Denford Park, Kintbury - Hungerford Virtual Museum

DenfordPark. Kintbury. Berkshire
The Accounts & WCs
To the east of the Lobby the other two rooms north of the corridor were clearly
originally one and the wall between them is of studwork or plasterboard. The original
room had a skirting board and a stone floor. The section to the west of the inserted
partition was latterly the Accounts Office and the section to the east, divided into WC
cubicles.
The eastern doorway from the corridor, to the east of the central dividing doorway,
has a pedestalled door frame; the other doorway is quite plain. Both are inserted. The
original access was from the adjacent Lobby and is shown on one of the 1939 plans.
At that time the room was a Cloakroom - evidently for the family and guests.
On a 1949 plan proposals were made to adjust the facilities for the school children
and the original access was to be blocked, replaced by the present eastern doorway;
this probably re-used the original door frame and door. The other doorway became
necessary when the room was divided in the later 20 th century.
Originally the room was lit by two windows in the north wall. The eastern one
consists of a pair of narrow single-pane wide sashes in the same opening separated by
a mullion.
However, the character of the sashes is the same as the full one in the centre; this is
explained by the 1939 plan which shows that there were to be two WC cubicles at the
east end, the partition between which bisected the window opening.
The oval window set high in the south wall of the Accounts section would have been
more efficient as a borrowed light window to the corridor before the partition was
built.
General Office or Gun Room
The larger room to the south of the corridor at this level was latterly used as the
college's General Office. It has a doorway to the South-East Room of the Main
House which was latterly nailed shut and used as a cupboard, but the door is veneered
and probably of the early-19 th century in date, matching others within the building.
There are indications that the original door furniture has seen at least one change in its
history.
In contrast, the doorway off the corridor contains a very similar door but this is not
veneered but varnished; nevertheless it is a very good replica of the earlier door -
perhaps of the late-1930's work. It is also of slightly different construction and the
door furniture has never been altered.
The room is lit by two sash windows in the south wall with full-height reveals, but
these have been altered slightly - especially the western one which has lost much of
its original architrave.
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Richard K Morriss & Associates, Historic Buildings Consultants, Bromlow House, Bromlow, Shropshire, SYS OEA