Daresbury Hall is a former Georgian country house in the village of Daresbury, Cheshire, England. It was built in 1759 for George Heron.[1] The house is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.[2] The mansion was badly damaged by fire in 2016.
History
editBuilt in 1759 for George Heron,[1] the hall descended in the Heron family until 1850, when it became the property of Samuel Beckett Chadwick. By 1892 it had been acquired by Sir Gilbert Greenall, later Baron Daresbury.[citation needed]
During the Second World War it was used as a military hospital and for some years from 1955 by a charity, now known as Scope, as a residential home for handicapped people.[3]
It became semi-derelict after being bought by a millionaire who died before restoration could take place. In April 2015, a large cannabis farm containing six hundred plants with an estimated street value of £750,000 was discovered in an annex at the estate.[4] In 2016 there were plans to partly demolish and convert the house but in June of that year the empty building was badly damaged by fire.[5][6]
Description
editThe house is constructed in a Georgian style in brown brick with stone dressings, and has a slate roof.[2] It has three storeys and seven bays with a stone plinth and stone bands between the storeys. Framing the middle three bays are rusticated pilasters, and similar quoins at the corners. All the windows are sash windows. Along the top of the house is a plain parapet, with a pediment above the central three bays.[2]
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b de Figueiredo, Peter; Treuherz, Julian (1988), Cheshire Country Houses, Chichester: Phillimore, p. 227, ISBN 0-85033-655-4
- ^ a b c Historic England, "Daresbury Hall (1330337)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 29 July 2012
- ^ Daresbury Parish Plan (PDF), Daresbury Parish Council, 2007, p. 7, archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2011, retrieved 16 June 2011
- ^ Huge cannabis haul found at Cheshire mansion, ITV, 28 April 2015, retrieved 30 June 2016
- ^ "Fire crews tackle huge blaze at historic abandoned stately home". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 27 June 2016.
- ^ Parry, Josh (28 June 2016), "Daresbury Hall drone footage reveals shocking scale of fire damage", Liverpool Echo, retrieved 30 June 2016
Further reading
edit- Hartwell, Clare; Hyde, Matthew; Hubbard, Edward; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2011) [1971], Cheshire, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, p. 325, ISBN 978-0-300-17043-6