A bellcote containing a single bell on the roof of Salford Hall, Abbots Salford.
"Salford Hall at Abbots Salford, 7/8 mile south-west of the church, is a large house with some timber-framing, but mostly of stone and with tiled roofs. The plan mainly consists of three ranges about a rectangular courtyard, the entrance front and hall facing north, and a wall closing the south side of the courtyard. The west range probably belonged to a late-15th-century house built by the Abbots of Evesham, and is said to have had a chapel east of it which disappeared in later alterations. The north and east ranges were added by John Alderford, whose motto appears above the north porch, with the date 1662, a restorer's mistake for 1602. He used the local blue lias, Cotswold oolite, and sandstone. The work of enlargement was completed by his son-in-law and successor, Charles Stanford. The Stanfords were a Roman Catholic family and early in the 18th century converted the ground floor of the north range to its present use as a chapel, which was served by Benedictine monks from 1727 until nearly the end of the century. From 1807 to 1838 the house was occupied by a community of English Benedictine nuns from Cambrai, whence it is still locally known as the Nunnery.
The north elevation, mostly of two stories, is in various planes, the middle part being recessed between the projecting porch-wing and the bay window of the main hall. The end of the east range is advanced still farther. The gabled end of the west range projects a little short of the face of the porch and has 18thcentury sash windows with a port-hole window in the gable. The porch-wing next east is of three stories and has a curvilinear gable-head. The entrance has a fourcentred and square head: over it is a restored panel containing a shield charged with a saltire, presumably for Alderford, and an entablature with the frieze inscribed 'Moderata Durant 1662'. The upper windows are mullioned. The recessed main wall of the hall has a similar gable-head, and windows of four lights with transoms to the two stories. The square bay window of the hall, next east, has a large window of five lights and two transoms. The upper window and gablehead to the bay are like the others. The end of the east range, of three stories, has a window of four lights and a transom in its gable-head. To the lower two stories is a bay window with a tiled roof: each window is of five lights and side lights, with a transom: both are blocked.
The east elevation is symmetrical and has three square bay windows of three stories carried up to gables high above the main eaves so that all the ridges are level. In the middle bay is a doorway: the bottom of the northernmost has been altered to a deeper bay with splayed sides. The south wall is like the north end. All the windows have chamfered mullions. The sides of these two ranges towards the courtyard have similar windows in their main walls, mostly of three lights. In the angle between the two is the main stair-wing, gabled on the west face, of three stories, with windows in both walls. Another wing projecting at the south end into the courtyard is also gabled and similarly lighted: a bridge connects the two wings. In the main wall, close to the stair-wing, is a cellar doorway with a very heavy stone lintel.
The west range, being the oldest part and having suffered many changes, is of more irregular appearance. The west elevation has two ancient projecting chimneystacks of stone, carrying square shafts of thin bricks. The southern belongs to the kitchen. Adjoining, north of it, is a small wing of three stories, the two lower of stone with mullioned windows, the third of plastered timber-framing with a gable and an oak-mullioned window. The main wall between the wing and the northern stone chimney-stack is plastered and has 18thcentury sash windows, but the head is gabled and has early-17th-century moulded barge-boards. The southernmost part of the range has stone walls to the lowest story with late-16th-century windows in its south and east walls: these windows differ from the others in having moulded jambs and mullions and moulded labels. The upper story is plastered, on timber-framing. The south end is gabled and contains a three-light window with moulded oak mullions. Towards the courtyard the other windows are modern and in the roof is a gabled dormer window.
In the angle of this range with the north is the stairwing of c. 1500, the upper two stories built of close-set timber-framing, and with blocked windows of three lights with moulded mullions. It contains an original central-newel winding stair, altered in the lower part and connected with the screens-passage of the hall, which is entered from the north porch. The oak screen between the passage and hall is of five bays, two of which are doorways; the others are plain closed panels divided by moulded muntins and rails.
The hall has a four-centred fire-place in the south wall, and in the east wall a doorway with a 17th-century pediment and shield with the arms of Stanford. In the north bay window are three early-17th-century shields of arms: 1. with Alderford quartering Everard, Sheldon, and Ruding, impaling Littleton, with the inscription: 'Alderford and Littleton: Moderata Durant.' 2. broken but showing the quarterly coat of Alderford and having the inscription 'Iames Dvrant' in letters of different sizes. 3. Alderford impaling Dormer (the arms of his second wife) and the motto 'Moderata Durant'.
The east range is occupied by rooms now used as a chapel (northernmost), ante-chapel (middle), and a vestry and another chamber at the south end.
