Building record LWT 593 - The Ship

CONTEXT.
An application to list the former Ship public house, no. 403 Beccles Road, Carlton Colville has been submitted to English Heritage. The building is not located in a Conservation Area and there are no listed buildings in the immediate vicinity. Although it has been vacant for many years, the building is not under any direct threat.

HISTORY.
The old Ship Inn is located in a former small hamlet clustered around cross-roads to the north-west of the historic village of Carlton Colville which has now been subsumed in modern development around Lowestoft. The building is multi-phase, with the left hand build probably of eighteenth century date and the right hand of nineteenth century. It is clearly shown on the OS map of 1884, which suggests that the two builds were separate structures; it is also unclear if the row of terraced housing to the left (east) of the building was part of the public house. By 1927, a rear wing had been added to the eighteenth century build, still shown as separate from the right hand bay. By this time it was also no longer labelled as an inn, which is anomalous with documentary evidence that it closed as a public house in 1957. A photograph of the building taken between the World Wars indicates that a first floor opening in the eighteenth century build had already been blocked and the outshot constructed to the front, which apparently was in use as the stables. The building was entirely rendered and had two ridge stacks.

The building was subsequently converted into a residence, during which time it was probably amalgamated as a structure, and interior remodelling took place. From approximately the 1960s or 1970s, it was used purely for storage and remains so to this day. The building has not been maintained recently and is in a state of disrepair with considerable ivy growth obscuring most of the back elevation and west gable end.

There have been later twentieth century alterations including the replacement of the roof structure and replacement of some fenestration. It is uncertain when openings in the façade were blocked or the roof raised.

DESCRIPTION.
A former public house and dwelling, of two-storeys comprising a eighteenth century core of two bays, and probable mid nineteenth century one bay addition to the west (right). To the front is a late nineteenth century or early twentieth century brick outshot and a rear wing probably dating from the early twentieth century. The mid eighteenth century structure is constructed of brick and flint pebbles on a plinth of flint nodules and has a steeply pitched roof with projecting, coped gable ends. The nineteenth century build is constructed with red brick laid in English bond. The entire building has been rendered in the past, the remains of which adhere to the façade and east gable end. The main entrance is central to the façade in the eighteenth century build; there are twentieth century casements in altered openings on the ground and first floor and evidence of a blocked window on the first floor. Additional courses of brickwork at the eaves suggest that the roof has been raised. The nineteenth century build has a dentil cornice and two sash windows of six-over-two on the first floor and six-over-six on the ground, the frames of which do not fit the surrounds. A blocked opening is at first floor. The rear and west elevation are obscured by vegetation and the east by an adjoining terrace. It is said that there are three rear doors, only one of which was observed, set in breeze-block.

INTERIOR.
On the ground floor of the eighteenth century build, the remnants of late nineteenth century or early twentieth century public house panelling and some interior doors survive. The over-painted beams and joists of a late eighteenth century or early nineteenth century floor frame remains. The rear wing has a hob grate and bread oven and twentieth century fenestration. The entrance door is timber battened. To the rear, a winding staircase has apparently been blocked. The nineteenth century bay has no fittings and fixtures of historic interest; a winding stair adjacent to the west elevation leads to the first floor where there is a fireplace with plain early twentieth century surround. Steps lead down into the eighteenth century build where two rooms have central transverse bridging beams with run-out stops and blocked fireplaces. A winding staircase to the rear of the central stack has been filled with rubbish. A small stair to the front of the stack leads to the attic, but is inaccessible. The roof structure, however, is constructed mostly of twentieth century sawn timber.

ASSESSMENT.
Most buildings dating to between 1700 and 1840 are likely to merit listing if they survive in something like their original form. For vernacular buildings, retention of the original plan-form, construction and fabric are factors for consideration.

The former Ship Inn is an example of a public house, converted into a domestic residence and is considered as both building types for the purposes of this assessment. The Ship Inn has a eighteenth century core which, when originally constructed, had distinctive diaper work combining brick and flint nodules, a construction technique found in this region. It is this oldest section which retains some evidence of the use as a public house on the ground floor. Although some early twentieth century panelling in one room and interior pub doors remain, there are no surviving bars or any clear indication of the original plan-form, presumably because of the remodelling when it was converted into a dwelling. As a public house, therefore, it is too altered to meet the criteria for listing.

As a vernacular structure, the eighteenth century building has some surviving fabric in the floor frames and façade, but has been greatly altered since its construction by the addition of a rear wing and west extension, blocking and alteration of openings to the front and rear, and replacement of the roof structure. The amalgamation of eighteenth century and nineteenth century builds has resulted in the loss of the original plan-form and there are few fixtures and fittings of historic interest. Although the building has some local interest in the use of building materials, it is representative of a typical building type of the period and not considered to have special architectural interest from a national perspective. (1)