East Hendred Museum at Champs Chapel, Oxfordshire and Berkshire Heritage

CHAPTER VII HORN LANE

Opposite the junction of Church Street with Ford Lane stands a cottage almost entirely constructed, even including the quoins, of chalkstone. Close past it is a first world war army hut used as a bungalow and then comes a small council building estate which extends round the corner into the Lynch. The road turns sharp left into Horn Lane but is entered by two cul de sacs, one the Lynch itself, the other nameless. This second lane has bungalows along it on either side. Quite typically, one is called Hafed and its occupant is Welsh, employed at AERE. (It would be vastly interesting to have an analysis of the population of East Hendred covering place of birth and of employment.)

On the left of Horn Lane is Mrs. Aves’ pleasant modern bungalow and, facing it Colt’s Corner, a Colt bungalow in cedarwood hung with cedar tiles. It stands on the site of Ivydene, a thatched cottage where the painter Vingoe used to lodge. It was much dilapidated when it was pulled down.

Past Mrs. Aves’ comes the White House. It was built to the ideas of Mrs. Lacey, an Italian lady whose father was a painter in Venice. Not merely the slatted external shutters, but the proportions of the building and of its roof suggest Mediterranean influence and the entrance hall; with its treatment of the stairway, also expresses this idea. The principal rooms, including the lounge, are elegant and spacious; but the other rooms and the kitchen were relatively meagre until Mr. Rudgard bought the house from Mrs. Lacey in 1950, and extended it at the rear. He has most successfully retained the outward appearance of the house while providing it with a dining room of similar proportions to the lounge, and his gardens are so designed as to complement the character of the house. This is an example of how a house in quite different style from anything else in the village can yet be designed and sited in such a way as not to conflict with the atmosphere of it.

Mrs. Lacey was a woman of taste and of forceful personality who could form a project and carry it through. After leaving the White House she reconstructed two cottages in West Hendred to form Furlong Cottage, and her last achievement was the restoration of Rising Sun Cottage. She certainly had the good wishes of her neighbours, who rallied round so quickly when the fire broke out there that her furniture and belongings were saved.

She had a liking for Dutch tiles. She used them at the White House and Furlong Cottage; and again in Rising Sun Cottage: I have seen a couple of such tiles rescued from the fire and now a framed and valued possession. I fancy she and Miss Lavinia Smith shared this liking; for they have also been used in the sitting room at Downside.

We go back three or four centuries as we pass on to Hines Cottage.

Basically this is a two-bay cottage with a hovel at either end under the slope of the thatch, used for pigs, poultry, fuel, etc. The wall of the house on the lane side has been heightened and the thatch cut back to admit of adequate windows. The stairs have been moved from the traditional position beside the great chimney and now spring from an extension at the back of the house; which also covers the head of the former well and gives access to a brick extension at the east end. At the west end the hovel has been transformed into a bathroom and a miniature patio, - quite charming. Mr. Christer came here immediately after the second world war when building was extremely difficult. He took over what was virtually a derelict cottage ripe for demolition and turned it into a charming house. This involved constant and irritating negotiations to secure permits and if Mr. Christer had not been able to do much of the work himself; it could not have been done. The cottage, in its orchard setting, is likely to be nearer four than three centuries old; but will still be there in another three centuries if adequately maintained.

Then comes the Mount Pleasant lane and Bowling Over, and then The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage. The two dwellings form one range and, like other ranges of bays, could be easily sub-divided from time to time to form a number of separate homes. That there was access between The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage is clear from a blocked up doorway still distinguishable.

They are nevertheless two distinct structures. The Cottage consists of two main bays at the east end of which the chimney and stairway were erected. At the west end of The Cottage under the slope of the roof, which is still open to the thatch, there is now a garage where formerly, no doubt, were stalls for animals. Judging from other similar houses in the village, the roof sloped in the same way at the east end before Chestnut Cottage was built. The three pairs of crucks in The Cottage, the tie-beams, collars and other timbers of the frame are particularly "sturdy" (I take this word from Dr. Fletcher’s notes), and suggest that more than usual care was used in their selection and in the construction. It is a solid house.

