Weald and Downland Open Air Museum
Encyclopedia
The Weald and Downland Open Air Museum is an open air museum
at in Singleton
, Sussex
, England
. The museum covers 50 acres (20.2 ha), with nearly 50 historic buildings dating from the thirteenth to nineteenth centuries, along with gardens, farm animals, walks and a lake.
The buildings at the museum were all threatened with destruction. They were carefully dismantled, conserved and rebuilt to their original form at the museum. These buildings help the museum bring to life the homes, farmsteads and rural industries of the last seven hundred years. Many buildings situated there are over four hundred years old, and still stand strong. Along with the buildings, there are "hands on" activities, like cooking
, and weaving
and a number of yearly activities, including glass painting, and bonfire nights.
The Museum is situated at Singleton
, 7 miles (11.3 km) north of Chichester
, on the A286, and is a registered charity
.
was originally built at Prior's Leaze Farm, Hambrook, Sussex in 1771. It has a timber frame of oak
and elm
clad with weatherboards and a roof thatched with reed
. The barn houses an exhibition showing traditional building materials and building methods, including displays on bricklaying, glass
work, lead
work, iron
work, tiling
and thatching.
, Sussex. It forms a farmstead with Bayleaf farmhouse.
with a peg tile roof, dating from the early fifteenth century. The building has four rooms on the ground floor and two on the first floor. The house has vertical shutters to some of the windows, and a garderobe
on the first floor. It was originally built at Ide Hill
, Kent
and was donated to the Museum in 1968 by the East Surrey Water Company as it was threatened with destruction by the creation of Bough Beech Reservoir. The building was dismantled in the winter of 1968-69.
, Hampshire
. it dates from the 18th century and houses an exhibition of traditional brickmaking.
shop was originally built at Windlesham
, Surrey and dates from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century.
sheds at the museum. They originally stood at Goodwood, Kirdford
and Lurgashall
in Sussex and date from the eighteenth century.
Burner's camp shows the process of making charcoal. The kiln had to be watched whilst the charcoal was being produced, so the burner lived on-site in a hut.
in buildings and plumbing
, stonemasonry and stained glass
work. The barn was dismantled in 1976 and re-erected at the museum in 1980. The work was funded by the Worshipful Company of Plumbers
.
was made by John Smith Ltd of Keighley
, Yorkshire
in 1900 and originally installed at a farm in Alton
, Hampshire. It is rated at 5 tons capacity and is worked by hand. It forms part of a reconstructed timber yard.
, Kent and was threatened by the construction of the Channel Tunnel
. It was dismantled in 1992 and currently serves as the museum's shop and offices.
was built in 1731 at West Ashling, Sussex. It has a timber frame filled with bricks and a thatched roof. The building measures 20 feet (6.1 m) square, which makes it one of the larger granaries. It is built on sixteen staddle stones
as an anti-vermin
measure.
The Weald and Downland Gridshell
was constructed 2000-2002. An innovative design built primarily to create an accessible store for the Museums' rural life collection, it also houses the Museums' conservation workshops and an exhibition area is in the foyer. The building won eight awards, and was runner-up for the RIBA
2003 Stirling Prize
, Hampshire in the fifteenth century. It is of cruck frame construction, with brick walls and a thatched roof. The building was rescued in 1971. Photographs show that the house was extended to about double its original size but only the medieval section of the house was dismantled and re-erected at the museum. The hall is about 17 feet (5.18 m) square in plan, with a service room on one end. The other end of the original building was lost due to various extensions and alterations over the centuries. The reconstructed building contains about 30% of the original timbers, which would normally prevent its reconstruction. An exception has been made in this case as the surviving original timbers are well distributed, and its unique cruck frame construction.
is housed in an open fronted thatched shed that was originally at Charlwood
, Surrey. It was used to raise water from a well. The horse whim was originally built at West Kingsdown
, Kent. It was rescued by the museum in 1980 and re-erected at the museum in 2000.
, West Sussex. Externally it has been restored to its seventeenth century appearance, but it has a modern interior. The building is used as an education room for school and youth visits to the museum.
, Sussex. It has a timber frame dating from the fifteenth century, with flint
external walls added in the seventeenth century. It has a thatched roof.
