Church Cottage, boundary wall and piggery

Summary

Church Cottage originated as a pair of early C19 workers' cottages, which were extended in the late C19 and amalgamated into a single dwelling in the later C20.

Reasons for Designation

Church Cottage is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:

* as a pair of workers' cottages dating from the C18 or early-C19, which retain a significant proportion of their early fabric;
* for the legibility of the interior layout, and survival of a substantial amount of the original internal features, including bread ovens, fireplaces and flooring.

Historic interest:

* as a modest example of C18 or early-C19 domestic vernacular architecture.

History

Church Cottage is located in the parish of Norbury, Staffordshire, and is a former pair of workers' cottages which have been amalgamated into a single dwelling.

The cottages first appear on the 1839 tithe map and are depicted as a single dwelling on a roughly rectangular plan. The tithe map indicates that the property was at this time in the ownership of Rev William Henry Cynric Lloyd. Rev Lloyd was the rector of the nearby Church of St Peter (Grade I National Heritage List for England (NHLE) entry 1242976). He is also recorded as being the owner and inhabitant of the accompanying rectory (Grade II; NHLE 1259791), and a relationship between the three buildings is visually established through the locations of openings in the boundary walls. Rev Lloyd later became the first colonial chaplain appointed by the Secretary of State for the War and the Colonies and arrived in Durban, South Africa in 1849. An etching of the cottage dating from 1838 indicates that the cottages date from at least the C18 or early-C19

The 1881 OS map indicates that the footprint of the cottages had been extended by the late-C19, with a rear extension altering the building to a T-plan. The cottages continue to be depicted as two dwellings until the 1968 OS map which identifies the dwelling as Church Cottage for the first time and depicts it as a single cottage. It also appears to have been extended on its north-eastern elevation; this is a single storey abutment with a catslide roof.

The property has been further extended to the rear and wrapping around to the north-eastern extension; these are understood to have been added in the late-C20 and early-C21.

Details

Church Cottage is a multi-phase property with origins as an C18 or early-C19 pair of workers cottages, since amalgamated into a single dwelling.

MATERIALS: the cottage is primarily constructed of red brick with a tiled roof.

PLAN: the cottage is T-plan, with a number of single storey additions to the north, south and eastern elevations.

EXTERIOR: the cottage is two storeys and comprised of two bays. The principal frontage faces the street; however access is gained at the rear of the cottage.

The principal elevation has four modern sash windows to the ground floor; the central two replace the former doorways into each of the cottages. The windows are topped with brick lintels and have accompanying brick cills. There are two smaller windows above. There is a decorative bargeboard at eaves level.

To the south-western elevation of the cottage, there is a small, single storey protruding wing. This houses one intact and one partially intact bread oven, with some evidence to suggest the presence of an earlier bread oven. Also on this elevation, there are two windows at first floor level, flanking a centrally placed chimney stack.

The rear elevation is a gable end and has a large centrally placed chimney stack at the rear of the T-plan, which is partially obscured by a modern single storey extension. This extension is comprised of dwarf walls and large glazed panels. At first floor level, there is a small window and there is brick dentilled detailing around the gable end. To the right of the extension, within the gable end, is a ground floor window under a brick arch. Further to the right is the entrance to another C20 extension, which is clad in timber.

The property has also been extended to its north-eastern elevation. This oldest portion of this elevation features two small windows under brick arches to both the ground and first floor; on both floors these flank a centrally placed chimney stack. As the property has been extended to the rear to form the T-plan form, a cat-slide roof has been inserted which abuts a first-floor dormer window with brick arch towards the rear of the property. To the left-hand side of the elevation is a single-storey, timber-clad extension with a pitched roof.

INTERIOR: the property is entered through the late-C20 timber clad extension, which leads into a foyer, and then into the Victorian section of the building which houses the kitchen. Within the kitchen is a Victorian range; the manufacturer’s plate reads J A S Brindle & Co Chorley. The kitchen leads to two front rooms, identifiable as the front rooms of the original cottages; both are understood to retain their original floor tiles. The fireplaces in both rooms have been replaced by stoves and the exposed beams are understood to be largely original, with some late-C19 replacement following a fire; the central supporting beam is chamfered. Both rooms have a staircase leading to the upper floor of the older section of the property. An opening has been made in the walls here to allow of the amalgamation of the cottages, and to allow for the connection to the later parts of the property. The bedrooms retain their fireplaces.

SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: the property boundary is partially demarcated by a stone wall, with openings to the main road through the village and to the rear of the property and toward the Rectory. Attached to the stone wall in a south-westerly position is a brick-built piggery, with modern roof covering and extensions.

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 17 February 2025 to amend the date of construction.

Sources

Websites
Gateway to the Past: Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent's Cultural Heritage, accessed 22/04/2024 from http://www.archives.staffordshire.gov.uk/CalmView/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=WA1%2f3%2f2%2f1983&pos=1

Other
Tithe Map and Apportionments, 1838
First Edition Ordnance Survey Map, 1881
First Edition Ordnance Survey Map, 1968

End of official list entry