Chestnut Cottage is of frame construction but I did not detect any evidence that crucks had ever formed part of it. The tie-beams are of sufficient length to reach out and provide for a passage at the rear under the slope of the roof, unlike extensions recently added, for example, in Featherbed Cottage. Miss Clark tells me that this construction is common at Blewbury and that there the term "Berkshire passage" is used for such passages.

Both The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage have been successfully adapted and, as in some other cases in the village, combine the grace of age with the latest in modern convenience.

Along the south side of Horn Lane are several bungalows and semi-bungalows. One currently being built is for the National Health Service. Wellshead in Newbury Road, now the property of Mr. Parker and, when Nurse Parker retires, her successor will work from this new house. On the south side, the first group of buildings to look out for is now called Glen Cottages. The building is composite, but basically consists of a mediaeval timber framed house, with a later, probably Georgian, dwelling in the rear of number 4, which may have been an inn. It is now called Little Corabella.

Apart from some brick cottages standing well back from the lane on the north and some very recent construction on the south there are now left three sets of cottages which all belong to the Eyston estate. Those now called Meadow Cottages were renovated in 1938 on the instructions of Captain Eyston. The timber frame was retained as close as possible to the original, but tiles have since been substituted for thatch. The eastern gable with its upper window between the collar (upper tie-beam) and the ridge shows the sixteenth century rural style of architecture at its best. Captain Eyston’s purpose was different from Mr. Billyeald’s who delighted in the old but was quite prepared to embellish it.

When Miss Dearlove returned to her cottage in Newbury Road in 1955 much was in progress in Nos. 5 and 6 Newbury Road at the corner of Horn Lane. She was, she told me, amazed to see the timber frame of the building standing free with its infilling removed. It is necessary to understand that the timber frame carried the weight of the building and that the excellent timber of the frame endured better than the often flimsy infilling. The old infilling had been removed from that building and was to be replaced by brick. One of Joseph Stibbs’ account illustrates this:

1859 C.J. Eyston for Repairs to house occupied by Wm. Chapman, taking out old end of house Rebuilding of ditto and taking out old Wattle panel and filling up with 4 inch Brick Work & to plastering inside and out of do. Shoring up the end. Cleaning Bricks Diging out etc

Janry 10        14½ days Myself            2.. 8. 4.
     do             7 days A Man      1., 3. 4.
     do            15½ days a Lbr              1.. 11. 0..
     do      Lath, hair and nails to do    2. 6.
----------------------------------------------------------
                                                          5. 5. 2.

This account is worth studying. It gives the current rate of wages. Hair was often charged by the peck or the bushel: it was used in making plaster. It also reveals how little new material might be used. Timber was always carefully saved for re-use, and bricks carefully cleaned. (This is hardly possible today when mortar is sand and cement: then mortar was lime and hair.)

In the case of Meadow Cottages and the cottages across the lane, the timber frame has been beautifully preserved and new work made to match it as far as possible; but the two living rooms I entered were papered and had modern fireplaces, and this I found disconcerting: it seemed such a contrast with the exterior.

This is not so in the case of cottages fifty yards back up the lane. One of these is called Dunelm (Mrs. Smith came from Durham), the other Windyridge. In both these cases, the inside walls are plastered and the beams treated as a decorative feature.

Windyridge, which lies behind Dunelm and faces east, is the home of Mr. Albert Prater, who, like his father, has been engaged for many years on the renovation of Eyston estate property. He told me that the architect who supervised the work on these two dwellings said that Windyridge was built in the fifteenth century. It is of quite typical cruck construction though the blades of the crucks are not continuous beyond the collar (upper tie-beam). The chimney is about nine feet wide and eight feet in depth. Smoke stains on the rafters tell of a time when there was no chimney and the house was open to the roof.

Dunelm provides an example of re-use of timber. Mr. Prater told me that when the cottage had been stripped of its in-filling, it was discovered that the base-plate (or cill) which lies along the top of the footings had deteriorated: it was removed and a beam from Downs Barn, which had recently been pulled down, used in place of it.

Horn Lane is an example of lack of planning. A dwelling may be well designed as a unit and yet conflict with the character of the street in which it is erected. It is the business of planning authorities to think about streets and villages as whole communities: we hope that they will apply this principle with taste and vigour in the future.