, Surrey, added in the seventeenth century. It has two carved fireplaces and there are the remains of wall paintings. This building is not currently open to the public.
y shop was originally built at Witley
, Surrey and dates from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. It houses an exhibition on building construction.
, Hampshire. It has a lock-up on the ground floor and the first floor room served as the town council chamber. When the Market Hall was dismantled and re-erected at the museum, it was the second time that had happened. The building had been moved from its original location in the centre of Titchfield to another site in the mid nineteenth century.
, Kent. It is timber framed with a peg tile roof. The external tinbers are painted red.
, Sussex. The three storey building has jettied upper floors. It is timber framed with a peg tile roof and peg tiles to the upper floors on at least one side. The upper floors serve as the museum's library and are not normally open to the public.
, Sussex in 1609. Instead of an open hall there is a central chimney with fireplaces on both ground and first floors. It retains some features from sixteenth century practice, such as unglazed windows. The building has a timber frame, with brick infill to the ground floor and wattle and daub
infill to the first floor. It was re-erected at the museum in 1975 but the discovery of a postcard
showing the building at its original site showed that the chimney had not been reconstructed correctly. The chimney was rebuilt in January 2001 to a more accurate profile. The house is furnished as though it was still 1609.
, Sussex. The building dates to between 1550 and 1630. It was donated to the museum in 1982 and carefully dismantled in that year. It was re-erected at the museum in 1999, the work being funded by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund
.
Rebuilding
Work on rebuilding the building began on 10 April 1999, the timbers having been prepared over the previous winter. The outside wall of the smoke bay was infilled with sandstone
, whilst the rest of the building was infilled with wattle and daub. The roof was thatched.
, Sussex. The upper floor served as a glazier's
workshop.
for brickmaking.
and is of brick and flint construction with a tiled roof.
dates from the mid eighteenth century and was originally built at Watersfield
, Sussex. It is timber framed, clad in weatherboarding and has a peg tile roof. The building can house up to five horses or oxen.
, Hampshire.
was built in the mid nineteenth century. It was originally at Southwater
, Sussex.
dates from the early seventeenth century. It was probably not worked by a horse due to its size. The treadwheel is housed in a small timber framed building with a thatched roof and was originally built at Catherington
, Hampshire.
cottage is typical of those of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Originally built at Beeding, Sussex, on a road built in 1807. It has been set up with a recreated tollgate and milestone
.
, Sussex, behind Tree House
—the old manor house
of Crawley. The building was threatened with demolition due to an extension to an office building. Of the original four bays, two complete bays remained, plus a third of another. Tho original building would have been some 36 feet (10.97 m) long. The original roof covering would have been Horsham Slab, which was replaced when the building was re-erected at the museum. Only the centre part of the present building is the original. The ends are modern reconstructions replicating contemporary practice. The building is used as a museum library and meeting place and is not normally open to the public. The Worshipful Company of Drapers
donated £5,000 which was used to part-fund the dismantling and re-erection of the building at the museum.
, Sussex.
dates from the early seventeenth century, and was working until 1935. It is in working order and flour from the mill is sold in the museum shop. The mill was originally built at Lurgashall, Sussex. The mill was originally built to serve Petworth House
and Park. At one time it may have been used in the grinding of bark for use in the tanning
process. In 1968, the derelict mill was damaged by floods, causing the millstones to fall through the rotting floors.
The mill was originally powered by a tributary of the River Rother
At one time the mill had two waterwheels, each working two pairs of millstone
s. A 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter overshot waterwheel from Colster's Mill, West Lavington
, drives the two pairs of millstone, a sack hoist and flour dresser. The machinery in the mill was installed in 1911. The mill was donated to the museum in 1973 and carefully dismantled. When the mill was dismantled, evidence was found of a previous use of the site as a Hammer mill
. Re-erection and restoration of the machinery took seven years.
roof. They were originally built at Ashtead
, Surrey. One cottage is furnished in nineteenth century style and the other is unfurnished to better show its construction.
is a hollow post mill that was built in the mid nineteenth century. It was originally at Westham
, Sussex and was marked on an 1860 map. The windpump was re-erected at the museum in 1975.
