Strand Barn, Buckden, Upper Wharfedale

Summary

Two Dales field barns, unusually built side by side. Probably of C18 date.

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Description

Existing NT SMR entry:
"Two field barns, built end to end, serving meadows bordering the river Wharfe 1km SW of Cray. Both of rubble construction with graduated stone slate roofs, they are orientated SE-NW, here treated as E-W. The phasing is involved [discussed at length in VBS] the likeliest explanation is that in their present form the W barn is the earlier, but that the E barn represents a rebuilding of an earlier building, predating the W barn. Possibly the unusual end to end arrangement results from the division of lands formerly of a single holding. The W barn has a shippon in the W bay, and a two-bay mew; the E barn also has a roughly two- bay mew, but the shippon in the E bay, together with a feeding passage or fothergang along its west side, extending into an outshot to the N. This shippon retained the skelboose and boskins constructed of slate set in a timber frame with straight heel- posts. The outshot appears to be contemporary with the E barn, and both are shown (together with the W barn) on the 1844 Buckden Tithe amp, when the two barns are in separate holdings.

This is the only example noted of two self-contained field barns being built together. The shippon fixtures of the E barn are among the better survivals of their kind."

"Strand Barn consists of two field barns, each three bays in length, built end to end in a valley bottom location. It is aligned roughly SE-NW (treated as E-W) and stands beside the Buckden to Hubberholm road known as Dubb's Lane. Structural evidence for the building's phasing appears at first sight unequivocal: the W barn has greater wall thicknesses (62cm as opposed to 55cm) and smaller overall dimensions - characteristics which generally indicate earlier origins - and also has the earlier surviving roof trusses. The absence of a forking hole in the W gable of the E barn, while not conclusive, also tends to suggest that it is either contemporary with or later than the W barn. There are three possibilities: i) the W barn is the earlier, its E gable having been demolished (perhaps owing to structural failure) when the E barn was built; ii) the two are actually contemporary, but built by different hands, one farmer undertaking the construction of the party wall, and each barn being built to a different specification or iii) the present arrangement results from alternative rebuilding, where by the E barn is earlier in origin, the W barn being built up against it but the E barn subsequently being rebuilt in its present form. The Tithe Apportionment of 1844 confirms at least the possibility of the second explanation without ruling out either of the other two. At this date one half of the barn was in the tenancy of Edward Ayrton, the other half in that of John Hebden. The only communication between the two barns is at ground level via a probably inserted doorway, and it is therefore likely that this dual operation prevailed at the time of construction as well. On balance, however, the alternative rebuilding explanation seems the least far-fetched.

1) The W Barn. This is divided between a two-bay mew to the E and a single-bay shippon to the W. Both are entered from the S via roughly-quoined, internally rebated doorways, the shippon door opening into a built recess. Hay was loaded into the mew via a forking hole in the N wall. The shippon has an internally shuttered mucking out hole in the W gable which may be original. A larger window in the same gable has a concrete lintel and sill and is a C20 insertion. The concrete shippon fixtures are likewise of C20 date. The loft over the shippon consists of rough baulks, including a number of re-used timbers. The two trusses are of riven tie-beam and principal rafter construction with two sets of trenched purlins.

2) The E Barn. It is unclear whether this was originally a simple rectangular structure, or whether the shippon occupied the E bay, extending into an outshot on the N side, while the mew occupied the W and central bays. Both shippon and mew were entered via internally rebated doorways in the S wall, the shippon door opening into a built recess. These doorways are quoined with slender lintels. Hay was loaded into the mew via a forking hole in the S wall, and onto the loft over the shippon via another in the E gable. Subsequently the S opening was blocked up and another inserted in the N wall (both the inserted opening and the blocking are associated with a black ash-rich mortar). The shippon had a small mucking-out hole (now blocked) in the E gable, and another in the E wall of the outshot with a notched gritstone lintel. A larger window is a C20 insertion. The outshot also has slit vents (one splayed, one unsplayed and blocked) in the N and W walls. The present shippon fixtures, consisting of large slate boskins and skelboose in timber frames and cobbled standings, are probably of EC19 date. The width of the outshot allows for a narrow feeding passage along the W side of the skelboose, but conflicts with the bay widths of the roof.

The roof trusses are of tie-beam and principal rafter construction with raked roof struts strapped to the principals and through bolted at the tie beam. The tie-beams rest on timber corbels with shaped ends. There are two sets of butt purlins. The use of iron strap ends and bolts and shaped timber corbels appears, from comparison with other examples, to date mainly from the second and third quarters of the C19. Because the outshot width exceeds the bay width, the N end of the E truss bears on a strutted bressumer spanning the width of the outshot, the principal rather continuing down to the outshot eaves level and carrying a third purlin. This appears to indicate that the outshot is original, although in other examples where the outshot is original its width corresponds to the bay width. The fact that the shippon fixtures are all of one phase and clearly early, if not original, tends to support this theory. External indications are inconclusive, however. There is a patch of disturbed masonry on the E gable at the junction between the outshot and the main range; the blocked mucking-out hole mentioned above appears to be at a lower level than that to the outshot; and the slit vents are confined to the outshot. Possibly the E barn is earlier than suggested and was extensively altered, including re-roofing and the addition of the outshot, in EC19. At all events, the outshot was built by the time of the 1844 Buckden ."

Presently in use and in excellent condition.

Elevation: 230
Height/depth: 6
Width: 8.5
Length: 16
Material: limestone rubble with a stone tile roof

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