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The barn that has been dismantled and moved twice

Darren Rozier,BBC News, Suffolk, Hoxneand
Alice Cunningham,BBC News, Suffolk
News imageDarren Rozier/BBC A general view of the outside of the home. It has a red roof and is covered in grey panels. It has a garage and a gravel driveway. Darren Rozier/BBC
The barn has since been converted in a home and is now up for sale

A man who bought a 16th Century barn has dismantled and moved it to two separate locations before converting it into a house.

Harry Bowden, first bought the barn from a farm in Walsham le Willows in Suffolk, in 1989.

He had planned to make use of the wood for barn conversions he was working on, but decided to rebuild it along the A143, in Palgrave, with a view to finding a buyer.

When it did not sell, he dismantled it again before moving it to the current site in Hoxne where he has converted it into a home.

News imageDarren Rozier/BBC Harry Bowden smiles at the camera in the doorway of the barn conversion. He has grey hair and wears a white T-shirt. Darren Rozier/BBC
Builder Harry Bowden said the barn still included the original oak and just had three new pieces

"As builders in Diss, we were doing an awful lot of barn conversions," Mr Bowden said.

"Farmers at the time had old barns for sale and we needed parts for barn conversions.

"This barn came available and we paid an amount for it, then proceeded to take it down.

"It was just a normal, old barn, in the middle of a farmyard... totally redundant for modern farming."

News imageDarren Rozier/BBC Mr Bowden smiles at the camera standing in the doorway of his home. He wears a white T-shirt with beige shorts.Darren Rozier/BBC
Mr Bowden said he felt the home was worthy of a listing

Mr Bowden said that during its first dismantling he noticed it "came apart very well" and it was put into storage with an aim to use the wood for other projects.

He decided not to use it in other buildings and instead rebuilt it in Palgrave in 1999-2000 with a view to selling it for £25,000.

It did not sell and it was once again dismantled and placed into storage.

News imageDarren Rozier/BBC A look inside part of the converted barn home. Wooden beams can be seen around the roof as well as a wooden staircase. Darren Rozier/BBC
Mr Bowden was confident the home would sell

"Eventually this site of Hoxne came along and here it is," Mr Bowden continued.

"It fits across the site fantastically; this position for this barn is where it should be.

"It's definitely its final resting place from my point of view."

News imageDarren Rozier/BBC A view of the barn's wooden staircase. It is framed by wooden beams.Darren Rozier/BBC
The general frame of the building has not changed but some extensions had been added

Mr Bowden converted it into a four-bedroom home which is now up for sale for £825,000.

"Every part is numbered, you take pictures, you do drawings and record everything you possibly can for the future," he said of the rebuild.

"There's only three pieces of new oak on this barn and that is the sole plate all the way around and two wall plates.

"It's humbling from the point of view of trying to get any screws and nails into it because it is rock hard."

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