TQ 53 37 SPELDHURST THE WALKS, OLD GROOMBRIDGE 16/598 Nos 3, 4, 5 and 6 (formerly listed 20.10.54 as 5, 5A, 6, 7 and 8) GV II* 4 cottages. Late C17 with late C18 or C19 laterations, little C20 modernisation. Timber-framed on coursed sandstone footings. Ground floor front is weatherboarded and upper frame is hung with peg-tile. Rear is variously weatherboarded and tile hung. Brick stacks and chimneyshafts. Peg- tile roof. Plan: Row of 4 cottages, once including some shops. The building faces south and the cottages number 3-6 from left (west) to right. Cottages have irregular plans. No 3 has the left 2-room section of the main block and the one-room plan projecting to rear. No 4 has the adjoining one-room section of the main block. An axial stack between Nos 3 and 4 serves back-to-back fireplaces. No 5 has the next 2-room section of the main block. Its larger right room has a rear lateral stack. No 6 has the right end one-room section of the main block which has a gable-end stack and also the one-room plan rear block. The cottages have most irregular layouts involving flying freeholds, most notably between No 5 and 6 where No 5 has the whole of thefirst floor to the right end whilst No 6 has the ground floor and attics. This suggests that the present cottages have been made by subdividing a larger house. However later works have combined to obscure the layout of any earlier house. Thus it is not clear whether there was one, 2 or 3 houses here. Nevertheless, it is clear that the whole building, including the rear blocks was built in one phase. Cottages are 2 storeys with attics in the roofspace. Secondary lean-to outshots to rear. Exterior: Attractive and consistent overall 6-window front. All the first floor windows and the dormers have C19 casements containing diamond panes of leaded glass (some of the frames may be earlier). At ground floor level there is, right of centre (No 5), a pair of canted bay windows, former shop windows containing C20 glazing bars. Other windows are also C20 casements with glazing bars and there is a shop window on the left end corner (No 3). Other ground floor windows are C19 casements containing rectangular panes of leaded glass. The doorway to No 5 is between the 2 canted bay windows and their monopitch roof is carried across between the two as a hood. It contains a 4- panel door, the panelling applied over a probably C18 2-flap plank door. All the other front doorways contain 4-panel flush-faced doors, all with shallow hoods on shaped timber brackets. No 3 has a pair of doors, one to the house and another alongside to left into the former shop. Main roof is gable-ended to right and half-hipped to left. The rear of the building is equally attractive if less regular. Roof is carried down continuously over the rear outshots containing a couple of hip- roofed dormers. Again most of the windows are C19 or earlier casements containing diamond or rectangular panes of lead glass. The outshots are mostly built of coursed sandstone; so too are the ground floor sections of the rear blocks although the eastern one (No 6) also includes Flemish bond red bricks. Framing above is tile hung on the west one, weatherboarded on the east one. Both are the same size with half-hipped roofs. Interiors: Appear to be well-preserved although much of the carpentry is hidden by later plaster. The carpentry which is exposed is plain but of relatively large scantling. Beams and fireplace lintels are plain-chamfered for the most part although the crossbeam in No 4 has scroll stops. Roof of tie-beam trusses with staggered butt purlins. There is, throughout all 4 cottages, a great deal of old joinery detail, mostly plain but good nonetheless. None of the staircases appear to be early. This row of 4 cottages would benefit from a more detailed survey than was available at the time of this survey in order to establish their development in detail. Nevertheless it is clear that there is here a well-preserved late C17/early C18 building. It is also the dominant building. on The Walks and plays a very important visual role in the superlative group of buildings associated with Groombridge Place (q.v.) which make up Old Groombridge, probably the most unspoilt village group in Kent. Listing NGR: TQ5300337721