, Kent. It is timber framed with a crown post roof. The building dates from between 1492 and 1537. It was the first building acquired by the museum. Dismantled in 1968, it was re-erected at the museum at a site which later proved not to be suitable. It was decided that the building should again be dismantled and re-erected at another site within the museum, with modern extensions designed to allow the building to be better interpreted by visitors. The building was dismantled in December 2001, and reconstructed for the second time between February and May 2002. The interior of the building has been re-created as a working Tudor kitchen.
Museum of the Year Award in 1975.
Open air museum
An open-air museum is a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of-doors. The first open-air museums were established in Scandinavia towards the end of the nineteenth century, and the concept soon spread throughout Europe and North America. Open-air museums are variously known as...
at in Singleton
Singleton, West Sussex
Singleton is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies in the Lavant valley, north of Chichester on the A286 road to Midhurst.The village name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon 'sengel', which means "burnt clearing"....
, Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The museum covers 50 acres (20.2 ha), with nearly 50 historic buildings dating from the thirteenth to nineteenth centuries, along with gardens, farm animals, walks and a lake.
The buildings at the museum were all threatened with destruction. They were carefully dismantled, conserved and rebuilt to their original form at the museum. These buildings help the museum bring to life the homes, farmsteads and rural industries of the last seven hundred years. Many buildings situated there are over four hundred years old, and still stand strong. Along with the buildings, there are "hands on" activities, like cooking
Cooking
Cooking is the process of preparing food by use of heat. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely across the world, reflecting unique environmental, economic, and cultural traditions. Cooks themselves also vary widely in skill and training...
, and weaving
Weaving
Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. The other methods are knitting, lace making and felting. The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft or filling...
and a number of yearly activities, including glass painting, and bonfire nights.
The Museum is situated at Singleton
Singleton, West Sussex
Singleton is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies in the Lavant valley, north of Chichester on the A286 road to Midhurst.The village name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon 'sengel', which means "burnt clearing"....
, 7 miles (11.3 km) north of Chichester
Chichester
Chichester is a cathedral city in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, South-East England. It has a long history as a settlement; its Roman past and its subsequent importance in Anglo-Saxon times are only its beginnings...
, on the A286, and is a registered charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
.
Barn
The barnBarn
A barn is an agricultural building used for storage and as a covered workplace. It may sometimes be used to house livestock or to store farming vehicles and equipment...
was originally built at Prior's Leaze Farm, Hambrook, Sussex in 1771. It has a timber frame of oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and elm
Elm
Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the genus Ulmus in the plant family Ulmaceae. The dozens of species are found in temperate and tropical-montane regions of North America and Eurasia, ranging southward into Indonesia. Elms are components of many kinds of natural forests...
clad with weatherboards and a roof thatched with reed
Reed (plant)
Reed is a generic polyphyletic botanical term used to describe numerous tall, grass-like plants of wet places, which are the namesake vegetation of reed beds...
. The barn houses an exhibition showing traditional building materials and building methods, including displays on bricklaying, glass
Glass
Glass is an amorphous solid material. Glasses are typically brittle and optically transparent.The most familiar type of glass, used for centuries in windows and drinking vessels, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75% silica plus Na2O, CaO, and several minor additives...
work, lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
work, iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
work, tiling
Tile
A tile is a manufactured piece of hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, or even glass. Tiles are generally used for covering roofs, floors, walls, showers, or other objects such as tabletops...
and thatching.
Bayleaf barn
This timber framed barn dates from 1536 and originally stood at CowfoldCowfold
Cowfold is a village and civil parish between Billingshurst and Haywards Heath in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England, located at the intersection of the A272 and A281 roads. The parish has a land area of 1926 hectares . In the 2001 census 1,864 people lived in 729 households, of...
, Sussex. It forms a farmstead with Bayleaf farmhouse.
