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Summary

Description

Predominantly between 1780 and 1860; later alterations. Courtyard grouping of farmhouse, threshing mill and farm cottages. (Single storey ranges to the south, including former byre and stable, and later extension to house to north dating to around 2009 not included in the listing as they were not considered to meet listing criteria at time of review in 2015.)

Later 18th century farmhouse, with early 20th century porch; extended to north and interior partially modernised circa 2009. Symmetrical 2-storey and attic, 3-bay east facing farmhouse. Central door with projecting gabled enclosed porch with windows in each face and side entrance. Roughly coursed flagstone, all whitewashed with contrasting painted ashlar margins. Slightly enlarged ground floor windows, 2 piended dormers. Symmetrical rear fenestration includes small centre bullseye window directly below wallhead. Predominantly 12-pane replacement glazing; margined end stacks; straight skews; Caithness slate roof.

The interior was seen in 2015. Some decorative plaster cornicing to the principal rooms, plain cornicing to others, panelled doors, moulded architraves and a curved timber stair with decorative cast metal railings. The ground floor former drawing room has a recessed niche flanked by fluted pilasters.

Farmhouse is linked to the north gable of former circa early to mid-19th century threshing barn by L-plan length of crenellated wall. There are 2 doors, a dummy corbelled and crenellated angle bartizan, blind ground and 1st floor windows to north gable of former threshing barn. There is a similar blind window in the wall. Wall and north gable to former threshing barn also whitewashed with contrasting margins. Former threshing barn is a long 2-storey, 7-bay roughly coursed flagstone building with long elevations facing east and west. All openings to the east are blocked or boarded up (2015).

Terrace of 3, circa early 19th century 2-bay cottages enclose farm court abutting south gable of house. Timber doors with narrow fanlight. Gabled dormers to center and right. All roughly coursed flagstone with Caithness slate roofs. Corniced gable end and ridge stacks. The interior was seen in 2015. Flagstone floors and timber panelling in place.

Coursed flagstone boundary wall, circa early 19th century to north and west, whitewashed at north with commemorative plaque to Sir William Alexander Smith, founder of the Boys' Brigade, reputedly born at the house on 27 October 1854.

Statement of Special Interest

Pennyland house and steading is a good surviving example of an Improvement farm in the Caithness region. The crenelated wall with its bartizan is particularly unusual. The site's architectural and historical interest is enhanced by the close connection between house and associated farm buildings forming a good coherent group of agricultural buildings. It is prominently located on the main road from the west into Thurso and its setting takes in views toward the Pentland Firth and Orkney to the north. The farm buildings at Pennyland are extensive and are a relatively early example of this type of steading in the northeast of Scotland. They form part of the late 18th century county improvements motivated by Sir John Sinclair of Ulbster – who famously compiled the Statistical Account of Scotland 1791–99 – and can therefore be understood in the context of the agricultural history of Caithness which was previously a remote and under-developed part of Scotland until the end of this century.

Pennyland house was formerly known as Pennyland Farm. The site comprises a farmhouse, a barn with granary above, a cart shed, a stalled byre with a circa 1920s overhead trolley system running centrally along its length, some other stores, a dairy, and three cottages. 'Pennyland' is shown on a map produced for Sinclair's Statistical Account of Scotland of 1791-99, providing evidence for its late 18th century origin.

The house and first phase of steading likely date to the late 18th century, appearing shortly before Sinclair laid out the New Town at Thurso. The steading was remodelled in around the early to mid-19th century, including the addition of the threshing mill whose size reflects the scale of agricultural operations in Caithness, and specifically at this farm, at this time. The steading buildings located to the south have been extensively remodelled and reconfigured since the mid-19th century.

In Scotland in the mid to late 18th century and into the 19th century, agriculture was transformed as subsistence farming gave way to the creation of larger farms. Drainage, use of lime as a fertiliser and improved understanding of husbandry all contributed to this. Land was enclosed into fields and very small landholdings were merged into larger farms. Pennyland House and its associated steading buildings is an example of farm building design that has transitioned from incorporating the farmhouse within the steading range (as was common before the middle of the 18th century), to designing detached farmhouses. This was a conscious decision to place the farmer and consequently the farmhouse on a higher footing than simply as part of a range of other agricultural buildings. This change in design is evidence of the increased social, scientific and technical emphasis placed on the farming profession with the farmer having a level of detachment from the work of the farm itself. The principal elevation of Pennyland House is turned from the steading and has its garden ground to the north, setting it within the wider landscape. It is unusual at Pennyland however that the farm buildings (the threshing barn in particular) were constructed forward of the principal elevation of the house.

Category changed from B to C, statutory address and listed building record revised in 2015. Previously listed as 'Pennyland House and Steading'.

References

Bibliography

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