MEM23690 - 20th Century squash court at Lynch (Building)

There is a freestanding SQUASH COURT to the northeast which is contemporary with the house, now largely clad externally in timber but with an open verandah to the south, overlooking the bowling green. The squash court is intact internally, with timber lined walls and a small viewing balcony with a central, turned column supporting the opening, and a partly glazed roof supported on timber trusses with iron retaining rods. [1] Lynch was the subject of a heritage statement as part of a planning application in January 2017, where listed building consent was sought for alterations. As part of this, the squash court was also visited. It was suggested that the court was erected in c. 1823, in association with the enlargement of the service wing of the house and appropriate landscaping and engineering works to this part of the garden. The squash court was thought to originally have been clad in split logs retaining their bark; however these were recently replaced in modern treated sawn split poles. Internally the original well detailed exposed boarded finish still survives. The upper half of both roof slopes is glazed, and although the original glazing has been replaced this has been undertaken sympathetically. Internally, the end bay has a first floor balcony with changing rooms beneath. The roof has a single purlin and collars, and to obviate the need for horizontal ties, each truss is detailed with metal ties fixed back to a central vertical metal rod bolted through the collar. [2]