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Summary

Newcott and Virginia Cottage were originally built as one house in the Late Medieval period and remodelled in the 16th or 17th century with later alterations

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II) 1333769: NEWCOTT VIRGINIA COTTAGE

Other References/Statuses

• Old Listed Building Ref (II): 87042

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• HOUSE (Built, Late Medieval - 1401 AD to 1539 AD (Between))

Full description

Ordnance Survey, 1880-1899, First Edition Ordnance 25 inch map (Cartographic). SDV336179.

Row of adjoining buildings shown on 19th century map on the north side of the road.

Beacham, P., 1980s, Broadhembury and Gittisham Project, 9/9, Neg No. 564/24A-26A, 30A-32A, Photo Unknown 2 (Un-published). SDV348235.

Site visit 1983. Group of cottages. Old thatch. Local stone and cob, or just cob. Part of the Drew estate.

Caroe & Partners, 1997, Broadhembury Village. Draft Survey of Condition (Report - Survey). SDV344616.

Newcott: Creamwashed cob cottage with thatched roof on the north side of the village street. Thought to be the lower end of a medieval house. Virginia Cottage to the east being the high end. The roof is gabled, with a deep stack and inglenook fireplace to the west. Roof structure has two open jointed crucks, providing a noticeably tall space, with two deep chamfered bearms at first floor level, only one of these being placed adjacent to the cruck foot, suggesting that they are a later addition. The plan is now divided by the stair to the first floor and front door lobby giving a larger room to the left. The plank and muntin screen which forms one of the stair partitions has clearly been resited as stated in the list entry, and was previously one bay further over to the east, forming the cross-passage. The original doorways are clearly visible at the east end of Newcott. Each ground floor room has a three light softwood window to the front. Each of the two front upper rooms has a Crittal window with inserted eyebrow dormers to accommodate their greater height. The narrow rear bedroom has a softwood window to the side.
There is a lean-to with triple Roman tiles, brick walls in which are the bathroom, lavatory, kitchen and large lobby/dayroom. This has a small room off it, tucked beside the stack, with a window which was probably originally a smoke loft.
The rear thatch and ridge have been recently renewed, and are in good condition. The front slope is beginning to show its courses. The rear lean-to roof is good, though ties were delaminating in a few places.
Modern impervious exterior paint has been used. The interior is in reasonable order, though the rear lean-to is damp.
Virginia: Cream washed and rendered cob cottage with thatched roon, on north side of the main street. Thought to be the upper end of a larger late medieval house. The cob building is divided axially into two bays and two rooms by a jointed cruck, and a deep chamfered beam placed on the same line, which has been cut to accommodate the stair. There is a halved beam at the west end (adjacent to Newcott), which appears to have originally supported a fire hood, now floored over. There is a further deep chamfered beam at the east end, close to the east wall. There is a single three-light softwood window into the western bay at ground floor, with two light Crittal windows and eyebrow dorrmers at the front to each bedroom. Good wide early floorboards visible in the eastern bedroom.
The rear lean-to has asbestos cement slates over a brick wall with softwood three-light windows and contains the kitchen, bathroom and lavatory.
Thatch of the reas slope is in poor condition, with a large patch. The front slope is slightly better, though very worn. The asbestos cement slates are delaminating and holding water and growing moss. The lean-to suffers badly from damp. The ground floors in the cob building are concreted, tending to increase dampness in the walls.
One bedroom window is beginning to rot in the timber sub-cill. The ceilings at first floor are vey bowed.

Fisher, J., 1999, East Devon Conservation Area Appraisals: Broadhembury, 3, 5-6 (Report - non-specific). SDV346379.