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Home About Museum Museum History Disabled Access Heritage Trust Fire Pump Local History Places to Visit Photo Gallery Audio-Visuals Getting Here Events Diary How You Can Help? Contact Us Links	CHAPTER VII HORN LANE Opposite the junction of Church Street with Ford Lane stands a cottage almost entirely constructed, even including the quoins, of chalkstone. Close past it is a first world war army hut used as a bungalow and then comes a small council building estate which extends round the corner into the Lynch. The road turns sharp left into Horn Lane but is entered by two cul de sacs, one the Lynch itself, the other nameless. This second lane has bungalows along it on either side. Quite typically, one is called Hafed and its occupant is Welsh, employed at AERE. (It would be vastly interesting to have an analysis of the population of East Hendred covering place of birth and of employment.) On the left of Horn Lane is Mrs. Aves’ pleasant modern bungalow and, facing it Colt’s Corner, a Colt bungalow in cedarwood hung with cedar tiles. It stands on the site of Ivydene, a thatched cottage where the painter Vingoe used to lodge. It was much dilapidated when it was pulled down. Past Mrs. Aves’ comes the White House. It was built to the ideas of Mrs. Lacey, an Italian lady whose father was a painter in Venice. Not merely the slatted external shutters, but the proportions of the building and of its roof suggest Mediterranean influence and the entrance hall; with its treatment of the stairway, also expresses this idea. The principal rooms, including the lounge, are elegant and spacious; but the other rooms and the kitchen were relatively meagre until Mr. Rudgard bought the house from Mrs. Lacey in 1950, and extended it at the rear. He has most successfully retained the outward appearance of the house while providing it with a dining room of similar proportions to the lounge, and his gardens are so designed as to complement the character of the house. This is an example of how a house in quite different style from anything else in the village can yet be designed and sited in such a way as not to conflict with the atmosphere of it. Mrs. Lacey was a woman of taste and of forceful personality who could form a project and carry it through. After leaving the White House she reconstructed two cottages in West Hendred to form Furlong Cottage, and her last achievement was the restoration of Rising Sun Cottage. She certainly had the good wishes of her neighbours, who rallied round so quickly when the fire broke out there that her furniture and belongings were saved. She had a liking for Dutch tiles. She used them at the White House and Furlong Cottage; and again in Rising Sun Cottage: I have seen a couple of such tiles rescued from the fire and now a framed and valued possession. I fancy she and Miss Lavinia Smith shared this liking; for they have also been used in the sitting room at Downside. We go back three or four centuries as we pass on to Hines Cottage. Basically this is a two-bay cottage with a hovel at either end under the slope of the thatch, used for pigs, poultry, fuel, etc. The wall of the house on the lane side has been heightened and the thatch cut back to admit of adequate windows. The stairs have been moved from the traditional position beside the great chimney and now spring from an extension at the back of the house; which also covers the head of the former well and gives access to a brick extension at the east end. At the west end the hovel has been transformed into a bathroom and a miniature patio, - quite charming. Mr. Christer came here immediately after the second world war when building was extremely difficult. He took over what was virtually a derelict cottage ripe for demolition and turned it into a charming house. This involved constant and irritating negotiations to secure permits and if Mr. Christer had not been able to do much of the work himself; it could not have been done. The cottage, in its orchard setting, is likely to be nearer four than three centuries old; but will still be there in another three centuries if adequately maintained. Then comes the Mount Pleasant lane and Bowling Over, and then The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage. The two dwellings form one range and, like other ranges of bays, could be easily sub-divided from time to time to form a number of separate homes. That there was access between The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage is clear from a blocked up doorway still distinguishable. They are nevertheless two distinct structures. The Cottage consists of two main bays at the east end of which the chimney and stairway were erected. At the west end of The Cottage under the slope of the roof, which is still open to the thatch, there is now a garage where formerly, no doubt, were stalls for animals. Judging from other similar houses in the village, the roof sloped in the same way at the east end before Chestnut Cottage was built. The three pairs of crucks in The Cottage, the tie-beams, collars and other timbers of the frame are particularly "sturdy" (I take this word from Dr. Fletcher’s notes), and suggest that more than usual care was used in their selection and in the