SNN115659 - ASBR: The Grange, Banbury Road, Moreton Pinkey, Daventry, Northamptonshire

Border Archaeology Ltd was instructed by Nicole Stevens to carry out a programme of Archaeological Standing Building Recording to Historic England/RCHME Level 2 of an outbuilding associated with The Grange, Banbury Road, Moreton Pinkney, Daventry, Northamptonshire (West Northamptonshire Council Application No: WNS/2022/1873/LBC) in connection with an application for Listed Building Consent for building alterations to create a residential annexe and a greenhouse. The results may be briefly summarised as follows: The outbuilding is a stone built, single storey, detached gabled building, which falls within the curtilage of the Grade II listed The Grange, a detached 17th Century grade-II listed building located within the centre of the village of Moreton Pinkney. The outbuilding is situated to the SE of the house and incorporates part of an earlier stone boundary wall. It appears to date from the mid-late 19th century, and was likely constructed as a stable block and coach house with loft housing a granary; its footprint appears to be shown on the OS 1st edition map but is not especially clearly shown on later historic OS mapping of The Grange and its curtilage. The outbuilding is constructed principally of irregularly coursed dressed limestone and iron stone masonry with squared limestone quoins, with several later phases of brick infilling. It has coped gable ends with kneelers, and the roof is of plain ceramic tiles with a stone masonry chimney stack on its SW side. The principal NE facing elevation is of three bays and has a central arched entranceway with a dressed limestone arch. This likely formed its original principal entranceway, but its interior has been infilled by two brick walls containing a metal framed hopper window and a wooden casement, each representing a different phase of alteration. To the N of the central archway is the current principal entranceway, comprising a large rectangular opening with a timber lintel and wooden boards to either jamb. It is fitted with wooden framed French doors with a glazed surround. Iron hinge brackets remain in place either side of the entrance suggesting it was originally fitted with a pair of larger panel doors. To the S of the central arch is a flight of external wooden stairs which provide access to a loading hatch set within a hipped dormer at attic level which internally is fitted with a split loading door. The SE facing gable end has two low arched metal frames hopper windows set close to ground level, which have been obscured by the addition of a garage. At attic level there is a entral metal framed bullseye window. The NW gable end has a single storey timber lean to at ground level, and a three light wooden casement window with lead glazing bars at attic level. Internally the outbuilding has been subject to a degree of alteration, and apart from a loosebox, the stair case, quarry tiles, and the metal framed hopper windows, it is likely that layout and fixtures at ground floor level represent later additions and alterations. The loosebox opens SE from the arched entrance through a wooden stable door, and has an internal timber partition which will have formally opened SW into an adjoining stall which has since been converted into a kitchen and toilet compartment. Both the loose box and floor of the archway have been lain with blue brick pavers. The three-bay open-plan attic has a planked floor and a pair of exposed open roof trusses, each with a single collar beam and two pairs of entrenched purlins. The northern gable end is of plastered masonry, and the opposing southern end is of exposed stone masonry which retains areas of an organic fibre-based plaster. There is a small iron coal grate with a fluted metal surround within the western wall to the north of the stairs and a partly glazed split wooden loading bay door within the eastern wall south of the stair case. Within the floor in the SE corner of the attic there is small hinged hatchway which opens into the loose box below.