The Oxon Recorder - Issue 44 44.pdf · the buildings follow a logical gravity-fed system of...

THE OXON RECORDER ISSUE 44 AUTUMN 2010

1 © Oxfordshire Buildings Record 2010

The OXON RECORDER The Newsletter of Oxfordshire Buildings Record Issue 44 Autumn 2010 Reminder of the contents of this issue, so you can come back later for more information OBR Presentations Day Saturday 20 November in Blewbury Flyer enclosed Recording Days Saturday 6 November at Abingdon Abbey See below OBR Excusion to Coleshill Secret Army and comfy pigs What’s in a Name? An Illustrated Glossary Introducing an occasional series on understanding buildings Recent Recording Yes, we have done lots

Heather Horner, newsletter editor________________________________________________________________________________________________ Recording Day in Abingdon Saturday 6 November 2010 There will be a recording day at Abingdon Abbey on Saturday 6 November. Depending on numbers, the aim is to record as much as possible of the Long Gallery, Chequer and ‘Garner’ (now the Unicorn Theatre). The aim is to ensure accurate plans are available for the VAG conference in April 2011. Although a well-known and much visited building, there are many unanswered (and probably unanswerable) questions, particularly about the function of the Long Gallery and the Garner. The aim will be to look carefully at the structures for any clues which might help in the interpretation. Since all the roof is accessible, there will be opportunity for on-the-job training.

If you would like to come, please contact David Clark on [email protected] or 01865 516414, by 1 October. Further details will be sent a few days before the event to those intending to come. ************************

Left: at Cruck House, Steventon, OBR members go through their health and safelty briefing. Photographed by Dan Miles, who was undertaking his dendrochronological survey. See Recent Recording page 6.



Details of a bridled joint

Whilst recording a barn, the owner showed me a bridled joint she had “rescued” from the roof of a recently demolished 19th century stables. As far as I could determine the joint was between a rafter

and tie beam. The form of the joint may be easily seen with the tenon inserted into an open mortice and pegged for stability.

David Hughes ____________________________________________________________________ OBR Excursion to Coleshill On 30th July a group of us were treated to a guided tour of Coleshill Model Farm, Watermill and WWII Secret Bunkers. All these buildings are now in the care of The National Trust. We began with coffee in the community shop and café which is run by volunteers and open to the public. In the morning, we were given a guided tour by Liza Dibble of the site of Coleshill House, which burnt down in 1952. The house was designed by Roger Platt as a plainer version of the Palladian type in about 1650. The ground plan has now been marked out by a box hedge enclosing a planted garden. Of greater interest to most members was Liza’s story of how the house and grounds were used as a training camp for the Auxiliaries before and during the Second World War.

Members trying to visualise a grand Palladian Villa

The Auxiliaries were selected from reserved occupations and most were members of the Home Guard. Under strict security they were trained to form small resistance units in the event of a German invasion. Responding to the code word “Oliver Cromwell” indicating that an invasion had taken place, they were expected to retire to one of up to 3,000 secret operational bases (OB’s) where they could hide by day and attack the Germans at night. We were able to visit the Coleshill OB - luckily through the escape tunnel and I think we all felt relieved that we weren’t expected to stay and live in such a small space!

The interior of the underground OB viewed from near the foot of the entrance ladder. Up to 8 people were expected to live here for weeks at a time. The emergency exit, for use in the event of a hand grenade lobbed down the shaft, has been opened and widened to admit visitors.



Women, regrettably nicknamed the Secret Sweeties, were also trained on the base. Their task was to build and operate radios. After walking through the grounds of Coleshill Organics, we enjoyed a sandwich lunch at the community café, before beginning our tour of the Model Farm. The buildings are currently used by The National Trust as their local office and for storage of reclaimed building materials. The Model Farm was built for the Earl of Radnor between 1852 and 1854. Based on a design by E.W. Moore, the Earl’s agent, it made use of the latest ideas on animal management and farm building design.