Bayleaf farmhouse
Bayleaf farmhouse is a timber framed Wealden hall houseWealden hall house
The Wealden hall house is a type of vernacular medieval timber-framed yeoman's house traditional in the south east of England. It is most common in Kent and the east of Sussex but has also been built elsewhere...
with a peg tile roof, dating from the early fifteenth century. The building has four rooms on the ground floor and two on the first floor. The house has vertical shutters to some of the windows, and a garderobe
Garderobe
The term garderobe describes a place where clothes and other items are stored, and also a medieval toilet. In European public places, a garderobe denotes the cloakroom, wardrobe, alcove or an armoire. In Danish, Dutch, German and Spanish garderobe can mean a cloakroom. In Latvian it means checkroom...
on the first floor. It was originally built at Ide Hill
Ide Hill
Ide Hill is a village within the civil parish of Sundridge with Ide Hill, in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It stands on one of the highest points of the sandstone ridge about five miles south-west of Sevenoaks. Its name first appears on record in 1250 as Edythehelle. It is an eponymic...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
and was donated to the Museum in 1968 by the East Surrey Water Company as it was threatened with destruction by the creation of Bough Beech Reservoir. The building was dismantled in the winter of 1968-69.
Brick drying shed
The brick drying shed was originally at PetersfieldPetersfield, Hampshire
Petersfield is a market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is north of Portsmouth, on the A3 road. The town has its own railway station on the Portsmouth Direct Line, the mainline rail link connecting Portsmouth and London. The town is situated on the...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
. it dates from the 18th century and houses an exhibition of traditional brickmaking.
Carpenter's shop
The carpenter'sCarpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
shop was originally built at Windlesham
Windlesham
Windlesham is a village in the Surrey Heath district of Surrey in South East England. It is also the name of the parish that covers Bagshot and Lightwater, in addition to Windlesham...
, Surrey and dates from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century.
Cattle sheds
There are three open fronted cattleCattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
sheds at the museum. They originally stood at Goodwood, Kirdford
Kirdford
Kirdford is a village and civil parish in the District of Chichester in West Sussex, England located north east of Petworth. The parish has a land area of . In the 2001 census 912 people lived in 373 households, of whom 448 were economically active....
and Lurgashall
Lurgashall
Lurgashall is a village and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It is 6.5 km north west of Petworth and just inside the new South Downs National Park. The church of St Laurence, The Noah's Ark pub, the old school and several old houses are built around a picturesque...
in Sussex and date from the eighteenth century.
Charcoal Burner's camp
The CharcoalCharcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
Burner's camp shows the process of making charcoal. The kiln had to be watched whilst the charcoal was being produced, so the burner lived on-site in a hut.
Court barn
Court barn dates from the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century. It was originally built at Lee-on-Solent, Hampshire. The building houses an exhibition on the use of leadLead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
in buildings and plumbing
Plumbing
Plumbing is the system of pipes and drains installed in a building for the distribution of potable drinking water and the removal of waterborne wastes, and the skilled trade of working with pipes, tubing and plumbing fixtures in such systems. A plumber is someone who installs or repairs piping...
, stonemasonry and stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
work. The barn was dismantled in 1976 and re-erected at the museum in 1980. The work was funded by the Worshipful Company of Plumbers
Worshipful Company of Plumbers
The Worshipful Company of Plumbers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation received the right to regulate mediæval plumbers, who were, among other things, responsible for fashioning cisterns, in 1365. It was incorporated under a Royal Charter in 1611. Today, the...
.
Crane
The craneCrane (machine)
A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It uses one or more simple machines to create mechanical advantage and thus move loads beyond the normal capability of...
was made by John Smith Ltd of Keighley
Keighley
Keighley is a town and civil parish within the metropolitan borough of the City of Bradford in West Yorkshire, England. It is situated northwest of Bradford and is at the confluence of the River Aire and the River Worth...
, Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
in 1900 and originally installed at a farm in Alton
Alton, Hampshire
Alton is a historic market town and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of the English county of Hampshire. It had a population of 16,584 at the 1991 census and is administered by East Hampshire district council. It is located on the source of the River Wey and is the highest town in...
, Hampshire. It is rated at 5 tons capacity and is worked by hand. It forms part of a reconstructed timber yard.
Farmhouse
The farmhouse dates from the sixteenth century with extensions and alterations through to the twentieth century. It was originally built at FolkestoneFolkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
, Kent and was threatened by the construction of the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
. It was dismantled in 1992 and currently serves as the museum's shop and offices.
