Site record MDR23815 - Site of Stable at Ash Tree Farm, Old Hackney Lane, Darley Dale

Former site of a stable at Ash Tree Farm, Old Hackney Lane, Darley Dale, probably an early 19th century building. An historic fabric building survey was carried out in 2023 in advance of the proposed demolition of the former stable and erection of a new private dwelling. At the time: '…the stable at Ash Tree Farm consists of two bays, two storeys and stone built construction. The walls are coursed of irregular sized angular stone with quoins, beneath a gable roof. Dating to between 1897 and 1920 with the lower half of the north gable wall belonging to an earlier building, which became a cow house. The stable had three stalls along the east wall with a loft above for the storage of fodder and bedding. Access from the loft to the ground floor was in the south-west corner of the building. The current access by the north gable being a recent addition. The building was entered via a pair of doorways, recently made into a single opening. Two ground floor windows provide ventilation. Pitching holes are present in the north gable and west elevation with an upper floor loading door present in the south gable. The original principal rafter roof survives but the slate covering has been replaced by tin. The majority of the internal fixtures and fittings have been removed. During the 20th century it was used to house cattle. This type of stable is of a typical local design, constructed during a period when horses were the predominant form of power. The stable is absent from the 1898 edition Ordnance Survey map however present in the 1922 edition. It post-dates the barn and cow house to the north which were present on the Ordnance Survey map of 1880. The walls surrounding the stable, cow house and barn were remodelled between 1897 and 1920. The loft, principally present for insulation, would have been used as a storage area for hay and sometimes straw.' (1)