Walgoch

Cadw's description

Location

Approximately 0.7km SW of Nannerch village on the S side of a minor road between Nannerch and Llandyrnog.

History

An early C17 house with symmetrical front, comprising a hall and unheated parlour. A rear wing was added soon after, with its own symmetrical front, probably indicating that it was originally a separate secondary dwelling of near equal status. Its upper storey was originally open to a 3-bay roof. Later in the C17 the 2 dwellings were probably combined as they have common access to the added stair in a gabled projection. The house was known in the C19 as Nannerch Hall. The porch was added by the third quarter of the C19 and is shown on the 1871 Ordnance Survey.

Exterior

A 2½-storey 2-window house of limestone rubble and slate roof, comprising a main range with added rear wing to the L and later added gabled stair projection behind to the R. The main range has a C19 brick stack to the L, square brick hall stack to the R replacing the original stack. The rear wing has a gable stack, the upper portion of which is rebuilt in brick. Windows have ovolo mullions and hood moulds, except in the gable end of the main range where they have plain chamfers and no hoods. The symmetrical E front has 3-light windows and a central added shallow porch constructed of re-used materials. It has a Tudor arch and heraldic shield below a shallow shaped gable with ball finials. The doorway has an elliptical arch with ovolo jambs and a boarded door with strap hinges. The L gable end has a 3-light parlour window with plain chamfered mullions and retaining original iron bars but now otherwise blocked. Set back further L is the 2-window S front of the rear wing, which has 3-light windows and a central replaced door beneath a wooden lintel. The gable end of the rear wing has single-light windows in dressed ovolo surrounds with drip stones to the R and L of the stack in the upper storey (blocked on the L side). On the R side of the stack is an inserted privy doorway under a brick segmental head. The N side wall has one 3-light window in each storey similar to the S side.

The stair projection has a N-facing gable. In its W side wall are 3-light windows to both storeys, while on the L side is an inserted door at landing level. The gable end has 3-light stair window and 2-light attic window. The N gable end of the main range has openings offset to the L side. These are 2-light in the lower storey, 3-light in the upper storey and a blocked narrow window in the attic.

Interior

The main entrance led originally into the hall on the R side (now partitioned to create a separate entrance hall). The doorways from the hall to the rear wing and parlour on the L have ornate relief moulding to the stop-chamfered door frames. Beams are mostly boxed in, but a single cross beam with stepped stop survives in the rear wing. The dog-leg stair is the principal internal feature. It has moulded square newels with fret-cut and pierced balusters, and guilloche-moulded tread ends. The stair projection retains original plaster work with simple marginal mouldings. In the upper storey is an ornate door frame similar to those in the lower storey.

Reason for designation

Listed grade II* as an especially well-preserved small Renaissance house retaining its overall form and notable external and internal detail.