West End Farm, West Street (RCHM 34, SMR 16379)

Discussion
Unusually we've managed to date both the hall and cross-wing here. The dated cruck blade is the second earliest timber identified as part of this project. It was felled between 6 months and 6 weeks later than the blade from Fig Tree/Grosmont Houses felled in the winter of AD1424/5. The identification of the two earliest timbers felled so close together in date and used at opposite ends of the village certainly prevents any discussion of the direction of development of the village! Duncan James suggests on the basis of the similarity between the cusped design above the collar of the principal crucks and that used in Fig Tree/Grosmont Houses that it may well be that these structures are by the same team of craftsmen. Further supporting evidence for this hypothesis is that both the halls appear to make no distinction in terms of bay length between the upper and lower end, that they are of similar hall size, and now with the discovery that they are also of almost the same date. It was evident that West End would pre-date the adjacent Brick House because of the blocked western window in West End, it was not clear how long the gap would have been between them, in the event an interval of c 25 years probably raises interesting questions about how the village was in-filled or extended and possibly about the original layout of land plots at this extremity of the village.

The above is from the following report: "The History and Heritage of Pembridge: A report on the tree-ring analysis of ten houses"
Report Number ARCUS 574q
Compiled by Ian Tyers, with contributions by Duncan James
Date December 2002

For more information please contact the secretary of the Pembridge Amenity Trust info@pembridgeamenitytrust.co.uk