Site Event/Activity record ESF20911 - Castle Farm, Wingfield

A late-16th century timber-framed barn that originally contained ten bays and extended to an impressive 120 feet in length (36.5 m) with exposed timbers, symmetrical bracing and brick nogging. Similar gentry barns elsewhere were usually aligned at right-angles to the house, facing an enclosed courtyard of service buildings, but this example lies on the same axis as the castle and was apparently designed to extend the width and resulting visual impact of its façade. It remains of vital importance to the castle's historic context and integrity. The barn contained a sophisticated interior with a three-bay stable and hay loft to the west, a three-bay open barn in the centre and a four-bay barn to the east (all entered from the south). It was extensively altered in circa 1860 by Sir Robert Adair of Flixton Hall to form part of an equally sophisticated 'model farm' with uniform red-brick animal sheds and a good cartlodge/granary. This farm complex is of historic interest in its own right. The barn was extended by two bays to the east, its roof and lower walls were entirely rebuilt (re-using timbers from its original roof of wind-braced clasped-purlins with a lower tier of butt-purlins) and the interior was rearranged to contain a larger stable and loft with a five-bay barn and a milling shed. Despite these changes the key elements of the Tudor frame survive intact, including a large number of cranked tie-beam braces and evidence of windows with moulded mullions to the stable and loft. Project status: Complete Yes, Validated Yes Previous/Future Work: Previous Not known, Future Not known Associated Identifiers: Sitecode WGD 030 NMR No. 1536566 Project Type: Building Recording Methods and Techniques: Photographic Survey, Survey/Recording Of Fabric/Structure Reason for Investigation: Direction from Local Planning Authority - PPG16 Site status: Listed Building Current Land use: Other 2 - In use as a building Monument Type(s)/Period(s): BARN Post Medieval Artefact Type(s)/Period(s): NONE None PROJECT LOCATION Area 150.00 Square metres Grid Reference: TM22307717 Point Height 16.00 - 16.50 metres PROJECT CREATOR(S) Brief originator: Local Authority Archaeologist and/or Planning Authority/advisory body Design originator: Edward Martin Director/Manager: David Gill Supervisor: Leigh Alston DIGITAL ARCHIVE Recipient: Suffolk County SMR Contents: other Media: Images raster / digital photography, Survey, Text PAPER ARCHIVE Recipient: Suffolk County SMR Contents: other Media: Report BIBLIOGRAPHY Publication Type: Grey literature (unpublished document/manuscript) Title: Castle Farm, Wingfield, Suffolk, WGD 030 Historic Building Record Author(s)/Editor(s): Alston, L. Other Bibliographic Details: SCCAS Report Date: 2010 Issuer/Publisher: SCCAS Place of Issue or Publication: Bury St Edmunds Description: A4, white cover with colour photo (also available as PDF)