Farmstead record DEN 016 - Farmstead: Vicarage Farm

The site consists of a grade II-listed timber-framed and thatched farmhouse, built in two principal phases during the 16th and early-17th centuries, and a small complex of outbuildings with uniform pantiled roofs in close proximity to the rear. This complex includes a small timber-framed threshing barn of three bays that probably dates from the first half of the 16th century but may be slightly older. It originally possessed a hipped queen-post roof in the distinctive style of northern Suffolk and is of considerable historic interest. The central threshing floor was entered from a yard adjoining the service gable of the farmhouse, but the unusually heavy nature of the wall timbers suggests it may be contemporary with the similar framing of the parlour at the opposite end of the house. It is uncommon to find early houses and barns of the same date in this way, and the two buildings offer important insight into the layout of local farmsteads in the Tudor period. Both structures were shown pictorially on a map of 1757, when the farm was a tenanted holding of 46 acres on the Hoxne Hall estate. The holding had increased slightly to 54 acres by the time of the tithe survey in 1838, which may explain the extension of the barn by one bay and the addition of a gabled porch in the late-18th or early-19th century – coinciding with the ‘Napoleonic’ boom in Suffolk’s cereal production. The queen-post roof was replaced by the present shallow-pitched king-post structure in the latter part of the 19th century when the complex was refurbished to meet the needs of Victorian High Farming with new cattle yard added to the rear. A single-storied weatherboarded cattle shed still exists to the south of this yard but only the roof scar of its northern shelter-shed now remains on the wall of the barn. A Victorian cart lodge projected from the barn’s southern gable, but was largely rebuilt in cement-blocks during the late-20th century, and a detached red-brick stable of circa 1890 on the east does not form part of the current planning application. The framing of the Tudor barn is relatively well preserved, with three of its four tie-beam braces in situ along with an original door jamb, but the timbers of both gables have been lost (S1).

Vicarage Farm, Denham. 16th century farmstead and farmhouse. Regular courtyard L-shaped plan with buildings to the third side formed by working agricultural buildings. The farmhouse is set away from the yard. Partial loss (less than 50%) of the traditional farm buildings. Located within a village (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.