c.1718.
Further, radical alterations took place between 1840 and 1885, mostly likely coincided with the sale of the house in 1861. prior to this, some of the rear buildings, including the Baptist Chapel were destroyed in 1852 by a fire. The front range was truncated to the west and a gateway installed to provided carriage access to the rear of the property. Probably occurred at the same time as the conversion of the rear outbuilding to a stable/carriage house. A substantial new single storey north-west block was also constructed at this time between the front range and the north-east wing.
Minor alterations mostly constituting repairs and minor modernisation occurred in the 20th century. Windows replaced on ground floor of the Fore Street elevation as well as some other changes.

Best, J. + Manning, P., 2007, Archaeological Evaluation of the Annexe of Greenhill Primary School, Moretonhampstead, Devon, 3 (Report - Evaluation). SDV350009.

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

English Heritage, 2012, National Heritage List for England (National Heritage List for England). SDV348729.

Thorp, J., 2019, Weavers Fore Street, Moretonhampstead, An Impact Assessment (Report - Assessment). SDV365276.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6010 - Archaeological Evaluation of the Annexe of Greenhill Primary School, Moretonhampstead (Ref: 07.42)
• EDV8874 - Assessment of Greenhill House, Fore Street (Ref: K/734)
• EDV8903 - Assessment of the former Greenhill School annexe site, Moretonhampstead (Ref: K/916)

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