Great Moor Farm, Sowton, Devon: the recording and excavation of a 16th- and 17th-century farmhouse

Abstract

SUMMARY: The demolished Great Moor Farm provided a unique opportunity to study the development of a Devon farmhouse combining detailed fabric recording, excavation and documentary research. The building had a complex structural history, and neither the recording of the standing structure nor the excavation on its own provided sufficient information for the confident identification of the sequence of phases and their dating. The development of the house can be followed from its original construction in the early 16th century, as it was adapted, improved and enlarged following the prevailing fashions of comfort and style, to become a relatively large and comfortable house by c. 1700. Its growth coincided with a prosperous period for Devon farmers and with the evolution of the medieval to the modern house.