Building record 197/2 - Willaston Hall

<1> English Heritage, 2005, List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest, 57014 (Digital Archive). SCH4666.

Small country house. 1737 for John Bailey with early nineteenth century additions and alterations. Red Flemish bond brick with painted ashlar dressings and a tile roof. Two storeys with an attic to the central portion. Entrance front: The front was heavily remodelled in the early nineteenth century. At this time the lateral, slightly recessed, wings were added as was the walling to the attic storey although the original roof appears to have been maintained, the dormer construction of the windows being masked by a curtain wall. At the same time the number of bays in the central block was reduced from five to three retaining the central first floor window and imitating its form to either side. There is a slightly projecting plinth common to the whole façade but with a moulded top to the central three bays. Chamfered quoins to the corners of the central portion and of the lateral wings. Central doorway above a flight of four twentieth century steps with a 6-panel twentieth century door and a panelled stone surround with a pediment supported by consoles and the projecting keystone. To either side are early nineteenth century tripartite windows with central lights of 3 x 4 panes and lateral lights of 1 x 4 panes. These have panelled wooden surrounds. Band between ground and first floor which has three windows of 3 x 4 sash panes and moulded stone sills and flat-arched heads with central keystones. Moulded cornice above this, originally terminating the wall. The attic has three windows of 3 x 3 panes with flat-arched heads similar to those at first floor level. Moulded stone coping to the brick parapet which has a central gadrooned and spiral-fluted urn with a gadrooned lip and simpler gadrooned and fluted urns to the corners. The hipped roof has two lateral chimney stacks of square section of c.1737 having a recessed arched panel to the centre of each side with stone springers and keystones. To either side are the early nineteenth century wings which have windows similar to those at the centre but with pedimented heads. To the first floor are sash windows of 3 x 4 panes. There is a band below the brick parapet which has a similar coping and corner urns as the central block. To the inner angles of these lateral wings are displaced rainwater heads with JOB/1737 in relief presumably originally attached to the sides of the house. The left hand side has a later nineteenth century canted bay window to the ground floor. The right hand side has three ground floor windows each of 3 x 5 panes with marble steps below and 3 first floor windows of 3 x 4 panes. The rear has two joined gables with early nineteenth century brickwork filling the lower part of the valley. To the ground floor at either side are cambered bow windows with semi-conical roofs. Interior: Pine 6-panel doors to the ground floor. The library has raised and fielded panelling and a twentieth century fireplace flanked by female terms with a sunburst over. Two of the upstairs rooms have bolection moulded eighteenth century panelling and painted stone fire-surrounds with projecting fluted keystones.

<2> Hartwell C, Hyde M, Hubbard E & Pevsner N, 2011, The Buildings of England: Cheshire (2011 revision), p.683 (Book). SCH7059.

This is a refronting of a house c.1700 undertaken in 1737. The parapet conceals the gabled dormers of the older buidling. The wings were added in 1833 and 1838. the staircase could be from 1713 or 1737, though the latter is more probable.