Granary
The granaryGranary
A granary is a storehouse for threshed grain or animal feed. In ancient or primitive granaries, pottery is the most common use of storage in these buildings. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals.-Early origins:From ancient times grain...
was built in 1731 at West Ashling, Sussex. It has a timber frame filled with bricks and a thatched roof. The building measures 20 feet (6.1 m) square, which makes it one of the larger granaries. It is built on sixteen staddle stones
Staddle stones
Staddle stones were originally used as supporting bases for granaries, hayricks, game larders, etc. The staddle stones lifted the granaries above the ground thereby protecting the stored grain from vermin and water seepage...
as an anti-vermin
Vermin
Vermin is a term applied to various animal species regarded by some as pests or nuisances and especially to those associated with the carrying of disease. Since the term is defined in relation to human activities, which species are included will vary from area to area and even person to person...
measure.
Gridshell
Weald and Downland Gridshell
The Weald and Downland Gridshell is a building designed by Buro Happold and Edward Cullinan Architects for the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum: it was a runner-up for the Stirling Prize in 2002. The building is a structural wooden gridshell, constructed of oak sourced from Normandy...
was constructed 2000-2002. An innovative design built primarily to create an accessible store for the Museums' rural life collection, it also houses the Museums' conservation workshops and an exhibition area is in the foyer. The building won eight awards, and was runner-up for the RIBA
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally.-History:...
2003 Stirling Prize
Stirling Prize
The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects...
Hall
This medieval hall house was originally built at BoarhuntBoarhunt
Boarhunt is a village and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England, about two miles north-east of Fareham....
, Hampshire in the fifteenth century. It is of cruck frame construction, with brick walls and a thatched roof. The building was rescued in 1971. Photographs show that the house was extended to about double its original size but only the medieval section of the house was dismantled and re-erected at the museum. The hall is about 17 feet (5.18 m) square in plan, with a service room on one end. The other end of the original building was lost due to various extensions and alterations over the centuries. The reconstructed building contains about 30% of the original timbers, which would normally prevent its reconstruction. An exception has been made in this case as the surviving original timbers are well distributed, and its unique cruck frame construction.
Horse Whim
The horse whimHorse mill
A horse mill is a mill that uses a horse as the power source. Any milling process can be powered in this way, but the most frequent use of animal power in horse mills was for grinding grain and pumping water. Other animals used for powering mills include dogs, donkeys and oxen. Engines powered by...
is housed in an open fronted thatched shed that was originally at Charlwood
Charlwood
Charlwood is a village and civil parish in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England. It is immediately northwest of London Gatwick Airport in West Sussex, close west of Horley and north of Crawley. The historic county boundary between Surrey and Sussex ran to the south of Gatwick Airport...
, Surrey. It was used to raise water from a well. The horse whim was originally built at West Kingsdown
West Kingsdown
West Kingsdown is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the North Downs, north of Sevenoaks town, within the London Commuter Belt...
, Kent. It was rescued by the museum in 1980 and re-erected at the museum in 2000.
House, Lavant
This house dates from the seventeenth century. It originally stood at LavantLavant
Lavant was a prince-bishopric, suffragan of the Prince-archbishop of Salzburg, then in the southern part of imperial Austria's Styria. Later the area was re-assigned to presentday Slovenia. It became the Slovenian bishopric of Maribor, a suffragan of the Archbishop of Ljubljana, on 5 March 1962...
, West Sussex. Externally it has been restored to its seventeenth century appearance, but it has a modern interior. The building is used as an education room for school and youth visits to the museum.
House, Walderton
The house was originally built at WaldertonWalderton
Walderton is a hamlet in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies on the B2146 road 4 miles northeast of Emsworth....
, Sussex. It has a timber frame dating from the fifteenth century, with flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
external walls added in the seventeenth century. It has a thatched roof.
House extension
This building was the rear extension of a house in ReigateReigate
Reigate is a historic market town in Surrey, England, at the foot of the North Downs, and in the London commuter belt. It is one of the main constituents of the Borough of Reigate and Banstead...
, Surrey, added in the seventeenth century. It has two carved fireplaces and there are the remains of wall paintings. This building is not currently open to the public.