The main staircase is of closed well type: the steps are thick oak battens, except at the top, where they are solid balks. The upper rooms have four-centred stone fire-places: the middle room is lined with oak panelling of c. 1600 and has an overmantel of three bays with carved terminal figures on brackets and enriched roundheaded panels. In the window are some small shields of arms of the Stanfords and their alliances. The southernmost room is also lined with panelling. The second floor has a long gallery, open from end to end. The roof of the north range near the west end of it has side-purlins with straight wind-braces.
In the west range the kitchen has a wide fire-place and a moulded ceiling-beam; the second room from the north, which was originally one with the north room, has some reset early-17th-century panelling. The room over the kitchen is lined with bolection-moulded panelling of the 18th century.
North of the house is an early-17th-century gatehouse, the lower story of stone rubble, with roundheaded gateways. The upper part is of timber-framing with herring-bone struts: the gables are steep-pitched and have barge-boards carved with a continuous lozenge pattern. On the south gate is a later sundial. To the west is a fine large timber barn and other farm buildings.
The hamlet of Wood Bevington, surrounded by remarkably fine elm trees, lies about 2½ miles northwest of the church. It has a manor house and about eight timber-framed cottages.
The Manor House belonged to the canons of Kenilworth. The main part of the present fabric, though now much altered, is perhaps the work of William Grey, who was tenant here in the reign of Henry VIII. The original plan was H-shaped, the middle block, facing south, containing the hall with the porch and screens-passage east of it. There is no evidence that it was ever open from floor to roof. The west cross-wing contains the 'great parlour', with a cellar behind it. The front (south) part of the east cross-wing is said to have formed part of a chapel, of which the chancel projected to the east. A small two-gabled wing projecting from the northern half of the west wing was added probably in the early 17th century. After the house had passed to the Archers in 1670, the nave of the chapel became the 'small parlour', the chancel being turned into a study, and the back part of the east wing, containing the kitchen, &c., was rebuilt and heightened. The greater part of the exterior was covered with roughcast about 1790, and in 1821 somewhat drastic alterations were carried out by an architect named Pain. It was then that the chapel-chancel was demolished and a stack of two chimneys on the east wing, probably similar to the two still surviving on the west, pulled down. Subsequent additions include the lean-to buildings behind the hall.
The south front shows some timber-framing in the middle block (the hall). The main posts dividing it into four bays rise from ground to eaves. The lower story, between them, is of modern brick, the upper of closely set studding, partly restored. The windows are modern: the entrance doorway against the east wing has an 18th-century setting with pilasters, &c., but contains a more ancient nail-studded battened door, with ironwork of c. 1600. The gabled east and west wings project about 2 yards; the upper story of the west wing is said to have been jettied. The eaves of the wings are lower than that of the hall block.
The west elevation has a projecting chimney-stack to the great parlour fire-place, of stone with red angledressings, and carrying a pair of conjoined diagonal shafts of thin bricks. In the north half is a shallow wing, projecting only about 6 ft., forming the 'far cellar' inside; it shows the old close studding internally; the head has a pair of gables of comparatively ornate timber-framing with curved struts, &c. The back of the main west wing is gabled and some plain timbering is exposed in the head.
The east side of the east wing is of brick, the south part modern, where it was made good after the chancel of the chapel was removed, the taller northern part of c. 1700. Most of the original windows were shortened in 1821 or later.
A passage from the south entrance is cut off from the east end of the hall by a plastered partition. The hall has a wide north fire-place with chimney-corner seats and tiny lockers. On the west side of it is the ancient stair-case with windows, rising from the hall and enclosed by timber-framed walls. The ceiling has two crossbeams, one roughly chamfered, and the floor is paved with diagonal squares of grey stone and slate of the later 17th century.
The 'great parlour' occupying most of the west wing has early-17th-century panelling and an 18th-century marble fire-place. An outer doorway next north is now closed to form a cupboard and another doorway opened into the 'far cellar'. An old partition of close timbering divides it from the buttery at the north end of the wing, now the 'cellar'.
The 'little parlour' in the east wing, formerly part of the chapel, has no old features. The dairy and kitchen behind it show an old ceiling beam or two.
In the upper rooms can be seen some of the woodwork of the front wall and a few ceiling beams. The bedroom over the hall is lined with 18th-century bolection-moulded panelling and has a fire-place of the same period flanked by Ionic pilasters. There is no distinctive construction in the roof of the middle block, which has been much repaired, but the north half of the west wing has framing of c. 1500 with wind-braced purlins. The roof over the chapel-wing has old sidepurlins."
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