| Description | Willow Hall, Skircoat.
'Willow Hall... C17, altered. Traditional stone house of 2 storeys. Stone roof. Gabled cross wings with 2 storeyed gabled porch attached to inner face of west wing. Smaller gable to centre and some single storeyed additions. Round headed lights to windows, Rear re modelled in C18 with sash windows and 2 Venetian openings. Modern east extension of no interest. West extension plain but battlemented parapet to garden side perhaps early C19, Interior has some panelling etc. to south rooms'.
(English Heritage listed building description. Date listed 03/11/1954. http://list.english heritage.org.uk/resultsingle.aspx?uid=1290059. Web site accessed 02/12/2013).
Colum Giles made an archaeological assessment of Willow Hall as part of the WYAS/RCHME Rural Houses Survey c.1979. The sketch plan is held by WYAS. The fieldwork report is summarised below:
Willow hall is a stone house of the 17th century. The eroded date stone reads either 1610 or 1670, the style of the house suggest the earlier date. The house is arranged in a hall and cross wings plan, and is of two storeys throughout. A 19th century subdivision has obscured many original details.
The south front was probably the main entrance. The lack of a main door here is probably due to re fronting c.1800. The masonry was replaced, the elevation was given four gables, Georgian windows replaced the mullioned windows and the main entrance was moved to the north front. Although the main door on this side, with inscribed lintel suggest that this is the original frontage, the internal arrangement of rooms points to a contrary conclusion.
The sides and rear of the house maintain their original masonry and windows. The windows have round headed lights and cavetto moulded mullions. The north porch is contained within an eastwards extension of the west wing. The wide outer door has a broad chamfered surround and shallow arched head. Elaborate porch ceiling panels are formed by broad chamfered cross and spine beams.
The conversion to two dwellings has divided the house in two, the division running along the short access of the hall range. It was originally of two bays which probably followed the conventional arrangement of through passage and stack or hood in the west bay and the body of the hall in the east bay. Later alterations have removed evidence of the opposing door and the fire hood. The report presents a discussion on these points.
The west wing of the house has two rooms at present, with a parlour to the south and three bays to the north. The parlour is featureless. The kitchen shows signs of having two bays originally has a beam has a groove in its soffit for a partition. The kitchen has a large fire place of c.1800 against the north gable There are signs that this replaces a firehood, for at first floor level and within the roof space this end bay was screened from the rest of the wing by a closed truss, with evidence for a close studded wall beneath the tie beam and a daub infill between the braces of the roof truss. This arrangement gave a bay which may have included the firehood.
The east wing of the house has a parlour to the south. It is heated by an external stack on the east wall. The parlour is panelled, has a casement moulded cornice and fluted pilasters flanking the door. These features point to an early mid 18th century date for a refitting of the parlour. Also of this date are some details of the stair contained within the central bay of the wing. The landing has a row of turned balusters and there is some re used dado panelling. The roof shows signs that this central bay is closed to both north and south; this division possibly reflects the ground floor disportion and, if so, it is likely that the central bay was always used for the stair, leaving the parlour to the south and a two bay room to the north. This latter is featureless. |