Building record 2416/0/244 - No. 16 (incorporating No. 14) and Nos. 18 & 20 Benefield Road

{1} C17. Low cottages of 2 storeys in stone, No. 18 cement rendered, with stone slate roof and 2 brick on stone chimney stacks. No. 16 has 2 dormers which break eaves and 2 windows and door with rendered lintels. No. 18 has 2 modern windows on 1st floor and 1 on ground and plain door. No. 20 has 2 windows on 1st floor and 1 window on ground, wood lintels, as to door. Nos. 6 to 20 (even) form a group.

{3} Each of the two cottages (18 and 20 Benefield Road), though originally of two storeys, almost certainly had first floor rooms which were almost entirely contained within the eaves. They may have had small dormers but no evidence survives to confirm this, though there was at this stage a small window in the west gable wall, now blocked. The original roof structure was of a much steeper pitch suggesting that it was probably covered in thatch, not Collyweston stone slates. There is no clear indication that the two cottages were separated at this stage, though it is unlikely that they were not. The most likely scenario is that they were divided internally with lath and plaster over a timber frame, but as neither the upper or lower surfaces of the oak beam lying along the dividing line could be seen, this cannot be confirmed. Similarly the underside of the surviving rafters is not visible due to the insertion of the brick wall at first floor level although traces of plaster can be seen indicating that the original first floor room was plastered.

At some stage, probably in the first half of the nineteenth century, the north and south walls were raised making the first floor rooms higher. It appears to have been at this date that the brick wall was inserted on both floors, though at ground floor level it was replaced during the twentieth century. Both staircases are of modern construction and it is not certain if they are replacements in the same position as original stairs, though this seems most likely given the limited floor space available in both cottages.

Source contains detailed descriptions of both buildings and photos.

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 2/115 (checked) (Digital archive). SNN102353.

<2> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ("Greenback"), H16 (unchecked) (Catalogue). SNN41470.

<3> Prentice, J., 2008, Archaeological building recording and desk-based assessment at 18-20 Benefield Road, Oundle, November 2008, (checked) (Report). SNN106653.

Record last edited

Aug 29 2014 8:51AM