In the years leading up to dissolution, Coverham Abbey had been reduced to a modest size with fewer than a dozen monks, whose lands and comforts were managed by their monastic
bailiff, Edward Loftus, father of the future
Archbishop Adam Loftus. Early in 1536, the King’s receiver William Blytheman, assisted by the Abbey's last
seneschal Thomas Wraye, sent inspectors to the Abbey to search for misdemeanours, record rents and compile an inventory of possessions, no doubt ably assisted by Loftus. By April, the Abbot was granted a pension, the monks offered the chance to recant their vows and the monastery was stripped of all value, including “
781 oz. of silver plate and 3 oz. Gold” included 6 brass bells and all the lead stripped from the roofs. What was left was sold to
Humphrey Orme twenty years later and rapidly fell into ruin. The principal surviving remains include the ruins of the church and the guesthouse, which were incorporated into two houses:
Garth Cottage, and another house built on the site in 1674. This was replaced in the late 18th century by the current building known as Coverham Abbey House but still retains the surviving monastic features. It is in stone, and has a stone slate roof with stone
copings and shaped kneelers. There are two storeys and an L-shaped plan, with a main range of five
bays. On the south front is a
Doric doorway with an
entablature, a
fanlight and an open
pediment. The windows are
sashes, the window above the door is tripartite and has a
moulded hood mould. The older range is lower and on the east front is a long Latin inscription. The ruins of the
gatehouse at the entry to the grounds of Coverham Abbey are in stone with a stone slate roof, and consist of an archway and flanking gatehouse buildings. The arch is semicircular with two
chamfered orders and
moulded imposts. The buildings each has a small vent and a chamfered window, and the sides have been converted into
barrel vaulted chambers for animal shelters. == Burials ==