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• Type

  Map

  Title

  Map for Leuchland Farmhouse excluding steading to the north, Leuchland, near Brechin (LB94)

  Download(https://portal.historicenvironment.scot/document/600024060)

Summary

Description

Description:

A two-storey and attic, three-bay, symmetrical-fronted, rectangular-plan farmhouse, dating from around 1820. There are a variety of later additions to the rear, including a rectangular two-storey addition, a single-storey attached shed with a sliding entrance door and a detached single-storey store with a mono-pitch roof and timber boarding below the eaves.

The farmhouse is built in cherry caulked sandstone with long and short window margins and slightly projecting sandstone cills. The front (southeast) elevation has a central entrance with a panelled timber door and a rectangular fanlight and smooth ashlar surround. This is all surrounded by a doorpiece with tapering Doric columns and a moulded rectangular plinth. There is an entrance in the rear (northeast) elevation with a moulded timber and slated canopy.

The window openings in each gable and the rear of the building are irregularly spaced. The windows are predominantly 12-pane sash and case throughout with windows of varying sizes in the two-storey addition. There are two 'dummy' windows painted onto the southwest gable. Each gable has small, plate glass attic windows.

The roof is slated and has straight skews and moulded skewputts. There is a single rooflight in the southeast pitch. There are corniced gable end chimneystacks with clay cans on the earlier block and a ridge chimneystack on the two-storey addition.

The interior was seen in 2019 and retains some features of its 19th century decorative scheme. The main entrance has a vestibule area, with decorative pilasters. The house has been divided into two living spaces. The rooms in the southern part of the house have moulded cornicing and timber six-panel doors with moulded architraves. There is a central half-turn with landings staircase with moulded spindle balusters topped by a timber handrail. The detailing in the northern part of the house is plainer and appears to be of a slightly later date. The rooms are accessed by a later second stair in the rear addition. There are timber fire surrounds throughout, some with tiled insets. The attic is accessed by a narrow service stair.

In the garden there are sections of rubble walls to the northwest and fragmentary remains of metal railings in the northwest corner. There is a second, smaller raised area within the garden enclosed by a low rough rubble wall to the northeast of the farmhouse that is accessed by steps.

In accordance with Section 1 (4A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 the following are excluded from the listing: steading to the north of Leuchland Farmhouse.

Historical development

The land and farming at Leuchland was part of the large tenanted farm holdings of Southesk Estate for over two hundred years. The design and form of the present farmhouse, with a symmetrical front elevation, evenly spaced openings and first floor windows set close to the roof eaves indicates an early 19th century date.

The footprint of the farmhouse is first shown in detail on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map (surveyed 1863, published 1890) as an irregular U-plan building within a wooded site with a courtyard-plan farm steading to the north. The stonework and window arrangement of the two-storey rear addition is slightly different to the main farmhouse, suggesting that this is a later addition. This addition and single-storey storage buildings to the rear were built by 1863 as they are shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey Map. Pre-19th century maps suggest the farm may be of an earlier date. The farmhouse may contain earlier fabric but stylistically it is an early 19th century farmhouse.

The Ordnance Survey Name Book, written between 1857 and 1861, describes Leuchland as a very fine farmhouse and steading (p.89), suggesting the farm was sizeable in this area.

Later Ordnance Survey maps (revised 1901, 1922 and 1967) show the footprint of Leuchland farmhouse remains largely unaltered since that shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map. The steading buildings to the north change from a courtyard layout shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map (surveyed 1863) to one large, irregular covered complex by the 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey map (revised 1901). This is in keeping with the late-19th/early-20th century practice of redeveloping steadings to house more cattle.

Statement of Special Interest

Statement of Special Interest:

• The farmhouse demonstrates quality of design and construction in a well-proportioned, restrained classical style and is a notable example for its early-19th century date
• Although moderately altered, the building retains its early 19th century architectural and historic character
• It is associated with an area of Scotland that was known historically for its agricultural economy
• Its rural farm setting has been largely retained

In accordance with Section 1 (4A) of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 the following are excluded from the listing: steading to the north of Leuchland Farmhouse.