Joinery shop
The joinerJoiner
A joiner differs from a carpenter in that joiners cut and fit joints in wood that do not use nails. Joiners usually work in a workshop since the formation of various joints generally requires non-portable machinery. A carpenter normally works on site...
y shop was originally built at Witley
Witley
Witley, in Surrey, England is a village south west of Godalming. The village lies just east of the A3 that runs from Guildford to Petersfield. Witley together with the neighbouring area of Hambledon have a population of about 4,000. Neighbouring villages include Milford, Chiddingfold and...
, Surrey and dates from the late nineteenth or early twentieth century. It houses an exhibition on building construction.
Market Hall
The Market Hall dates from the seventeenth century and was originally built at TitchfieldTitchfield
Titchfield is a village in southern Hampshire, by the River Meon. The village has a history stretching back to the 6th century. During the medieval period, the village operated a small port and market...
, Hampshire. It has a lock-up on the ground floor and the first floor room served as the town council chamber. When the Market Hall was dismantled and re-erected at the museum, it was the second time that had happened. The building had been moved from its original location in the centre of Titchfield to another site in the mid nineteenth century.
Medieval house, North Cray
This medieval hall house was originally built at North CrayNorth Cray
North Cray is a place in the London Borough of Bexley, southeast London, England, east southeast of Charing Cross. It lies on the River Cray and is in the Cray Meadows electoral ward which also includes Foots Cray...
, Kent. It is timber framed with a peg tile roof. The external tinbers are painted red.
Medieval house, Sole Street
This medieval hall house was originally built at Sole Street, Kent. It has a timber frame and peg tile roof. The building is used as a restaurant and tea room.Medieval shops
This building dates from the fifteenth century and houses a pair of shops. It was originally built at HorshamHorsham
Horsham is a market town with a population of 55,657 on the upper reaches of the River Arun in the centre of the Weald, West Sussex, in the historic County of Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester...
, Sussex. The three storey building has jettied upper floors. It is timber framed with a peg tile roof and peg tiles to the upper floors on at least one side. The upper floors serve as the museum's library and are not normally open to the public.
Open shed
The open shed dates from the eighteenth century. It was originally built at Charlwood, Surrey. It served as a cart shed and also a saw shed. The shed was dismantled in 1999, the work being partly funded by the British Airports Authority. When it was reconstructed at the museum in 2000 the horse whim from West Kingsdown, Kent, was installed.Pendean farmhouse
This hall house was originally built at MidhurstMidhurst
Midhurst is a market town and civil parish in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England, with a population of 4,889 in 2001. The town is situated on the River Rother and is home to the ruin of the Tudor Cowdray House and the stately Victorian Cowdray Park...
, Sussex in 1609. Instead of an open hall there is a central chimney with fireplaces on both ground and first floors. It retains some features from sixteenth century practice, such as unglazed windows. The building has a timber frame, with brick infill to the ground floor and wattle and daub
Wattle and daub
Wattle and daub is a composite building material used for making walls, in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called wattle is daubed with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung and straw...
infill to the first floor. It was re-erected at the museum in 1975 but the discovery of a postcard
Postcard
A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope....
showing the building at its original site showed that the chimney had not been reconstructed correctly. The chimney was rebuilt in January 2001 to a more accurate profile. The house is furnished as though it was still 1609.
Poplar cottage
Poplar cottage is a small building timber framed, thatched building dating from the seventeenth century. It was originally built at WashingtonWashington, West Sussex
Washington is a village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It is located five miles west of Steyning and three miles east of Storrington on the A24 between Horsham and Worthing. The parish covers an area of 1,276 hectares...
, Sussex. The building dates to between 1550 and 1630. It was donated to the museum in 1982 and carefully dismantled in that year. It was re-erected at the museum in 1999, the work being funded by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
.
Rebuilding
Work on rebuilding the building began on 10 April 1999, the timbers having been prepared over the previous winter. The outside wall of the smoke bay was infilled with sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
, whilst the rest of the building was infilled with wattle and daub. The roof was thatched.
Plumber's workshop
The plumber's workshop dates from the late nineteenth century and was originally built at NewickNewick
Newick is a village and civil parish in the Lewes District of East Sussex, England. It is located on the A272 road six miles east of Haywards Heath....
, Sussex. The upper floor served as a glazier's
Glazier
A Glazier is a construction professional who selects, cuts, installs, replaces, and removes residential, commercial, and artistic glass. Glaziers also install aluminum storefront frames and entrances, glass handrails and balustrades, shower enclosures, curtain wall framing and glass and mirror...
workshop.
