Farmstead record ARG 065 - Farmstead: Church Farm

Group of 19th C brick agricultural buildings, including a highly intact example of a Napoleonic threshing barn and a well preserved stable which contains many of its original features and fittings. The roof of the stable was raised during the late 19th C and a hay loft was added. In the 20th C it was used to house cattle. Also present is a 19th C cartlodge with a granary above.

The 1839 tithe map shows the brick and pantiled barn of circa 1820 which represents a particularly impressive and intact example of a ‘Napoleonic’ threshing barn. It consists of high quality Georgian brickwork with circular vents of rubbed brick and an integral entrance porch. The contemporary (or slightly earlier) stable to the south is also unusually well preserved, with its original decorative ventilation lozenges and a complete array of 19th century wooden harness hooks beneath a remarkable ceiling of re-used moulded Tudor joists. Its present roof and hay loft were added at the end of the 19th century when the height of its walls was raised by 3 feet. The additions of the mid-19th century include a well-built granary in combination with a cart shed and stable on its lower storey, while a series of late late-19th century lean-to loose boxes adjoining the barn relate to the increasing presence of cattle in the area. The stable was also converted to accommodate cattle in the mid-20th century when the yard was provided with a roof, but in other respects the existing layout has remained almost unaltered since the 1920s (S1).

Recorded as part of the Farmsteads in the Suffolk Countryside Project. This is a purely desk-based study and no site visits were undertaken. These records are not intended to be a definitive assessment of these buildings. Dating reflects their presence at a point in time on historic maps and there is potential for earlier origins to buildings and farmsteads. This project highlights a potential need for a more in depth field study of farmstead to gather more specific age data.