Farmstead record MDS 155 - Farmstead: Bendalls Farm

The timber-framed and weatherboarded barn adjacent to the farmhouse is a four bay structure circa 1800 that originally contained a single-bay stable at its northern end. The roof was replaced in the 20th century and much of its wall fabric has been rebuilt but it remains of considerable historic interest. Its original framing incorporates a substantial quantity of badly scorched and burnt timber from a domestic building of the 16th and 17th centuries that may have occupied the moated medieval site. Similar burnt timber has been re-used in the house, suggesting the two structures are of the same date and that better quality material was difficult to obtain on a small farm. The tie-beams of the entrance bay are linked to the re-used storey posts by traditional arch-braces and bolted knee-braces - both of which appear to be original and represent a rare transitional combination that is unique in my experience. (Arch-braces were often replaced by bolted knees in the 19th century to increase headroom, but they were not used together.) Despite these points of interest the extent of the barn's alteration is too great to meet English Heritage criteria for listing. Conversion work was well underway at the time of inspection and the buildings of a mid-19th century cattle yard against the barn's eastern elevation had been wholly or partly demolished. Their general appearance typified local farmyards of the mid-19th century and was accordingly of some historic and landscape value. Documentary research was also undertaken into the site's history (S1)(S2)(S3).

Bendalls Farm, Mendlesham. 19th century farmstead and farmhouse. Regular courtyard u-shaped plan formed by working agricultural buildings. Farmhouse is set away from the yard. The traditional farm buildings are extant. Located within an isolated position (S4-S9).

Recorded as part of the Farmsteads in the Suffolk Countryside Project. This is a purely desk-based study and no site visits were undertaken. These records are not intended to be a definitive assessment of these buildings. Dating reflects their presence at a point in time on historic maps and there is potential for earlier origins to buildings and farmsteads. This project highlights a potential need for a more in depth field study of farmstead to gather more specific age data.