EARLS BARTON CONSERVATION AREA CHARACTER APPRAISAL 1. ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT 1.1 Earls Barton lies 3½ miles south west of Wellingborough and 6½ miles east north east of Northampton, but set well back (at just over half a mile to the south) from the old road linking these two larger towns. 1.2 Settlement in the central part of Northamptonshire is mostly restricted to the margins of the main valleys of the Nene, Welland and Ise, often on hill tops and spurs well above the floodplains. In common with other villages on either side of the Nene such as Grendon, Cogenhoe, Wollaston and Billing, Earls Barton is perched on a spur of land projecting above the prevailing contours which rise from the river (42m AOD) across extensive ground terraces and then more steeply over outcrops of Upper Lias Clay to a flat-topped ridge of sand and limestone at approximately 100m AOD. (RCHME, 1979). An additional underlying factor in the genesis of the settlement pattern is the customary availability of springs between the 80 and 90 metre contours (AOD), and indeed much of the historic centre of Earls Barton lies within this range. 1.3 However, the village’s unique local topographical feature (with the possible exception of Wollaston castle mount on the other side of the Nene Valley), and clearly its historical raison d’être, is the Scheduled Ancient Monument know as Berry Mount.1 Whereas Victoria County History2 speculates that the landform is “apparently a mote castle”, the RCHME analysis of 1979 suggest that this may not be the case, pointing out that “the relationship between mound and ditch is unusual, especially on the east side where the ditch appears to be turning south- east on an alignment different from the curve of the mound. This may indicate that the two features are not contemporary.” The conclusion reached, therefore, was that the ditch was either part of the defence work around a Saxon thegn’s dwelling (i.e. 10th century and contemporary with the church tower), or possibly of prehistoric origin being part of an Iron Age fort or cross-dyke. 1.4 Earls Barton’s place name is thought to have evolved from the early Barton/Bartone (Domeday 1086), through Erles Barton (1261), Barton Pynkenye (1334), Barton Yerles (1545), returning to Erles Barton again in 1574,3 with the first element deriving from the historic lordship of the manor of the Earls of Huntingdon and the second from an ancient local wood known as Barton Broil.4 1 Ety. Possibly associated with burh-barrow. 2 1937. 3 from Place Names of Northamptonshire, Gover, Mawer and Stenton, 1933. 4 Bartonbruil (1324); Berton Broyle (1401). ‘Broil’ = a park or wood stocked with deer or other wild beasts of the chase. 1.5 Significant population expansion in the modern era from some 150 families in 17415 to 1079 persons in 1841 appears likely to be connected to the growth in boot and shoe making at that time in the village. Certainly Whellan in 1874 gives this as the “principal trade…in which the majority of the population are employed,” listing 11 boot and shoe manufacturers against only 6 farmers and graziers. This sort of move from agrarian to an industrial society is of course occurring throughout the country in the period and the population continued to increase markedly, reaching 2587 in the last census (1931) before the Second World War. 2. KEY ELEMENTS OF STRUCTURE 2.1 The basic structure of the village centre is that of a meeting-point of four roads from Northampton, Wellingborough, Great Doddington and Lord Northampton’s estate at Castle Ashby, the configuration of which appears to be in response to the core historic elements, Berry Mount/All Saints Church and the landform south of the Church. 2.2 Beyond the proposed conservation area, the remainder of the present village mainly comprises Victorian and 20th century infill and ribbon development along each of the radial routes, but with the notable exceptions of two historic “ends” at Dowthorpe End to the east and London End to the south-west. 2.3 Topographically the three principal streets, West Street, Broad Street and High Street, drop down into the square creating interest and adding to a sense of containment there. As the village as a whole is situated on a fairly steep valley side, various panoramic views are obtainable to the south and south-east in the direction of Grendon, Castle Ashby and Whiston from vantage points on the mound above the square and in the recreation ground to the rear (see “Vista” symbol on the Appraisal Map). These vistas are more readily apparent in the colder months when deciduous trees are not in leaf. 2.4 All Saint’s Saxon church tower is visible from most places within the proposed conservation area (but is again affected by seasonal tree canopy cover) and this is a significant element in the townscape