Building record 3398/0/13 - No.62 Billing Road

Cottage. C18, altered C20. Coursed limestone and ironstone rubble, thatch roof, brick end stacks.

{1} Cottage. C18, altered C20. Coursed limestone and ironstone rubble, thatch roof, brick end stacks. 2-unit plan. 2-storey, 2-window range. Central plank door with stop-chamfered wood lintel. 2-light casement windows to ground floor with stop-chamfered wood lintels and 2-light casements to 1st floor in eyebrow dormers. Interior noted as having spine beams.

{3} Building recording during restoration. Built of coursed limestone and ironstone rubble with brick end stacks, it is an interesting survival of a low-status building, probably of late 18th-century date, with only minor alterations. The removal of thatch exposed the underlying roof timbers, which were of poor-quality wood, being only roughly trimmed. Many timbers retained bark; they had undergone many repairs and were in poor condition.

{4,5} The cottage is an interesting survival of a largely un-altered low status building, probably of C18th date. It has undergone some alterations internally which have changed the way in which it was used, but very little modernisation had been carried out. Because of this the main structure, including the roof, remained largely as built and gives an interesting insight into how cheaply some buildings were made. Such repairs as had been made were of poor quality, and had mostly left earlier work in place. Due to the basic construction it is difficult to place a close date on the building as there are no distinguishing decorative or construction details which could indicate a likely period.
Despite these comments the building is nonetheless extremely intersting as so few survive that have not been modernised. Whilst the building may nnot have been built to high standards it would still have provided a reasonable degree of comfort albeit in rather cramped conditions. It is likely to have been provided for farm workers, perhaps for the adjacent farmhouse.

<1> Clews Architects, 1980s, Database for Listing of Historic Buildings of Special Architectural Interest: Northamptonshire, 5/4 (Digital archive). SNN102353.

<2> List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest ("Greenback"), F12 (unchecked) (Catalogue). SNN45262.

<3> PONSFORD M., 2007, Post-medieval fieldwork in Britain and Northern Ireland in 2006, p.371 (unchecked) (Article). SNN106854.

<4> Prentice J., 2006, Building Recording at 62 Billing Road, Brafield-on-the-Green, Northamptonshire August 2006, (checked) (Report). SNN108004.

<5> Prentice, J., 2012, A Cottage Roof at 62 Billing Road, Brafield-on-the-Green (Article). SNN108368.

Record last edited

Nov 19 2020 11:07AM