MSO10699 - Cross Lane House Hotel, Allerford (Building)

Farmhouse now hotel. C16, ceiled late C16, altered C19. Rendered over rubble, triple ridge tile roof hipped to left, rebuilt circular stack right gable end, rendered brick stack rising from behind ridge between second and third bays, large stack left. Plan: open hall with cross passage partitions ceiled to 3 cell and cross passage and extended one bay north-east. One and a half storeys, 3:2 bays; all late C19-early C20 casements, dormers rising from below eaves, ground floor 3-light windows in outer bays, canted bay centre right with triple ridge tile pentice roof extended left as porch carried on wooden trelliswork supports, panelled door. Right return of 2 bays, some leaded iron casements. Interior not seen, said to contain 4-bay jointed cruck truss roof with smoke blackening, timber framed partition first floor, 2 heavy stud and panel partitions to cross passage slightly altered, reset chamfered lintel to rear fireplace in north-east wing with bread oven attached. (VAG Report unpublished SRO, 1981). [1] The jointed cruck roof was dated using dendrochronology to the winter of 1544-5. [2] English Heritage Listed Building Number: 265480. First Listed on 02/01/1986. [3] On entering the village along the A.39, on the right with facing frontage is Cross Lane House Hotel. This former open hall farmhouse has possible early 16th century origins and was ceiled in the late 16th century. It is said to contain a four-bay jointed-cruck roof with evidence of smoke blackening. There are also two plank and muntin partitions to the cross-passage, and a rear fireplace with bread oven attached. The lowered pent-roof dormers indicate a former thatched roof with swept eaves. [4] The building was visited in May 2012 as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor's Listed Buildings 2012-13. It received a BAR score of 6. [5] A structure is visible on the 1841 Selworthy Tithe map at this location. [6] Cross Lane House was vacated in 2008 and pipes subsequently froze in 2009 causing the ceilings to come down at the east end of the property. It was a late medieval three room cross passage house with a smoke-blackened jointed cruck room. The date of the dwelling by the roof timbers is 1544/5. [7,8] The building is shown on 2020 MasterMap data. [9]