cohesion of the designation area. 2.5 As far as the street alignment itself is concerned, the structural significance seems to be as follows:- • West Street. Known as Northampton Road as late as 1926, its direct alignment with the church tower is interesting, particularly in the light of the public footpath which continues westwards from Aggate Way towards Northampton. This is therefore probably a route of some antiquity with its alignment generally governed by the line-of-sight of travellers/parishioners approaching the settlement from the west. The main B573 Northampton Road itself makes a sharp right-hand turn at the West Street junction and it can only be assumed that this was subsequently deemed necessary to provide a link for traffic to the main A4500 to the north. • High Street. Clearly a significant street linking the church to one of the early manors, the former Barton House, and ultimately leading to the important market town of Wellingborough to the east. Its irregular “organic” 5 Bridges. alignment in the historic core suggests a medieval date. • Broad Street. This street as its name suggests appears to have been widened at some point and possibly made straighter. Nevertheless it remains an old road linking the “suburban” hamlet of Dowthorpe End, the lost medieval hamlet of Thorp to the south-east and the adjoining parish/village of Great Doddington. • Station Road. Whilst the road name is obviously 19th century in origin, the route is historic in providing a direct link to the Castle Ashby estate to the south. 3. ARCHITECTURAL AND HISTORIC QUALITY OF BUILDINGS 3.1 Listed buildings in the conservation area (see grey and black tone notation on the Appraisal Map) commonly feature ashlar gable parapets and kneelers; squared coursed or regular coursed lias (ironstone) with or without a limestone element; wooden casement windows and lintels; chimney stacks mainly in brick, but some with stone bases, located variously at ridge or end(s) (or both); and roofs primarily in Welsh slate, but also thatch and plain tiles. Apart from the Grade I listed parish church of All Saints the earliest fabric of which is late-Saxon (c950 AD), and two Grade II 16th century houses at 28 West Street and 76 High Street, the listed buildings are post-medieval domestic Grade II, the majority being 18th century with a few 17th and 19th century examples. These houses are 2 storeys in height with or without an attic. The listed buildings are fairly evenly spread out within the conservation area although a slight concentration is perhaps evident in West Street between Harrowick Lane and Northampton Road. 3.2 With very few exceptions the continuous built fabric of the designation area apart from that provided by the listed buildings is comprised of “Other Buildings of Note” (see buildings shown in black edging on the Appraisal Map). These “notable” buildings, whilst not at present capable of being considered for formal statutory listing, are mainly 19th century local red brick or ironstone houses and shops with Welsh slate roof covering, and therefore represent good quality vernacular architecture which makes a positive contribution to the settings of the listed buildings and to the character of the conservation area as a whole. 3.3 Special mention should be made of the 6 dwellings currently under construction on the redevelopment site in West Street at the western extremity of the designation area (the former Kemshead Farm/garage site). Whilst it may initially appear perverse to include partially completed new buildings in a conservation area (as by definition they cannot of course be “historic”), in this case their architectural form, detailing and location close to back-edge-of-footway is to such a high standard that the scheme should be applauded for its sensitivity, respect for local style and townscape quality. In successfully continuing the vernacular tradition it is therefore considered to represent a design exemplar as a possible reference point for future infill development sites in the conservation area and indeed in respect of other similar sites elsewhere in the Borough. 4. SPACES: TOWNSCAPE ENCLOSURE AND GREEN SPACE 4.1 The most significant piece of open space in the village centre fabric is The Square. The slope of the land from the church wall down to street level creates a natural “amphitheatre”-effect and the view from the seats beside the war memorial at the top of the mound is of an essentially continuous urban façade running from 13 The Square to the west round to 4 High Street to the east, as shown in the “Building Line” notation on the Appraisal Map indicated by a thick black line. The configuration of The Square in terms of landform and juxtaposition of built form therefore contributes significantly to local character as an element of spatial containment.