Farmstead record BAT 017 - Farmstead: Lower Manor Farmhouse (Manor Farm)

Grade II listed, 16th C farmhouse - timber-framed. The farmyard consists of a timber-framed and weatherboarded barn of the 17th C, an flint rubble and pantiled shelter shed c. 1870 adjoining a pair of cattle yards to the north.

The cattle shed has been labelled as the 'cartlodge' for planning purposes, though has never been used as such. It was last used for cattle in the 1970s, when the farmhouse was sold away from its farmland, though the building still retains a pair of boarded cattle troughs. Much of the wall fabric and all but a small section of the roof was re-newed in red-brick and softwood in the 1980s after a major collapse under the weight of snow. Very little of the original structure survives. The shed is typical of its period, but is too late in date and too heavily altered to merit listing in its own right. Its chief point of interest lies in the extent to which it illustrates the agricultural revolution of Victorian high farming, were cattle were enclosed in yards for the first time. It is furthermore significant in its contribution to the historic and visual context of the listed farmhouse and unlisted, but still historically significant, barn (S1).

Lower Manor Farmhouse (Manor Farm), Battisford. 17th century farmstead and 16th century house with converted buildings. Regular courtyard U-shaped plan formed by working agricultural buildings. The farmhouse is set away from the yard. Partial loss (less than 50%) of the traditional farm buildings. Located within a loose farmhouse cluster (S2-7).

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.