Pugmill house
This brick and stone built building was originally built at Redford, Sussex. It housed a horse powered pug mill which was used to prepare clayClay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
for brickmaking.
Saw-pit shed
This nineteenth century shed was originally built at Sheffield Park, Sussex. It houses a range of tools used in the conversion of trees to finished timber.School
This building dates from the nineteenth century, and was used as a school for educating poor children in the early part of that century. It was originally built at West WitteringWest Wittering
West Wittering is a small village and civil parish, on the Manhood Peninsula, in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It lies near the mouth of Chichester Harbour on the B2179 road 6.5 miles southwest of Chichester and has a sandy beach with what has been described as excellent...
and is of brick and flint construction with a tiled roof.
Stable
The stableStable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
dates from the mid eighteenth century and was originally built at Watersfield
Watersfield
Watersfield is a hamlet in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the A29 road 3.1 miles southwest of Pulborough....
, Sussex. It is timber framed, clad in weatherboarding and has a peg tile roof. The building can house up to five horses or oxen.
Shelter shed
The open fronted shelter shed was originally built at ColdwalthamColdwaltham
Coldwaltham is a village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It is divided in two by the A29 road and lies 2.4 miles southwest of Pulborough which has both a railway station on the Arun Valley Line and a bus connection to Worthing...
, Hampshire.
Smithy
The smithyForge
A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
was built in the mid nineteenth century. It was originally at Southwater
Southwater
Southwater is a large village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England with a population of roughly 10,000. The village is administered from the Horsham District Council Offices. Much of the population of Southwater originated from the brick industry which thrived in the...
, Sussex.
Treadwheel
The treadwheelTreadwheel
A treadwheel is a form of animal engine typically powered by humans. It may resemble a water wheel in appearance, and can be worked either by a human treading paddles set into its circumference , or by a human or animal standing inside it .Uses of treadwheels included raising water, to power...
dates from the early seventeenth century. It was probably not worked by a horse due to its size. The treadwheel is housed in a small timber framed building with a thatched roof and was originally built at Catherington
Catherington
Catherington is a village in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. It is 1 mile northwest of Horndean, just west of the A3 road.The nearest railway station in 3.3 miles southeast of the village, at Rowlands Castle....
, Hampshire.
Toll cottage
The tollToll house
A tollhouse or toll house is a building with accommodation for a toll collector, beside a tollgate on a toll road or canal. Many tollhouses were built by turnpike trusts in England, Wales and Scotland during the 18th and early 19th centuries...
cottage is typical of those of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Originally built at Beeding, Sussex, on a road built in 1807. It has been set up with a recreated tollgate and milestone
Milestone
A milestone is one of a series of numbered markers placed along a road or boundary at intervals of one mile or occasionally, parts of a mile. They are typically located at the side of the road or in a median. They are alternatively known as mile markers, mileposts or mile posts...
.
Upper Hall
This building dates from the fifteenth century, with a long open room on the first floor which probably served as a communal meeting place. It was originally built at CrawleyCrawley
Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...
, Sussex, behind Tree House
Tree House, Crawley
Tree House, also known as The Tree, is a mediaeval timber-framed house on the High Street in Crawley, a town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is the original manor house of Crawley, and was built in the early 15th century and rebuilt in the mid-16th century. It now has a modern exterior...
—the old manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
of Crawley. The building was threatened with demolition due to an extension to an office building. Of the original four bays, two complete bays remained, plus a third of another. Tho original building would have been some 36 feet (10.97 m) long. The original roof covering would have been Horsham Slab, which was replaced when the building was re-erected at the museum. Only the centre part of the present building is the original. The ends are modern reconstructions replicating contemporary practice. The building is used as a museum library and meeting place and is not normally open to the public. The Worshipful Company of Drapers
Worshipful Company of Drapers
The Worshipful Company of Drapers is one of the 108 Livery Companies of the City of London; it has the formal name of The Master and Wardens and Brethren and Sisters of the Guild or Fraternity of the Blessed Mary the Virgin of the Mystery of Drapers of the City of London but is more usually known...
donated £5,000 which was used to part-fund the dismantling and re-erection of the building at the museum.
