Farmstead record NDM 041 - Field barn: Barn NW of Hawks Mill House

The timber-framed and weatherboarded barn which forms the subject of this report lies 40 m north-west of Hawks Mill House, to which it formerly belonged. Until boundary changes of the early-20th century both buildings lay in the parish of Creeting St Mary. The barn is depicted on a plan of circa 1820 which describes it as a ‘cow house and stable’ adjoining the miller’s ‘cow yard’, and in 1840 it formed part of a 3.75 acre landholding attached to the mill house. The property was leased from the mill’s owner, who possessed an additional 37 acres of adjoining land. The barn was built in the second half of the 16th century as a typical East Anglian threshing barn of three bays with a central entrance facing the field on the north-west (away from the house) and an integral single-bay stable at one end. Many local barns contained stables in this way, although they are rare elsewhere. If this barn was designed to serve the 40.75 acre holding attached to the mill, for which its scale is entirely appropriate, it may have been converted into a cow shed when the majority of the land was leased separately. The conversion in the late-18th or early-19th century involved the complete rebuilding of its roof structure, both gables and a large proportion of its walls, but key features survive intact and the building is of considerable historic interest. All four arch-braces to the tie-beams flanking the entrance bay remain in situ, as do sections of original studwork with externally trenched braces and the tie-beam of the internal partition. The present ceiling, internal partitions and brick floors relate to the later conversion, and the pantiles probably replaced thatch. A number of windows were inserted into the south-eastern elevation during the 20th century and despite its early origins the building has been too heavily altered to meet the English Heritage criteria for listing. A lean-to extension was built against the north-eastern gable in the mid-19th century, and an enclosed yard of brick and timber cattle sheds was added after 1883, but these structures have also been altered and are not of significant historic value (S1).

Barn NW of Hawks Mill Hous, Needham Market. 19th century field barn possibly associated with Hawk's Mill. Single barn plan formed by working agricultural buildings. The location of the farmhouse is uncertain. Partial loss (less than 50%) of the traditional farm buildings. Located within an urban area (S2-7).

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.