A roof truss in the barn, typical mid-19C light scantling timber reinforced with ironwork (above), with ventilation, light, and a bell for workforce communication all accommodated in a turret (below)

The farm is a Grade II listed building and an excellent example of the Victorians’ belief in the scientific approach to farming. Built on a slope, the buildings follow a logical gravity-fed system of processing animal feeds, then transporting these by a tramway to the animals, and finally storing the manure under a roof to conserve it’s nutrients. Unusually the pigs were housed at the centre of the operation rather than dairy cattle. This reflected the Earl’s personal preference for pigs. The pigsties had an unusual ventilation system using louvered windows and skylights, ensuring that disease was kept to a minimum. Next came the cowsheds and lastly the housing for sheep, which were kept tightly packed for fattening on wooden slats so that the recovery of urine and faeces was easier. So much for the idealised past of animal husbandry! The only livestock we saw on the farm were nesting swallows Lastly, we were taken by our excellent guide to see the watermill. A mill has stood on this site for 900 years. Although it has not been used commercially since 1927, it has been returned to operation with minimum restoration needed. There are now demonstrations on public open days, on the second Sunday of each month if any OBR member wants to see the mill in action, and plans are afoot to grind locally-grown corn. Sadly there wasn’t enough water in the river Cole to even turn the water wheel when we were there. I would like to end by thanking Liza Dibble of The National Trust for a very interesting and well-informed tour and also David Hughes for arranging a fascinating day.

Helena Nielsen All photos courtesy of David Hughes



What’s in a name ? An illustrated glossary

Novice and even expert building recorders can be forgiven for being more than a little confused by some of the terms employed to describe the various parts of a timber-framed building. A good place to start learning how to describe the various parts of a building in a generally acceptable manner that is likely to be understood by most building recorders is by making reference to the “CBA Practical Handbook No 5 - Recording Timber-Framed Buildings: an illustrated Glossary” [ISBN 0 906780 73X]. Most of the terms employed in the UK are defined and explained in this little book with the aid of various illustrated diagrams. Unfortunately this book is currently (Sept. 2010) out of print but copies might still be available from well stocked open air museum book stores like The Weald & Downland Open Air Museum. It has to be recognised that not all buildings will conform exactly to a specific pattern and so eventually a recorder might well be forced into the invention of terms to satisfy a particular

situation and where this is the case then it would be best to build upon the terms contained in the CBA Handbook. For example, the terms long sill and cross sill are used in the above illustrated glossary, recognising that CBA only provides the single term sill to describe both parts. Confusion can arise when a building has been altered over the centuries and the original form or function of a particular component has been changed. For example, if we refer to the illustrated glossary diagram above, we can see that 2 beams appear at the upper floor level in the long wall of the frame but are described differently. CBA outlines that the term girding beam should be used when a floor is present at the same level as the beam and mid rail when no floor is present i.e. as in the case of an open hall. However, when an open hall has subsequently been floored over would it now be correct to describe the mid rail as a girding beam ?



Sometimes terms will be used that sound quite unfamiliar to the novice recorder since they are certainly not in every day use. Words like soffit (underside face), arris (corner edge) and wane (outside rounded face of tree that has failed to produce sufficient girth to be able to form an arris during the conversion process) are employed. These terms have been born out of necessity by those engaged in building & carpentry work and then later on these same words have been adopted as architectural terms. The basic glossary terms can be used like building blocks to help describe more precisely the configuration, shape or position of a part or component. When used in combination they can form very “wordy” though more accurate descriptions of complex timber joints. William Shakespeare is not alone in the invention and use of words, with this approach being adopted and employed to good effect by Cecil Hewett to both describe and define in detail the timber joints that appear in his 1980 book - English Historic Carpentry [ISBN 0-85033-354-7]. For example, Hewett’s Fig. 252 is described as a - diminished haunch soffit tenon or even more complicated still for Fig. 303 as a - stop-splayed and tabled scarf with sallied and under squinted abutments, a transverse key, counter tongued-and-grooved tables, with face and edge pegs. The first joint could more simply be referred to by a beginner as a tenon or if you really would like to show off your literary study skills as a tenon [Hewett Fig 252] and the second joint as a scarf joint [Hewett Fig. 303]. To add to the confusion we are also now finding that some American and French terms are creeping into use with girt (US) sometimes being used for girding beam and summer beam (US) which is itself a corruption of sommier (Fr) for an axial or spine beam used to carry floor joists. Rather than get too tongue tied it’s probably best just to “have a go” at using these terms without worrying too much about getting it wrong. I recently reviewed an OBR drawing where floor joists were described as being rafters and so I simply made a mental correction of the term employed, but I have seen rafters recycled and used as floor joists and so a question to the recorder might well be in order. Given our mortality this last course of action might not always be possible. Back in 1993 I met up with Cecil Hewett at Cressing Temple in Essex where I discovered that 5 years before he had

suffered a massive stroke and was only just managing to learn to speak again. Whilst inspecting the large wheat and barley barns with Cecil he would pose questions using one or two word utterances like “carpenters 25” whilst pointing to the rafters. A series of clarification questions were posed to Cecil and he would respond by gesticulating with his arms to express encouragement or discouragement. Eventually it was established that full height rafters had only 25 growth rings and given their exceedingly long length they must have come from close grown stands of young oak trees being cultivated specifically for this purpose with each tree being just capable of being converted for use as a rafter. It must have been humbling for this once great wordsmith not to be able to use his vast arsenal of glossary terms to express his views but for me it was a rich and rewarding experience simply to be in his presence and to learn that sometimes words are not really required at all.

