Jettied buildings

[burgundy]

I have been looking for some suitable pre-railway age buildings to provide a low relief backdrop for a small layout that I am working on. I have discovered this site, which illustrates the right sort of atmosphere and includes this picture (old houses in Greys Inn Road, top row 4th from left) and this one (old houses in Bermondsey Street, 15th row 2nd from left) which show the sort of buildings that fit my scenario. The caption to the latter mentions that timber framed buildings were "...... often out of shape and leaning in all directions....".

My understanding is that medieval and tudor buildings were normally constructed as self contained buildings - even though crammed together so that the structure occupied the whole frontage of the building plot. In these circumstances, I can imagine that the individual structures would indeed be leaning in all directions. However, the two pictures linked above seem to show something more like a terrace, where a series of buildings have been constructed to a common design. Were buildings like this actually built around a common framework - in which case, presumably, the individual houses could hardly be leaning a different way to the rest of the terrace - or are we looking at a series of self-contained, freestanding buildings to a common pattern?

Grateful for any help from the collective wisdom of RM Web!

Best wishes

Eric

[BG John]

I'm no expert, but buildings were often altered a lot over their lifetime, so what appears to be a consistent style may be something tacked on to much older buildings that were originally very individual. Frontages especially were modernised or rebuilt as fashions changed.

 

You may get some useful information on the Period Property UK Forum if you want to dig deeply, as there are some very knowledgable people there, but I can't guarantee it as topics often degenerate into silliness (occasionally assisted by me I'm afraid!)!

[buffalo]

These look to me like fairly typical inns/hotels of the sixteenth century. They are indeed single builds on sites that often combine several earlier plots. Note the cart/coach entrance on your first example, and the larger one on your second. The door to the loft above the entrance in your second example may indicate that at some time it has been used as a large merchant's property of some form. Here's another well known example of such a hotel at Canterbury, more details here. 'Terraces' of separate houses built as a single structure are much less common.

 

Nick

 

ps. do bear in mind that timber framing styles varied significantly between different parts of the country...

[petethemole]

The group in Gray's Inn Road were probably built as one structure. The clues are that the main roof line is at right angles to the gable fronts and the uniformity of the jetties. The general uniformity of appearance may be less significant as the weather boarded gables and rendered fronts may be later; the windows certainy are. The Bermondsey group had been substantially modified at the front and were almost certainly in one ownership. I think the shops and 1st floor accomodation were let, but the 2nd floor level (few windows) and the 3rd floor gables (louvred vents) appear to have been in conmmercial use by the 19th century. The two gateways and upper loading doors were no doubt connected with this.

 

Both these groups are on large plots that may represent the consolidation of several medieval tenements under single ownership. When such plots were redeveloped for letting, the old boundaries were often respected, hence the row of gabled fronts.

 

Uneven appearance and "leaning" in old timber framed buildings was mainly down to the common use of "green" rather than seasoned oak. The timber shrank slightly as it dried out, helping to hold the frames together, but warped and twisted as it dried.

Pete

[Poggy1165]

If you visit Tewkesbury there is what I can only describe as a terrace of small late medieval houses. IIRC they were built by the Abbey to let out to tenants as a source of revenue.

[burgundy]

Thank you all for such rapid and helpful suggestions!

I found the Relics of old London website after some googling, as I was conscious that the regional variations in timber buildings could be quite marked and I wanted something appropriate to the London area. I also imagine that building in brick or stone was at least "strongly encouraged" if not mandated in London itself after the Great Fire of 1666 - although this might not have been observed in Southwark.

Looking at the Bermondsey group of buildings, I wonder whether the second gable from the left, which appears to be rather shallower than the others, may result from the buildings being joined across an alleyway?

Again, many thanks for the suggestions

Best wishes

Eric

[justin1985]

If its London you're interested in, then you really should get hold of the English Heritage "Lost London" and "Lost London Panoramas" coffee table books, which are packed with those kind of photos (very well printed) and have started to appear cheaply now.

