Old Moor House
Location/Address
Old Moor Visitor Centre, Old Moor Lane, Broomhill, Wombwell
Type
Description
Regular courtyard plan farmstead comprising of a southern range with house, cottage and attached granary and pigsty; an L-shaped range to the north and east forming former barns and animal housing now converted into shops, stores, café, offices and kitchen; and former implement or shelter shed now enclosed in glass as an event space. The building are all built from coursed sandstone with blue slate roofs. The farmhouse is of the local vernacular in the Georgian style with regularly arranged fenestration and double pile floor plan. The masonry of the farmhouse and cottage is also finely dressed with ashlar lintels, sills and corner quoins. The north and eat barn are similarly well built, with coped gables and full surrounds to doorways and windows, the latter of which have square mullions. The north barn has a small threshing door with a finely dressed lintel with keystone bearing the date 1755 and the initial "W". The building have been converted for use as holiday lets and facilities for the RSPB but have retained their vernacular character and are good examples of their age and type.
The buildings at Old Moor House certainty date from the 18th century with the barn, at least, possibly built in 1755 as indicated by its datestone. The farmstead is shown, but not named, on Thomas Jeffrey's map of 1767. The Old Series Ordnance Survey map, surveyed in 1837, names the farm as "Old Moor House" and depicts the north barn, an east-west building extending from the barn to the east of the yard, and the house to the south. The first edition OS map of 1855 shows the farm in more detail, with further additions on the side of the north and east barns, and several detached outbuildings to the southeast of the yard. Many of these additions survived into the mid 20th century, by which time the cottages and pigsty had been built to the south. The land to the north and east of the farm became heavily polluted by colliery waste in the later 20th century, and in the 1990s Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council set out to convert it to a nature reserve by removing a large amount of contaminated material, creating a wetland environment. The site was subsequently taken over by the RSPB took over the site in 2003 who extended the site and converted the farm buildings.
Statement of Significance
Asset type
BuildingAge
Early to mid 18th century.Rarity
A rare example of an 18th century farmstead with excellent survival of a range of buildings.Architectural and Artistic Interest
The buildings are of the local vernacular, with architectural details covering the 18th and early 19th century, and represent an important example of regional farm buildings of the the post medieval period.Historic Interest
The buildings possess historical interest in their own right owing to their evident age and illustrative value in respect to the history and technology of farming. They also gain additional interest in their association with the creation of the nature reserve which developed as a response to the improvement of past industrial landscapes.Archaeological Interest
The buildings exhibit evidence of alteration, change and phased development the study of which has the potential to improve our knowledge of the age, function and development of the site and of post-medieval farming practices more generally. The range of buildings, and their excellent state of preservation, is especially notable in this regards.Landmark Status
The buildings form the hub and gateway into the Old Moor nature reserve, a stopping off point on the Trans-Pennine Trail, and and important attraction for locals and tourists.Images and Documents
Date Listed
02 May 2023
Last Updated
02 Mar 2023
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