Ken Hume References. ALCOCK, N.W., BARLEY, M.W., DIXON, P.W., and

MEESON, R.A., 1989. Recording Timber-Framed Buildings. London : CBA.

HEWETT, C. A., 1980. English Historic Carpentry. Chichester : Phillimore.



Recent Recording A note by the Secretary, David Clark We decided some time ago to offer the Vernacular Architecture Group a conference in Oxfordshire as a means of focussing recording work on a few key places, building on the work done in Burford, Kelmscott, Henley and Mapledurham (the latter by members Ruth Gibson and Dan Miles). To date most of our new work has been in Steventon and Abingdon, but we hope to return to Burford later in the year. This note reports briefly on the work done so far. But it is now also apparent, as we become better known, that more and more requests are coming in from owners for us to look at their buildings. This is good, as it will open up as yet unexplored territory which I hope we can take forward after the conference work is complete by April next year. A few examples of recent ad hoc recording are included below. Old Manor, Sunningwell

This is a five-bay continuous jettied building on the road from Sunningwell to Bayworth. There had been a smoke-bay at one end, and of course this means the jetty there was simply a set of partial joists cantilevered on the ground floor wall-plate, probably supporting a short gallery. Access to the upper floor was probably from a rear stair turret, which survives, although rebuilt. The date is probably in the late 16th century, despite these early features, as there are post-medieval features such as ovolo-moulded doorframes with urn stops integral to the structure. The other striking feature of the house is a series (five pairs) of long narrow grooves in the posts and studs of the front elevation. A possible reason for these is to hold the window glass of five oriel windows (a good example can be seen on the White Hart in Dorchester). This all raises the question as to what this building was for. There is a research project for someone on continuous-jettied buildings, for although there are domestic examples, many are institutional, as

the upper room can be used for meetings. The Old Manor does not have a simple domestic plan, and may be the ‘lost’ church house of Sunningwell. Fir Tree House, Steventon This is one of the three Steventon houses for which we obtained VAG and OAHS funding for tree-ring dating. We now know that the hall was built with trees felled in 1572, and the wing a year later. The rather crude junction between the two ranges suggests a case of ‘alternate rebuilding’, the hall having replaced an earlier one and built on to a pre-existing wing, which was subsequently demolished when the present wing was built. In the hall range was a remarkably fine set of ovolo-moulded ceiling joists, but all of different lengths, and clearly inserted into the space, so possibly replacing the original ceiling in the early 17th century. Inside the gable of the wing was found the remains of a timber decoration of struts and curved braces – similar to that of the Reindeer in Banbury (1570) so clearly an Oxfordshire fashion of the time.

In one of the ground floor rooms of the wing is a set of late 17th century bolection-moulded panelling with unusual horizontal sliding shutters in the space between the panelling and the outer wall. Cruck House, Steventon This house has puzzled researchers since the 1950s, and there seem to be as many explanations as people who visit it. It is in two main parts, a 1½-bay cruck range parallel to the road, and a tall box-framed wing at right angles linked to it. We now know this wing to have been built around 1360, and it has saltire bracing and dragon ties consistent with this. But it also has a floor the timbers of which dated earlier than the wing itself. After two recording sessions, we are divided as to whether the floor is in fact a later insertion (so the timbers came from somewhere else).



The other issue is whether the cruck part is earlier, contemporary with, or later than the box framed wing. Sadly tree-ring dating could not answer this, but the building evidence points (for some of us) to the cruck part being earlier, in fact a longer building, the end of which was cut off by the wing. What all this was for is another mystery, as it has none of the obvious characteristics of a medieval hall-house (smoke-blackened timbers, cross-passage, upper and lower ends). This will certainly exercise the VAG members, who will probably want to spend a whole morning there discussing it. Radcot House

