49 to 50 The Village 1982 [Z50/129/42]

Old Warden is something of a show village due to the preponderance of attractive cottages; some are tiled, some are thatched, but most are quaint looking and painted in the same livery of cream and white. Most are rendered and some have mock timber framing on the outside (sometimes concealing real timber framing beneath the render!). All look old but many are 19th century. They all belonged to the Shuttleworth Estate as it was known after Joseph Shuttleworth bought the estate in 1872. It had previously been the Ongley estate after Samuel Ongley bought it from Earl Bolingbroke, a member of the Saint John family of Bletsoe, in 1698.

 
Rear of 49 to 50 The Village 1982 [Z50/129/43]

49 High Street, formerly two houses numbered 49 and 50, was listed by the former Department of Environment in 1970 as Grade II, of special interest. It is a typical Shuttleworth Estate Cottage in appearance but was actually a late 19th century reworking of an earlier Ongley Estate building. It is timber-framed and, like most of Old Warden, has colour-washed rough-cast render over the exterior. It has a thatched roof. The house has a four room plan, one storey and attics.

 
49 and 50 The Village March 2008

In 1927 the dwellings of Old Warden were valued under the Rating Valuation Act 1925; every piece of land and building in the country was assessed to determine the rates to be paid on it. The valuer visiting 49 and 50 The Village, as they were then known [DV1/C34/116-117] found them owned by the Shuttleworth Estate. 49 was in occupation of Mrs.Scott, stood in 0.171 of an acre and was rented for £3/14/0 per annum. It comprised a parlour and living room with two bedrooms above; outside were a barn, scullery and earth closet. the valuer found it: "Nice". 50 The Village was in occupation of F.Hare, stood in 0.150 of an acre and was rented for £4/5/0 per annum, it was otherwise the same as its next-door neighbour.