MSO9478 - 20th Century kennel block north of Dunster Castle (Building)

A kennel block lies 500 metres northeast of the stables at Dunster Castle. It is a rectangular building, 40 by 25 metres, with four stalls and four enclosed runs. The runs are made of wrought iron work. The kennels would have housed hounds or other hunting dogs and probably date from the 19th Century [1]. Not shown on the circa 1904 25 inch 2nd Edition Ordnance Survey map. [2] Probably late 19th Century. A small single storey structure divided into four compartments with wrought iron railed compounds in front. Weather vane on ridge surmounted by a hare. A good and unaltered example of an unusual type of building. [3] The building is within Dunster's Conservation Area and was associated with Castle Home Farmhouse. [4] The building was visited in April 2012 as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor's Listed Buildings 2012-13. It received a BAR score of 5A. [5] The kennels are depicted on 2018 MasterMap data but are not labelled. [6] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [7] The building is mentioned in the 2018 Conservation Area Appraisal for Dunster. [8] The kennels were assessed as part of the rapid condition survey of Exmoor’s Listed Buildings 2018-19, receiving a BAR score of 4A. [9]