I was asked to take a look at this imposing house for the forthcoming VCH volume on this part of Oxfordshire. It is one of a number of similar 17th century houses in West Oxfordshire such as Kelmscott and Finstock Manor. The house was not straightforward. Some obvious rebuildings may indicate that it subsumes parts of the mansion noted at Radcot by Leland in the 1540s. The façade in the photograph was probably the rear elevation of the later house – built probably after 1660 – with a stair tower to the right. At this time the main road from Radcot Bridge ran to the

west of the house and the front door probably faced west towards it. The impressive doorway in the picture may have been created after 1779 when the house was turned round towards the east to face the newly diverted road. To add to the confusion it was also apparent that there had been Victorian alterations, carried out in the style of the earlier building. Reavley’s, Burford This building, the former ‘new inn on the corner’ was tree-ring dated (at 1401) and featured in the work done some years ago on the buildings of Burford for the VCH/EPE paperback. The forthcoming conference gave us the incentive to investigate it in more detail, and a recording day was held there in April. This investigation allowed us to explore an entire hidden level of the building some 5 feet deep between the ground and first floors. Within this was the remnants of a hidden jetty, and the upper part of a thick elm post which can be seen just inside the ground floor shop.

Sufficient measurements were taken to show that the various elements of the building – a cellar with charred joists, the jetty, the smoke-blackened hall roof, and the cross-wing parallel to Sheep Street – were all independent structures, the



heavy post probably having been inserted to support the upper floors when major alterations were made. Our initial conclusions were that there were a number of phases from the late 14th century onwards, consistent with the creation, modification and demise of the inn. These phases involved reuse of roof and other structures from earlier buildings – most probably but not definitively – on the same site. The picture which emerged was of high quality carpentry in the period around 1400 being attenuated in the 16th

century by the reuse of earlier timber where it would not be seen. In the 18th century the conversion for use as pharmacy and family home entailed most of the obvious changes which survive today. The 19th century saw the introduction of a false ground floor ceiling and chemist shop fittings. The front bay window and redesigned fittings are virtually the only significant 20th century alterations. Editor’s note: David’s report contains more buildings, but I have run out of space - held over for another issue.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

FORTHCOMING EVENTS OBR Saturday 6 November 2010 Recording Day in Abingdon. See front page Saturday 20 November 2010 OBR Member’s Presentation Day at Blewbury. Walks round the village, lunch, reports on the year’s activities, and talks by building historian guest speakers. See flyer enclosed OAHS (Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society) programme. All lectures on Tuesdays at 5.30 p.m. in Rewley House, Wellington Square. Free to members and guests. All dates 2010. 12 October The Site of the Lost Medieval Chapel of Bix Stephen Mileson, VCH researcher 26 October Peter Spokes: An Early Conservationist Ann Spokes. [Peter was an important figure for recording buildings in Oxfordshire - his articles on Abingdon and Wallingford are still useful. I hope he would have approved of OBR – D.C.] 9 November Excavations at Marcham –Frilford, 1867-2010 Chris Gosden 23 November Traditional Timber Framing Techniques in 21st C Peter McCurdy. [This lecture is sponsored by OBR. Peter constructs timber buildings, both new build and restoration; one of his buildings is The Globe Theatre] 7 December Oxford Gentlemen and Players – Nineteenth Century Intellectual Societies Megan Price OUDCE courses (Oxford University Department of Continuing Education, Rewley House, Wellington Street, Oxford. Information and booking [email protected].) Thursdays 11 a.m. 4 November – 9 December 2010 English Medieval Cathedrals in Context 6 lectures by John McNeill Friday 22 October – Sunday 24 October 2010 A Panorama of Parks. The purpose, function and form of parks from medieval to modern and from private to public. Saturday 30 October 2010 The Market Town 1650-1900 Smaller towns, social and economic life, and their role in providing vital services for their rural hinterlands Friday 7 – Sunday 9 January 2011 Places of Worship in Britain, 950-1150: An Age of Reform, Saturday 5 February 2011 West Oxford: From Saxons to Superstores Saturday 26 March 2011 North Oxford Includes a guided walk Copy date and contacts Copy date for Issue 45 is 1 December 2010. Please send articles, information, letters, reviews, etc. to the editor, Heather Horner, at Windrush Cottage, Station Road, South Leigh, Oxon. OX29 6XN, telephone 01993 773819, e-mail [email protected] The Secretary is David Clark, 21 Walton Street, Oxford OX1 2HQ, telephone 01865 516414, e-mail [email protected] or [email protected] Our website is at www.OBR.org.uk Some changes recently, and more in the pipeline The OBR are extremely grateful to The Oxford Preservation Trust for their generosity in supporting the production of The Oxon Recorder and to Awards for All in supporting our work to record the built heritage of Oxfordshire.

The Oxon Recorder - Issue 44 44.pdf · the buildings follow a logical gravity-fed system of...

Documents

Transcript of The Oxon Recorder - Issue 44 44.pdf · the buildings follow a logical gravity-fed system of...