 

Medieval and 16th century "terraces" were actually quite common, often developed by institutional landowners (primarily the church), and called "rows". A good example is "Our Lady's Row" on Goodramgate in York http://www.geograph....k/photo/2276027 .

 

This is quite different to the pictures you've highlighted though. As others have said, these are quite likely to have been single properties for some of their history, and certainly represent a single structure (even if originally sub-let separately). The sequence of gables represents pretty standard urban architecture, where the gables would generally honour the traditional "burgage" land plots, with a narrow frontage. Gables facing the street made it easier to create longer, thinner buildings (e.g. draining rainwater etc). Even where the plots weren't that important, this form was used in many cases simply because it was the standard way of building - making good use of the plot where there was considerable space to the rear. Because timber frames were usually constructed off site, and then erected in place (flat pack style) the width of a "bay" became a defacto standard size.

 

The Bermondsey Street property has been changed extensively, and I'd guess the second gable from the left has been inserted at a later date, perhaps to make access between the first two gables at loft level easier. The first gable from the left is certainly the only one with original tiles. I still think the whole lot were built as a single development, although it would be hard to say how the alley was originally dealt with, if it was a later addition or not etc.

 

Justin

[burgundy]

Justin

Many thanks for your comments - and for the further suggested reading! I used the principle of burgage plots on my previous layout (Cardinal's Wharf) as an excuse for a series of buildings of similarly sized frontage and it seems a good model to follow here. Since I am not modelling anywhere specific, I have been following the general principles suggested in the photos so that I hope that I am not creating something that is wholly out of character.

Progress so far has been a mock up on old cardboard, which looked a bit like this

and I have since been reworking this in foamboard so that Mk II looks like this

The upstairs windows have all been prepared (in fact the windows were built first and the holes cut to fit) and I am currently thinking about the ground floor windows which are intended to be the frontages of the business premises. Can anyone advise, please, when the fashion (or building techniques) would have changed from leaded windows to wooden frames?

One of the entertaining features of this exercise is trying to keep the slightly random nature of the structures. Petethemole pointed out above that the use of green timber resulted in warping and twisting - but the use of a steel ruler is just not conducive to a warped and twisted result! And I suspect that it will require quite a lot of care for it not to look like a really bad piece of modelling. I mean, who would ever build a house like this in real life?

It may be coincidence, but this was parked just round the corner (in Amsterdam)

Best wishes

Eric

[burgundy]

By way of thanks to those who contributed to this thread, I thought that I had better provide a picture to demonstrate that there was something to show for the discussion.

There is still a bit of detailing to do around the windows and doors and some creative plumbing to manage rainwater off the roofs. Then the whole lot needs to be painted and toned down to match the other buildings that provide the backscene to Vintner's Yard.

Best wishes

Eric

[justin1985]

This looks excellent! Very believable! Do the white walls have any texture? I'm sure the original would have quite a mottled appearance - perhaps a thin and rough coat of modelling clay might give this effect?

 

Justin

[burgundy]

Justin

Thanks for your comments.

The white area is currently foamboard in its untouched state. I plan to weather it with paintwork, rather than any additional texture materials (but I wonder whether some talc mixed in with the paint might work?).

The outstanding question is whether this would have had a limewash finish - and therefore be basically white - or whether it would have been a brownie-yellow kind of shade. Watercolour pictures of old Bristol tend to suggest almost a sepia tone; I wonder whether that was a natural effect of smoke, muck, etc in the air or possibly a local habit arising from a nearby source of ochre pigment.

Best wishes

Eric

[Joseph_Pestell]

Justin

Many thanks for your comments - and for the further suggested reading! I used the principle of burgage plots on my previous layout (Cardinal's Wharf) as an excuse for a series of buildings of similarly sized frontage and it seems a good model to follow here. Since I am not modelling anywhere specific, I have been following the general principles suggested in the photos so that I hope that I am not creating something that is wholly out of character.

