| Description | Colum Giles visited Troydale Farm in 1981 as part of the Rural Houses Survey. Although only a picture of the farm is included in the final publication, notes were made during the visit and a copy of these is given below;
This is a stone house dated 1706. It is of two storeys, faces south and is built of coursed rubble masonry, quoined at the angles. At the west end of the house is a three bay aisled barn; it is possible that barn and house are contemporary.
The south front of the house retains much of its original detail. The windows have recessed and splayed mullions. The central doorway has a broad chamfered surround, a recessed arched head in a square lintel, and an inscribed panel on the lintel reading
F 1706
W A
The doorway probably opened originally into the west room, the housebody; this was the main room in the house, and provided the main cooking hearth against the west gable. There is no sign that the present gable stack replaces a firehood. The spine beam in the room is stop chamfered against the apparently late partition wall between housebody and entrance passage; it is possible that some re flooring has taken place.
To the east of the housebody is the parlour, heated by an extruded stack on the gable wall. The rear rooms are contained in an outshut. Between main span and outshut is the usual arcade structure, with two posts rising to support the arcade plate. The outshut probably provided a number of service rooms, all unheated.
Attached to the west gable of the house is the aisled barn. It is difficult to determine whether the barn has been added to the house, but the late date of the house in relation to the form of construction in the barn suggests that the two builds must be very close in date if not contemporary. If contemporary, the two provide an example of a laithe house. The laithe re uses earlier main posts from an earlier building.
A postcard featuring Troydale Farm (illustrated by Alan Ingham) contains a note from George Sheeran to Colum Giles. The note explains that the initials above the doorway relate to the initials of William and Anne Farrer. George Sheeran goes on to explain that the house and land comprised part of the Manor of Crosley and that the will of William Farrer dated 1710 describes the house as containing 'one housebody and two chambers over the same two parlours, one chamber over the parlour, one cellar and also one barne...one cottage standing at the end of the West end of the said Barne'.
A copy of the above information, including drawn floorplans and photographs, is held on file at the offices of West Yorkshire HER. |