MEM22444 - Tarr Farm, Dulverton (Building)

The 1327 Lay Subsidy Rolls for Somerset list ‘Thomas atte Torre’ in the parish of Dulverton, suggesting that a settlement on the Dulverton side of the Barle - Tarr Farm - was in existence by this date. A house called Torr Steps is mentioned in 1644 and Tarr or Tarr Steps farm was recorded in the 18th Century. Two photographs of Tarr Farm, taken by Alfred Vowles, c. 1911-1914 show details of the building before 20th Century restoration work, which suggest that the farm building dates from the medieval or early post-medieval period, with a cross passage plan. An engraving by FC Lewis dated 1827 shows the building, half hidden by the woods, with a thatched roof and an upper room tucked under the eaves. The Oaks at Tarr Farm kept a herd of milking cows in the 1960s and 1970s and they often forded the river twice a day to come in for milking. [1] The 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map shows an extension (or associated barn) to the east, which appears to have since been demolished and rebuilt. [2]