The Hall Farm

Cadw's description

Location

The former farmhouse lies in the midst of suburban development at the end of a driveway opening between No's 33 and 35 Hall Drive.

History

In the early C16 the property belonged to John Turbervill of Tythegston, and was later inherited by the Herberts of Swansea. The house is built on a platform site and incorporates part of a medieval tower-house at the E end, which was extended to the W and NW in the late C16 - early C17 when the storeyed porch was added, together with a new S front. Rear wing is an addition of the C18, containing kitchen and services. The house was partly remodelled and reglazed in the mid C19.

Exterior

Built of local rubble stonework, rendered and colourwashed to the front and ends, but removed from the front of the gabled porch. Slate roof. Two storey 3-bay main block aligned E-W, with a rear wing on the W and lean-to additions on the rear and in the re-entrant angle. Two and 3-light paned timber windows with pointed heads, but one C16-C17 2-light window to the upper part of the stair at the E end, with hollow chamfered Elizabethan arched heads, triangular spandrels and hood with square label stops. Similar single-light window head in the E face of the upper floor of the storeyed porch. Entrance by a part-glazed door set under a lean-to pent roof to the W of the porch. Various windows at the rear and to the rear wing. Three tall stone stacks. The substantial tower-house lay at the E end, set back from the main front, but has been largely demolished. Below is a stone-vaulted chamber, perhaps a wine cellar of the C17 or C18, and believed to have a tunnel to Margam Abbey.

Interior

The original 'tower' has thick battered walls with blocked openings, and probably includes the mural stair on the E gable end of the house. The front entrance leads to the stair hall, which has a moulded cornice, and architraved doorcases, and a fine dog-leg stair with shaped bracketed treads and wreathed handrail. Stone pointed arch at the rear. Passage at the rear side of the axial stack, outside the original structure, leads to the dining room in the central bay, with reeded moulded architraves and fielded panelling to the end wall, extending around the deep alcove in the former porch. The living room in the E bay, has a Sutton stone splayed 2-centred chamfered arch opening to a straight flight stone stair at side of stack. This may originally have served the tower-house. Kitchen in the rear wing.

Reason for designation

Included at Grade II* as a building with substantial amount of C16 and C17 fabric, and incorporating walls from a medieval tower-house, a remarkable survival of a rare building type in Wales.