Listed Building record MDO10273 - West Hall, Folke

A house with one wing, the north-east, thought to have been built in the fifteenth century. The south-east wing and dining room block are of seventeenth-century date, with alterations in 1671, and twentieth-century alterations and additions. The building has walls of stone rubble with ashlar quoins, and stone slate roofs with stone copings and chimney stacks.

A well-preserved house of irregular plan. The main block is L-shaped with wings extending north east and south east. It is built of rubble with a stone slate roof. The north east wing is probably 15th century and the south east wing is 17th century with later alterations and additions. <2>

"West Hall", name confirmed by farmworkers, a large farmhouse in good condition. As described above. Many original features retained. Outstanding. <3>

<1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey 25-inch map, 1927 (Map). SDO10373.

(ST 65311290) West Hall (NR)

<2> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments England, 1952, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume I (West), 112-3 (Monograph). SDO97.

‘(3) WEST HALL (Plate 116), ½ m. S.W. of the church, is of two storeys with attics; the walls are of rubble and the roofs are covered with stone slates. It is of irregular plan but the main block is L-shaped with the wings extending towards the N.E. and S.E. The N.E. wing was built probably in the 15th century when the property belonged to the Hymerford family. It passed to the family of Moleyns late in the 16th century and, early in the 17th century, the S.E. wing with the staircase-wing was built and the Dining Room block added at the S.W. end of the N.E. wing. Some alterations were made by Thomas Chafe in 1671 and early in the 18th century the Drawing Room was added next to the staircase-wing. The house has been restored and there are extensive modern additions to the N.W. Apart from later additions the plan and development of the house is similar to that at Folke Manor House. The windows generally are of the 17th century and of one to four lights and mostly with labels. The two storeyed porch on the N.E. front has an outer entrance with moulded jambs and four-centred arch in a square head; the inner doorway has been largely restored. The 18th-century block, at the S. angle, has windows with plain architraves and key-blocks. The Dining Room block has 17th-century mullion and transom windows; the adjoining narrow wing has two two-light windows with rounded heads to the lights; the doorway in the main block has a four-centred head. Inside the building, the hall in the S.E. wing has a restored fireplace and the recess on one side of it has a ceiling painted as a sky with clouds etc., probably of the 17th century; in the windows are some roundels of 17th-century glass including a shield-of-arms of Wadham; in the S. angle of the room are two 17th-century stone archways with moulded jambs, round heads, imposts and key-stones; at the N.W. end of the room is a restored panelled partition of the same date and of five bays. In the vestibule at the back is an 18th-century staircase with a cut string and carved brackets; the walls have panelling of the same date; N.E. of the staircase is some earlier panelling of the muntin and plank type. The Ante-room, S.E. of the hall, has a restored fireplace and is lined with 17th-century panelling. The 18th-century Drawing Room is lined with bolection-moulded panelling with a cornice and dado-rail; the fireplace and doorways have bolection-moulded surrounds; the room behind the fireplace is lined with plainer panelling. The 17th-century staircase (Plate 119) has turned balusters, moulded rails and strings and square newels supporting posts to the flight above; the upper flights have balusters on both sides of the staircase; the walls of the two lower flights have plaster cornices and an arcaded frieze between them. The cellar, below this part of the house, has an 18th-century brick vault with a central pier and responds with moulded imposts. The rooms on the first floor, over the hall etc., have timber-framed partitions and have some 17th-century doors and panelling. The room over the Drawing Room has 18th-century panelling similar to that below. The Dining Room has a reset fireplace with a four-centred arch resting on moulded corbels; on the E. side is a moulded bracket. The N.E. wing has some reset panelling in the passage on the ground floor. On the first floor are remains of 17th-century partitions and one room has a bolection-moulded surround to the fireplace; above it is a plaster achievement-of-arms of Chafe quartering Moleyns with the date 1671 (Plate 56). The roof of this wing is of the 15th century and has curved and moulded braces under the collars and curved and foiled wind-braces to the purlins; two trusses have later king-posts.
The Gardens have brick walls erected in 1717, the date appearing in black headers. The Outbuilding, N. of the N.E. wing, is of the 17th century and has a doorway with a four-centred head and a three-light window. The modern Stables incorporate a 17th-century two-light window. The Cottage, N. of the stables was built probably early in the 18th century.’

<3> Phillips, A S, Various, Field Investigators Comments ASP, F1 ASP 17-NOV-77 (Unpublished document). SWX3817.

<4> Historic England, Historic England Archive, OS55/F167/5 (Index). SDO14738.

WEST HALL AT FOLKE. Photographer: UNKNOWN

<5> Historic England, Historic England Archive, OS55/F171/8 (Index). SDO14738.

WEST HALL AT FOLKE FROM THE EAST. Photographer: UNKNOWN

<6> National Record of the Historic Environment, 199524 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Jan 17 2022 4:35PM