History in Structure

Bell Farm House

A Grade I Listed Building in Harrietsham, Kent

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Coordinates

Latitude: 51.24 / 51°14'24"N

Longitude: 0.6794 / 0°40'45"E

OS Eastings: 587130

OS Northings: 152394

OS Grid: TQ871523

Mapcode National: GBR QT4.4LM

Mapcode Global: VHJMP.Q3K7

Plus Code: 9F326MRH+2Q

Entry Name: Bell Farm House

Listing Date: 20 October 1952

Grade: I

Source: Historic England

Source ID: 1086145

English Heritage Legacy ID: 173763

ID on this website: 101086145

Location: Harrietsham, Maidstone, Kent, ME17

County: Kent

District: Maidstone

Civil Parish: Harrietsham

Built-Up Area: Harrietsham

Traditional County: Kent

Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Kent

Tagged with: Architectural structure

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Description


This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 4 October 2023 to update the name and address and to reformat the text to current standards

TQ 85 SE
4/30

HARRIETSHAM
EAST STREET (southwest side)
Bell Farm House

(Formerly listed as The Old House)

20.10.52.

GV
I
Farmhouse. Circa 1500. Timber framed with plaster infilling and plain tile roof. Wealden; open hall of two unequal bays with storeyed bay to either end.

Two storeys. Close-studded, except ground floor of right bay of hall and right end bay which have broadly spaced studding. Right and left end bays jettied, with moulded bressumers. Jetties and moulding continue round side elevations on moulded dragon posts. Moulded fillet across front, along left side and formerly along right, half way up first floor. Close-studded coving to flying wall-plate, springing from fillet. Cross-passage delineated by bracket to coving towards right end of hall. Hipped roof, with gablet to left. Multiple brick ridge stack with fillet, in front slope of roof off-centre to right, and small projecting stack to left end. Irregular fenestration of one small four-light ovolo-moulded mullioned casement with leaded panes to each outer bay. Two storey canted bay, probably the original hall window, to larger, left-hand bay of hall, extending through coving almost to eaves. Ground floor of bay has six-light early C20 casement, first floor filled in and painted to resemble close studding. Hollow-chamfered four-centred arched door head with carved spandrels to right end of hall, with moulded brattished bressumer above. Ribbed door, probably original. Original, blocked, door opening on first floor to rear of left side elevation (possibly for garderobe?). Weatherboarded lean-to to right end.

Interior: moulded and brattished screens and dais beams, two 4-centred arched
service doors with hollow spandrels and hollow-chamfered jambs, and plain opening to 'service' end stairs. 'Service' stairs original. Moulded central truss posts and tie-beam and moulded octagonal central crown-post. Other crown-posts plain. Original smoke-blackened hall wall to right on first floor. Internal tension braces and rebated corner posts. Unusual survival of original vertical stud, lathe and daub wall concealing coving from inside hall. Hall floor and stack circa 1600. An "unusually sumptuous C16 Wealden house, unusually well preserved, i.e. not restored." (J. Newman: Buildings of England Series, North East and East Kent, 1969). Eric Mercer, English Vernacular Houses, 1975.W. Galsworthy Davie and E. Guy Dawber, Old Cottages and Farmhouses in Kent and Sussex, London 1900 Pl.6.


Listing NGR: TQ8713052394

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