Progress so far has been a mock up on old cardboard, which looked a bit like this

and I have since been reworking this in foamboard so that Mk II looks like this

The upstairs windows have all been prepared (in fact the windows were built first and the holes cut to fit) and I am currently thinking about the ground floor windows which are intended to be the frontages of the business premises. Can anyone advise, please, when the fashion (or building techniques) would have changed from leaded windows to wooden frames?

One of the entertaining features of this exercise is trying to keep the slightly random nature of the structures. Petethemole pointed out above that the use of green timber resulted in warping and twisting - but the use of a steel ruler is just not conducive to a warped and twisted result! And I suspect that it will require quite a lot of care for it not to look like a really bad piece of modelling. I mean, who would ever build a house like this in real life?

It may be coincidence, but this was parked just round the corner (in Amsterdam)

Best wishes

Eric

 

The problems for these houses in Amsterdam are more likely caused by subsidence. Very boggy ground to put good foundations into. But it could also be that there is a timber-framed building behind. In central Bath, many of the supposedly Georgian buildings are not Georgian at all but Tudor with Georgian masonry frontages. In many cases these were not properly tied in to the original building and now lean outwards alarmingly.

[Campaman]

I think the timber framed building hiding behind a newer front are probably more common than you think, it was only while reading about the history of the High Street in Market Harborough where I live that I realised a lot of what look to be substantial brick or stone buildings are in fact older timber frame building with a false frontage added at a later date.

[justin1985]

The outstanding question is whether this would have had a limewash finish - and therefore be basically white - or whether it would have been a brownie-yellow kind of shade. Watercolour pictures of old Bristol tend to suggest almost a sepia tone; I wonder whether that was a natural effect of smoke, muck, etc in the air or possibly a local habit arising from a nearby source of ochre pigment.

 

There certainly were regional variations on what the limewash would be coloured with, based on what was available locally. Contrary to what Dulux have led us to believe, "Suffolk Pink" was not particularly dominant as a house colour in East Anglia, although it did exist, and was based upon adding cows' blood to the whitewash. (similarly, the very distinctive rich red colour commonly used for wooden houses in Scandinavia supposedly originates with whales' blood as an additive). As you suggest, ochre was often a common additive too. But standard whitewash was the basic starting point. Also, contrary to Victorian imagination, beams and woodwork were normally whitewashed the same colour as the plaster, rather than contrasting black etc.

 

I'm not certain whether your building would have been likely to have been coloured or not. You can imagine that while the additives added cost, they also reduced the frequency of repainting, so a "workaday" building would have been unlikely to have been white. I'd probably go for a ochre\sepia colour - whether or not it was intended, in a industrial type setting, it certainly would have ended up like that! Talc in the paint is a good idea - I think that would probably give the right degree of texture.

 

Edit - Having checked - the blood was always more of a binding agent, and the colours were primarily based upon differing ochres and ores

[Joseph_Pestell]

I think the timber framed building hiding behind a newer front are probably more common than you think, it was only while reading about the history of the High Street in Market Harborough where I live that I realised a lot of what look to be substantial brick or stone buildings are in fact older timber frame building with a false frontage added at a later date.

 

Indeed. I only mentioned Bath because I know it quite well. I could cite other examples including a Grade II listed house in Shaftesbury for which the listing particulars are completely wrong! And yet the conservation officer refused a planning application based on the listing.

[burgundy]

Thanks to all for the further comments.

The problems for these houses in Amsterdam are more likely caused by subsidence. Very boggy ground to put good foundations into. But it could also be that there is a timber-framed building behind. In central Bath, many of the supposedly Georgian buildings are not Georgian at all but Tudor with Georgian masonry frontages. In many cases these were not properly tied in to the original building and now lean outwards alarmingly.

Joseph

I agree that the example from Amsterdam is almost certainly a case of subsidence. In fact, I think many of the buildings there have timber frames on top of the piles, with the walls built as in-fill. Presumably a timber framework is more resilient given the very soft ground.