Broadhembury is possibly one of the most perfectly complete villages in Devon in terms of the use of traditional materials which here consist of creamwashed rendered cob on stone footings with characteristic tar band. Roofs are thatched with a plain ridge and many are either hipped or half-hipped. These delightfully organic profiles are further emphasised by the many swept dormers. Most chimneys are exposed brickwork with oversailing upper courses; some have been rendered. Almost all the cottages in the village are listed and many date from the late 16th or 17th century. Some are even earlier and can be demonstrated to have originated as a medieval open hall, for example, smoke blackened medieval timbers survive in Virginia Cottage. Other details: Maps, photograph.

English Heritage, 2009, List of Buildings of Architectural or Historic Interest (List of Blds of Arch or Historic Interest). SDV343181.

Newcott and Virginia Cottage in Broadhembury Listed on 22nd February 1955 (formerly listed as Newcott). Two adjoining cottages, originally one house with Late Medieval origins, remodelled in the later 16th/early 17th century. Date of sub-division into cottages unknown but some 20th century alteration of internal partitions. Creamwashed rendered cob and stone; thatched roof with a plain ridge, gabled at ends (Virginia Cottage probably originally hipped at the right end); left end stack and axial stack with brick shafts. Plan: A single depth south-facing main range. The present arrangement is Newcott to the left (west), two rooms wide with a central entrance facing a stair; Virginia Cottage to the right (east) two rooms wide with a stair rising against the rear wall from the right hand room. Both cottages have been re-organised internally but surviving evidence suggests that Virginia Cottage was the higher end consisting of a hall and inner room. Newcott containing remnants of the throught passage (at the right end) with blocked opposed doors and the headbeam of a plank and muntin screen in situ. The rest of Newcott is, presumably, the lower end but is unusually long. The house originated as a Medieval open hall, the smoke-blackened Medieval timbers surviving in Virginia Cottage. It was not clear on survey (1987) whether Newcott was also open to the roof timbers or whether the lower end (also of jointed cruck construction) was always storeyed. The open hall was floored in the late 16th/early 17th century, presumably with the hall stack backing on to the passage, the position of the present axial stack, which appears to be a 20th century replacement with a smaller chimney breast and staggered fireplaces. The lower end probably functioned as the kitchen in the 17th century (large bread oven) and the inner room has never been heated. The lower side partition of the through passage has been moved and the screen has been re-sited on the right hand wall of the 17th century kitchen. Exterior: two storeys. Asymmetrical five window front (two windows to Newcott), the eaves thatch eyebrowed over four first floor windows. 20th century plank and stud estate door in the centre of Newcott with a slated porch hood, flanked by 3-light 20th century timber casements with glazing bars, the right hand window converted from the original front door to the through passage. The first floor dormer is glazed with a pair of 2-light 20th century casements with square leaded panes. Virginia Cottage is more irregular with a 20th century estate plank and stud front door to right of centre, the slate door hood carried over as a pentice to a 1-light 20th century casement to the left with square leaded panes. Two windows to the left are 20th century timber casements with glazing bars. Three first floor dormers glazed with 20th century casements with square leaded panes. Semi-circular bread oven on left return of Newcott. Interior: Rich in carpentry. The left hand hand room of Newcott has a chamfered stopped crossbeam and a (re-sited) plank and muntin screen with chamfered stopped muntins. The right hand retains the head beam of the re-sited screen, formerly the lower side passage partition. Virginia Cottage has deeply chamfered crossbeams with step stops. A half-beam of the same design about half a metre in front of the left end wall suggests that a larger stack has been removed and replaced with the present chimney. Roof: Side pegged jointed cruck trusses, the feet descending to the ground, survive in both houses. Apex of roof inspected only in Virginia Cottage, where smoke-blackening is visible; the ridge is diagonally-set. The end of a hip cruck is visible at the right end of Virginia Cottage. A house of Medieval origins of especial interest both as part of a very unspoiled estate village but also as one of 8 closely-spaced surviving medieval houses in a village context. Other details: LBS Number 87042.

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

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4709 - Condition Survey, Broadhembury Village
• EDV5626 - Broadhembury and Gittisham Thatch Survey

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