Wagon shed
The wagon shed dates from the eighteenth century. It was originally built at WistonWiston, West Sussex
Wiston is a scattered village and civil parish in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the A283 road northwest of Steyning.The parish covers an area of...
, Sussex.
Watermill
The watermillWatermill
A watermill is a structure that uses a water wheel or turbine to drive a mechanical process such as flour, lumber or textile production, or metal shaping .- History :...
dates from the early seventeenth century, and was working until 1935. It is in working order and flour from the mill is sold in the museum shop. The mill was originally built at Lurgashall, Sussex. The mill was originally built to serve Petworth House
Petworth House
Petworth House in Petworth, West Sussex, England, is a late 17th-century mansion, rebuilt in 1688 by Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset, and altered in the 1870s by Anthony Salvin...
and Park. At one time it may have been used in the grinding of bark for use in the tanning
Tanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
process. In 1968, the derelict mill was damaged by floods, causing the millstones to fall through the rotting floors.
The mill was originally powered by a tributary of the River Rother
River Rother (Western)
The River Rother is a river which flows for thirty miles from Empshott in Hampshire to Stopham in West Sussex, where it joins the River Arun. It should not be confused with the River Rother, in East Sussex....
At one time the mill had two waterwheels, each working two pairs of millstone
Millstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
s. A 12 feet (3.66 m) diameter overshot waterwheel from Colster's Mill, West Lavington
West Lavington, West Sussex
West Lavington is a village and civil parish on the edge of Midhurst in the Chichester district of West Sussex, England. It contains a small private nursery school and the church of St Mary Magdalene...
, drives the two pairs of millstone, a sack hoist and flour dresser. The machinery in the mill was installed in 1911. The mill was donated to the museum in 1973 and carefully dismantled. When the mill was dismantled, evidence was found of a previous use of the site as a Hammer mill
Wealden iron industry
The Wealden iron industry was located in the Weald of south-eastern England. It was formerly an important industry, producing a large proportion of the bar iron made in England in the 16th century and most British cannon until about 1770. Ironmaking in the Weald used ironstone from various clay...
. Re-erection and restoration of the machinery took seven years.
Whittaker's cottages
Whittaker's cottages are a pair of timber built cottages under a slateSlate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
roof. They were originally built at Ashtead
Ashtead
Ashtead is a village situated within the Metropolitan Green Belt of Surrey, England, and is just outside of the suburbia of London. It is separated from Leatherhead by the M25, and from Epsom by Ashtead Common.- History :...
, Surrey. One cottage is furnished in nineteenth century style and the other is unfurnished to better show its construction.
Windpump
The windpumpWindmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
is a hollow post mill that was built in the mid nineteenth century. It was originally at Westham
Westham
Westham is a large village civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England. The village is adjacent to Pevensey five miles north-east of Eastbourne. The parish consists of three settlements: Westham; Stone Cross; and Hankham...
, Sussex and was marked on an 1860 map. The windpump was re-erected at the museum in 1975.
Winkhurst kitchen
This sixteenth century building was originally part of a larger building at SundridgeSundridge, Kent
Sundridge is a village within the civil parish of Sundridge with Ide Hill, in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. The village is located on the A25 road to the east of WesterhamIts church is dedicated to St Mary....
, Kent. It is timber framed with a crown post roof. The building dates from between 1492 and 1537. It was the first building acquired by the museum. Dismantled in 1968, it was re-erected at the museum at a site which later proved not to be suitable. It was decided that the building should again be dismantled and re-erected at another site within the museum, with modern extensions designed to allow the building to be better interpreted by visitors. The building was dismantled in December 2001, and reconstructed for the second time between February and May 2002. The interior of the building has been re-created as a working Tudor kitchen.
Awards
The museum won the National Heritage and Illustrated London NewsIllustrated London News
The Illustrated London News was the world's first illustrated weekly newspaper; the first issue appeared on Saturday 14 May 1842. It was published weekly until 1971 and then increasingly less frequently until publication ceased in 2003.-History:...
Museum of the Year Award in 1975.
External links
- The Weald and Downland Open Air Museum Official Website
- Windmill World page on Westham windpump