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Summary

Farmstead of regional interest with an important 16th century cider house (apparently purpose-built) and a good example of an 18th century barn with an unusual (later) 2-storey engine house.

Location

Protected Status

• Listed Building (II*) 1098096: WADHAYES FARMHOUSE
• Listed Building (II) 1204014: 3 FARMBUILDINGS ROUND A YARD IMMEDIATELY NORTH OF WADHAYES FARMHOUSE

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• FARMSTEAD (Early Medieval to XIX - 1066 AD (Throughout) to 1900 AD (Throughout)) + Sci.Date

Full description

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

Farmstead depicted comprising the farmhouse with a large garden to the south with ranges of buildings to the north and also to the east.

Clements, H. A., 1994, Survey of Farmsteads in the Devon Part of the Blackdown Hills (Report - Survey). SDV344050.

The barns are considered to be farm buildings at risk.

Devon County Council, 1997-2002, Buildings at Risk Survey in the Devon Part of the Blackdown Hills AONB (Un-published). SDV344048.

Thorp, J., 2000, Wadhays Farm, BH005001-BH005017 (Ground Photograph). SDV349772.

Thorp, J., 2000, Wadhays, BH005021-BH005025 (Un-published). SDV350982.

Devon and Somerset County Councils, 2000-2002, Historic Farmsteads Database, BH005 (Machine readable data file). SDV349681.

Visited 4th June 2000 by John Thorp. Farmstead of regional interest with important 16th century cider house (apparently purpose-built) and good example of an 18th century barn with unusual (later) 2-storey engine house.
Evelved loose courtyard arrangement on west facing slope. Drive approaches from south and enters yard between the east end of the farmhouse and the stable. The yard fans out to north creating a roughly triangular shape. The farmhouse is relatively large. It has late medieval origins with a major modernisation of 1621. It faces south, away from the yard and there is a walled garden in front. The west side of the yard is taken up by two buildings end onto the yard. The southern one, the cider house (4) appears to have been built in 1621; its original function is unclear. The northern one is an 18th century barn (3) with a possibly unique lofted horse engine house (5) built off the south side in the mid 19th century. The east side of the yard comprises a circa 1800 stable to south and a late 19th century shippon to north, both facing south onto the yard. The northern end is taken up by 20th century agricultural sheds, but a long building on a rough east-west axis is shown on the 1840 tithe map and the 1889 Ordnance Survey map.
Farmyard retains part of its historic surface.
A drain from the circa 1900 shippon (2) passes under the yard, under the horse engine house to a catch pit on west side. According to owner, the slurry was gathered here through the winter then let into a leat which was dammed and overflowed over the pasture downhill to west.

Tyers, C + Hurford, M. + Arnold, A. + Howard, R.E. + Thorp, J., 2009, Dendrochronological Research in Devon: Phase II, 5, building description (Report - Interim). SDV348234.

The farmhouse is built of stone rubble and now has modern roof of Roman tiles. The main block has a three room and cross passage plan but this layout appears to be the result of major alterations in 1621. The cross wall at the western end of the hall appears to be the original west end wall of the medieval house which had a two room and cross passage plan. Three original trusses survive in the roof, one against the wall giving two surviving bays. If the cross passage is in its original position then the hall was originally three bays long. A louver in the roof and smoke blackening on the timbers indicate that it was originally open to the roof and heated by an open hearth fire.
Behind and parallel to the farmhouse is a cob built cider house which probably dates to the late 16th-17th century. It is two bays long with half bays at each end. It is lofted apart from the half bay at the southern end which is open to the roof in order to accommodate the cider press.
The results of a dendrochonological analysis undertaken on timbers in the house suggest a construction date of 1331-2 for the house, which is earlier than expected, while the results for purlins in the barn indicate that they were felled in the summer of 1534. However, as these are back purlins which could be relatively easily replaced they cannot be used to definitely state when the barn was built.

Sources / Further Reading

Associated Monuments

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV4655 - Survey of Farmsteads in the Blackdown Hills
• EDV4654 - Buildings at Risk Re-Survey
• EDV5623 - Dendrochronological Research in Devon, Phase II

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