The gatehouse was at the E end of the outer court, and gave access to the inner or great court in front of the abbey buildings (Gilyard-Beer 1970, 73-4). It was built in the 13th century, but vault corbels are included here as they may help interpret the Transitional overlap.
Writing in 1970, Gilyard-Beer stated 'The lower parts of its walls are now buried, and the only remains now visible are the upper parts of the north and south walls of the gate passage... this was vaulted throughout.' (Gilyard-Beer 1970, 73-4). To the S, an equally long building was the porter's lodge; this too was vaulted.
By the time of the second site visit in 2015, a building to the E end of the N wall had been converted to display information about the abbey. No stonework was displayed at that time. It is called the Porter's Lodge.
For further information, bibliography, etc, see report for Fountains Abbey, church.