Farmstead record THS 032 - Farmstead: Grove Farm

The stable at Grove Farm is a Grade II listed late 17th century timber-framed building with a hayloft above. The sole plate is on a low brick plinth set flush with the ground at the southern end and revealing a low red brick wall in rough English bond at the northern end. Above the plinth the walls are weather-boarded with evidence of 19th Century tarring on the west side. On the east side only fragmentary boarding survives within the lean-to and the boarding on both ends is modern. The timber framing was originally of good quality Oak with square section pegged studs and rails. The gables roof is now clad in corrugated iron but internal evidence on the rafters show that it was once thatched. Attached to the east side and south west corner of the stables are later structure of poor quality and condition. Internally the barn is two storeys, fully floored, with the ground floor divided into two bays and the first floor into three bays. Entrance to both ground floor bays is from the west and both bays have areas of gault paviors. The smaller northern bay 6.0 x 4.7 meters, is devoid of any fittings. It has the timber-framing exposed in some areas and patchwork boarding elsewhere, including one board from an earlier building which has graffiti in the form of a scroll pattern and what appears to be hay forks. A chamfered spine beam runs east west across the middle of the bay. The larger southern bay 6.0 x 7.0 meters, has two chamfered spine beams running across the building with one of three former dividing stalls still surviving at its southern end and a feeding trough running along its northern end. The first floor is only accessed from an open doorway in the north end gable. It was formerly sub-divided into three bays with two tie beams and boarded studwork separating the narrow central bay of 6.0 x 2.2 meters. The studwork and boarding on the northern side of this bay has since been removed. The tie beams and wall plates are set approximately 1.0 meter above the floorboards and each corner post has straight tension braces from close to the tops of the jowls both along and across the building. The northern end gable has original Oak studs whilst the southern end gable has been rebuilt with modern softwood studs. The roof, lacks conventional principal rafters trusses over the tie beams. It has a double row of purlins with the short lower ones staggered and butted into every third rafter. These are of thicker dimension at lower level between the wall plate and a collar and at higher level have collars clasping to the upper purlins. Thin straight wind braces are tenoned into the thicker rafters and the upper purlins. There is no ridge piece, the coupled rafters being halved and pegged (S1).

Grove Farm, Thurston. 17th century farmstead and 16th century farmhouse. Regular courtyard full plan formed by working agricultural buildings, with additional detached elements. The farmhouse is set away from the yard. Partial loss (less than 50%) of the traditional farm buildings. Located within an isolated position (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.