Design

Leuchland Farmhouse is a well-proportioned and restrained classical style house that is typical of higher status Improvement period farmhouses of the late-18th to mid-19th century. It has been little altered externally and has good stonework. The design quality of Leuchland Farmhouse is particularly evident in its symmetrical front elevation, including original openings that retain traditional sash and case glazing and an uninterrupted roofline. The deep corniced doorpiece with Doric columns is a distinctive architectural detail at Leuchland and adds to its architectural interest. The construction of Leuchland Farmhouse is also characteristic of Angus in that it is built of the regionally distinctive cherry caulked sandstone.

As a prosperous farming region of Scotland, Angus farms often showed a marked separation between the principal house and the steading, compared with the close proximity of the house and steading in areas of dairy farming. This can be seen at Leuchland, where the farmhouse is detached within its own garden, and the principal elevation faces away from the working areas of the farm. The overall design of the farmhouse therefore reflects the social status of the farmer in the early 19th century in terms of wealth and enlightened interest in the Improvement movement.

The plan form is typical for its building type and date with large, symmetrical rooms at the front leading off a central hallway. The plan form has been altered by the partition of rooms, however, a degree of subdivision is not uncommon for a building of this size. Importantly, the early-19th century plan form is still readable by the survival of the central stair, large principal rooms and the service area on the attic floor.

The rectangular two-storey block to the rear is likely to be a later addition because of the difference in scale and style, in particular in its shorter and wider with irregularly spaced windows. Its depiction on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map (surveyed 1863) dates this rear addition to within around 50 years of the farmhouse being built, so it is not significantly later in date. It was likely added to increase accommodate for workers or offices and adds some interest as an illustration of how the farm may have been expanding in the mid-19th century. The single-storey additions to the rear are of a similar date (as shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map) and are of a practical design as was common of storage buildings.

The interior retains features from the early 19th century which are typical for farmhouses of this date and adds to the special interest of the building. There are also some decorative classical architectural details such as the moulded architraves and pilasters in the entrance vestibule.

Setting

Leuchland Farmhouse is located east of the town of Brechin, off the A935, and accessed via a track. It is not visible from the main road.

The immediate setting of the farmhouse is largely unchanged from that shown on the 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map. It remains within its own garden surrounded by mature trees and rhododendron bushes. There have been some developments in the wider setting of Leuchland Farmhouse with the early-20th century construction of Leuchland Cottage at the Leuchland junction with the A935. However, Leuchland Farmhouse remains part of a coherent and readable agricultural complex. The visibility and survival of associated steading buildings allows us to understand their former function and historic relationship to the farmhouse. The largely unaltered setting of the farmhouse is of interest in listing terms.

Age and rarity

While farmhouses are not a rare building type in this area, those associated with the introduction of early and improving farming practice, which demonstrate quality of design and construction and which remain to a large degree in their original form may have interest in listing terms.

The late-18th century/early-19th century was a period of significant improvement in farming practices across Scotland as small-scale subsistence farming gave way to the creation of larger, commercial farming practices. This radical change in farming, known as the Improvement or Agricultural Improvement period, saw innovations in land drainage, use of lime as a fertiliser, introduction of new crops and crop rotation, improved understanding of animal husbandry and increased length of tenancies. Crucially, land was enclosed and small landholdings were merged into larger farms. Angus is predominantly a farming region and its rural landscape is characterised by agricultural built heritage.

Leuchland Farmhouse is not a rare survival but it is a good and externally largely unaltered example of an Improvement period farmhouse in this area of Scotland.

Social historical interest

Agriculture was central to the economy in this part of Scotland and there were once a number of large farms operating in this area of Angus. The survival of early 19th century farmhouses directly illustrates the area's agricultural and social history.

Statutory address, category of listing changed from B to C and listed building record revised in 2019. Previously listed as 'Leuchland Farmhouse'.

References

Bibliography

About Listed Buildings

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