Farmstead record KND 025 - Farmstead: Knodishall Hall

Knodishall Hall is a 19th century model farm. It sits alongside a private track in association with a rectory and church. This farmstead survives intact.

Knodishall Hall is a 19th century red brick structure which was rebuilt after its predecessor was destroyed by fire in about 1860. The tithe map of 1846 shows a scattered group of farm buildings including what appears to be a pair of barns flanking an enclosed yard to the south. By 1855 the property had become part of the estate of Lord Huntingield of Hevengham Hall. In the 1860s, possibly at the same time as the rebuilding of the main house, the old farm buildings were replaced with a new 'model' farm consisting of 7 yards enclosed by uniform ranges of pantiled red brick grouped in two adjoining complexes. Unfortunately the buildings were heavily altered and partly demolished in the mid-20th century. A large early 19th century timber-framed and weatherboard barn which formed the western edge of the sourthern complex, the only structure remaining from before the remodelling, was almost completely demolished to leave only its two northern bays standing. These bays had been converted into the stable and granary of the model farm, but were further altered in the 1950s to create a new cow shed. The resulting structure is arguably the most heavily disguised hsitroic barn in Suffolk (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.