construction. It is a solid house. Chestnut Cottage is of frame construction but I did not detect any evidence that crucks had ever formed part of it. The tie-beams are of sufficient length to reach out and provide for a passage at the rear under the slope of the roof, unlike extensions recently added, for example, in Featherbed Cottage. Miss Clark tells me that this construction is common at Blewbury and that there the term "Berkshire passage" is used for such passages. Both The Cottage and Chestnut Cottage have been successfully adapted and, as in some other cases in the village, combine the grace of age with the latest in modern convenience. Along the south side of Horn Lane are several bungalows and semi-bungalows. One currently being built is for the National Health Service. Wellshead in Newbury Road, now the property of Mr. Parker and, when Nurse Parker retires, her successor will work from this new house. On the south side, the first group of buildings to look out for is now called Glen Cottages. The building is composite, but basically consists of a mediaeval timber framed house, with a later, probably Georgian, dwelling in the rear of number 4, which may have been an inn. It is now called Little Corabella. Apart from some brick cottages standing well back from the lane on the north and some very recent construction on the south there are now left three sets of cottages which all belong to the Eyston estate. Those now called Meadow Cottages were renovated in 1938 on the instructions of Captain Eyston. The timber frame was retained as close as possible to the original, but tiles have since been substituted for thatch. The eastern gable with its upper window between the collar (upper tie-beam) and the ridge shows the sixteenth century rural style of architecture at its best. Captain Eyston’s purpose was different from Mr. Billyeald’s who delighted in the old but was quite prepared to embellish it. When Miss Dearlove returned to her cottage in Newbury Road in 1955 much was in progress in Nos. 5 and 6 Newbury Road at the corner of Horn Lane. She was, she told me, amazed to see the timber frame of the building standing free with its infilling removed. It is necessary to understand that the timber frame carried the weight of the building and that the excellent timber of the frame endured better than the often flimsy infilling. The old infilling had been removed from that building and was to be replaced by brick. One of Joseph Stibbs’ account illustrates this: 1859 C.J. Eyston for Repairs to house occupied by Wm. Chapman, taking out old end of house Rebuilding of ditto and taking out old Wattle panel and filling up with 4 inch Brick Work & to plastering inside and out of do. Shoring up the end. Cleaning Bricks Diging out etc Janry 10 14½ days Myself 2.. 8. 4. do 7 days A Man 1., 3. 4. do 15½ days a Lbr 1.. 11. 0.. do Lath, hair and nails to do 2. 6. ---------------------------------------------------------- 5. 5. 2. This account is worth studying. It gives the current rate of wages. Hair was often charged by the peck or the bushel: it was used in making plaster. It also reveals how little new material might be used. Timber was always carefully saved for re-use, and bricks carefully cleaned. (This is hardly possible today when mortar is sand and cement: then mortar was lime and hair.) In the case of Meadow Cottages and the cottages across the lane, the timber frame has been beautifully preserved and new work made to match it as far as possible; but the two living rooms I entered were papered and had modern fireplaces, and this I found disconcerting: it seemed such a contrast with the exterior. This is not so in the case of cottages fifty yards back up the lane. One of these is called Dunelm (Mrs. Smith came from Durham), the other Windyridge. In both these cases, the inside walls are plastered and the beams treated as a decorative feature. Windyridge, which lies behind Dunelm and faces east, is the home of Mr. Albert Prater, who, like his father, has been engaged for many years on the renovation of Eyston estate property. He told me that the architect who supervised the work on these two dwellings said that Windyridge was built in the fifteenth century. It is of quite typical cruck construction though the blades of the crucks are not continuous beyond the collar (upper tie-beam). The chimney is about nine feet wide and eight feet in depth. Smoke stains on the rafters tell of a time when there was no chimney and the house was open to the roof. Dunelm provides an example of re-use of timber. Mr. Prater told me that when the cottage had been stripped of its in-filling, it was discovered that the base-plate (or cill) which lies along the top of the footings had deteriorated: it was removed and a beam from Downs Barn, which had recently been pulled down, used in place of it. Horn Lane is an example of lack of planning. A dwelling may be well designed as a unit and yet conflict with the character of the street in which it is erected. It is the business of planning authorities to think about streets and villages as whole communities: we hope that they will apply this principle with taste and vigour in the future. [Back to the Table of Contents]
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