There certainly were regional variations on what the limewash would be coloured with, based on what was available locally. Contrary to what Dulux have led us to believe, "Suffolk Pink" was not particularly dominant as a house colour in East Anglia, although it did exist, and was based upon adding cows' blood to the whitewash. (similarly, the very distinctive rich red colour commonly used for wooden houses in Scandinavia supposedly originates with whales' blood as an additive). As you suggest, ochre was often a common additive too. But standard whitewash was the basic starting point. Also, contrary to Victorian imagination, beams and woodwork were normally whitewashed the same colour as the plaster, rather than contrasting black etc.

 

I'm not certain whether your building would have been likely to have been coloured or not. You can imagine that while the additives added cost, they also reduced the frequency of repainting, so a "workaday" building would have been unlikely to have been white. I'd probably go for a ochre\sepia colour - whether or not it was intended, in a industrial type setting, it certainly would have ended up like that! Talc in the paint is a good idea - I think that would probably give the right degree of texture.

 

Edit - Having checked - the blood was always more of a binding agent, and the colours were primarily based upon differing ochres and ores

Justin

Thanks. This sounds like a good excuse to tone this building in with the other existing low relief buildings which are in shades of cream/ochre/brown.

Just for interest, I attach a photo of a building that I found which illustrates what happens when the top layer of render begins to peel off.

I am not sure that I want to start picking the jettied building apart at this stage, but perhaps if I need to build another structure, a little dereliction might give it some interest.

Again, many thanks for the comments and suggestions.

Best wishes

Eric

[burgundy]

I have finally stopped messing around with locos and rolling stock and got round to finishing this building. It is significant, as it is the last low relief section of the backscene and I can now start moving forward across the layout, ballasting and getting the track finished.
The "finishing off" in this case consisted mainly in painting and weathering, plus application of the rainwater goods. Most of the weathering was done with chalk powders and one of the lessons was the different way in which construction paper and featherboard reacted to this. I have also used some Games Workshop washes on the roof, to tone it down, and around the brick base, to suggest rising damp. 
Old photos suggested that "trough gutters" were still in use and so I fabricated some out of strip and bracketed them to the front of the building. Presumably they saved those in the top floor rooms the trouble of taking the chamber pot downstairs in the morning? Maybe there should be some stains below the windows.......  
There are other things to do on the layout before this is fixed in position and I may need to do a little more research on nameboards and scripts before I set this one in place. The present business nameboard is a quick Powerpoint job. The layout is entitled Vintner's Yard and so the wine trade seemed an appropriate theme (should the building be Bordeaux Row?). It is near the docks, so it is likely that the businesses are shippers or wholesalers, therefore I have not tried to replicate the more flamboyant Victorian advertising that could cover the whole side of a building. However, if anyone can suggest some appropriate fonts for this kind of signwriting, I should be grateful.
Best wishes
Eric
PS Aren't photos wonderful? Looking at this one, it suddenly became obvious that there were no downpipes to catch the drips from the two central valleys. Now corrected.

 

[allan downes]

Jettied buildings were resposable, or so I've heard, for the heavy furniture of the period where it was placed up against a back wall of the room to help counter the extra weight of the jetting.

 

Why these buildings were jettied in the first place I have no idea other that it was possible to shake hands with your opposite neighbour thtough an uppermost window !

 

Also, the richer the owner, the closer the studding much of which was built out of old ships timbers.

 

Anyway, I have taken the liberty to show a few examples in model form.

 

Cheers.

Allan

 

.

[Rasendyll]

Allan,

 

That large range of buildings brings back happy memories of the large London based project which you wrote about in the Railway Modeller.  

 

 

Jettied buildings were resposable, or so I've heard, for the heavy furniture of the period where it was placed up against a back wall of the room to help counter the extra weight of the jetting.

 

Why these buildings were jettied in the first place I have no idea other that it was possible to shake hands with your opposite neighbour thtough an uppermost window !

 

Also, the richer the owner, the closer the studding much of which was built out of old ships timbers.

 

Anyway, I have taken the liberty to show a few examples in model form.

 

Cheers.

Allan

 

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