Building record 5968/1 - Upton Lodge Farm

A farmhouse and associated outbuildings probably dating from the mid eighteenth century with twentieth century alterations. The farm house, known as Upton Lodge, may be associated with Upton Hall; possibly originally as an estate cottage rather than a steading. The farmhouse is constructed of coursed ironstone and rendered at the facade and the rear. It has been extended to the west and rear. There are two ridge stacks to the tall gable; the roof has a twentieth century tile covering. The facade has a twentieth century porch. In the early twentieth century the steading developed with additional brick buildings with further additions and alterations in the later twentieth century. The outbuildings are generally of red brick with blue brick dressings and slate roofs.

{1} CONTEXT.
An application to list Upton Lodge farmhouse and barns has been received by English Heritage. The buildings are under threat of demolition, the land probably to be developed as part of the west Northampton expansion. The buildings are not located in a Conservation Area, and although there are no other listed buildings in the immediate vicinity, it is believed that the farm was associated with the former Upton Hall, now know as Quinton House School, a grade I listed building of eighteenth century and earlier date, to the east of the farmhouse. The house has been secured and boarded up and the barns enclosed with secure fencing, restricting the scope of the inspection.

HISTORY.
The date of the farmhouse is uncertain, although a mid to late eighteenth century date is likely as this is said to correspond with the enclosures of the fields by the owners of Upton Hall. The 1886 OS map indicates that the building, known then as Upton Lodge, had a large walled garden to the rear, which still remains, and two outbuildings. It is uncertain what relationship the lodge had with Upton Hall, if any. It does not mark the entrance to the estate and was not the Hall farm, which was located to the south-east of the hall, but it is possible that the house was an estate cottage rather than a small steading at this time. In the early twentieth century, the steading developed with additional brick agricultural buildings seemingly arranged around two irregularly shaped cattle yards. Later in the twentieth century, some of the early twentieth century farm buildings were demolished and modern dutch barns erected in their place. The remaining farm buildings have altered openings for vehicular access.

The house itself has been extended to the west and rear and may have been refaced with brick, later rendered. Map evidence suggests that this took place early in the twentieth century, when additional farm buildings were constructed. Later twentieth century remodelling has clearly been undertaken; the roof structure is wholly later in date with 'velux' openings inserted. A porch has been added to the façade and the openings appear altered and have twentieth century fenestration.

DESCRIPTION.
A farmhouse and associated outbuildings of mid to late eighteenth century date with twentieth century alterations. The farmhouse is constructed of coursed ironstone, rendered at the façade and rear and has been extended to the west and rear. There are two ridge stacks to the tall gable, twentieth century tile-covered roof. The façade has a twentieth century porch at ground floor and three inserted twentieth century dormers. The windows are twentieth century sash or casement generally in altered openings; the lower portion of an earlier window opening is apparent at attic level, curtailed by the new roof-line. The west elevation is of coursed ironstone with brick patching and pebble-dash render in the apex of the gable. The two storey extension to the rear has a hipped tiled roof with external stack and twentieth century casement windows. The east and rest of the rear elevations are blind.

INTERIOR
No interior inspection.

OUTBUILDINGS
Apart from the twentieth century metal framed structures, the outbuildings are generally of red brick with blue brick dressings and slate roofs. Only one north-south range dates to the late nineteenth century, and has an ironstone addition to the south end. All the others are either early or late twentieth century in date and have been altered.

There is said to be no remaining interior fixtures in the buildings.

ASSESSMENT.
Most buildings dating to between 1700 and 1840 may warrant listing, but their suitability for designation is dependent on their architectural quality, intactness and historical significance. There are approximately 640 grade II listed farmhouses in Northamptonshire alone, possessing special interest in their construction, materials and intactness.

Upton Lodge Farm is an example of an evolved courtyard farmstead, which has grown incrementally since the late nineteenth century. Although this mid eighteenth century building lay within the Upton Hall estate and probably served as accommodation for estate workers, the relationship with the hall is unclear. The current house is a modest building. Although the later application of render has obscured the original fabric, there is no evidence to hand which suggests that it was anything other than a functional structure. The evidence of early twentieth century remodelling, however, is clearly apparent in the remaining fabric and has diminished the architectural quality of the structure. Of those alterations, the west and rear extensions which probably date to the early twentieth century expansion of the steading, and the later twentieth century replacement roof have had the most impact upon the interest of the building. Although there has been no interior inspection, the extent of external reworking suggests that the original plan-form of the house will also have been reconfigured and fixtures and fittings removed. The farm buildings are mostly early or late twentieth century and have been altered. The connection with Upton Hall is not so significant that it compensates for the low interest of the house and outbuilding. Although the ensemble arguably has local interest as a whole, from a national perspective the buildings fall short of the requisite standard for designation.

<1> ENGISH HERITAGE, English Heritage Listing File (Report). SNN111579.

Record last edited

Feb 17 2025 6:16PM