Whitmore Hall is the home of the Cavenagh-Mainwaring family at Whitmore, Staffordshire. A Grade I listed building, the hall was designated a house of outstanding architectural and historical interest and is a fine example of a small Carolean style manor house.

Whitmore Hall
Whitmore Hall is located in Staffordshire
Whitmore Hall
Location within Staffordshire
General information
Architectural styleCarolean
LocationWhitmore, Staffordshire
CountryEngland
Coordinates52°58′06″N 02°16′58″W / 52.96833°N 2.28278°W / 52.96833; -2.28278
OwnerPrivate ownership, Cavenagh-Mainwaring family, formerly leased to Thomas Twyford

History

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By the time of the Norman Conquest, the manor of Whitmore was held by one Richard the Forester. Whitmore appears in Domesday Book and is valued at 10 shillings.[1] By 1204 it was owned by William Boterel, who was described as "Dominus de Whitmore juxta Nova Castrum sub Lina" (Lord of Whitmore near Newcastle-under-Lyme). The estate passed to the Mainwaring family in 1519, through the descendants of a Boterel heiress, Alice Boghay. Their descendants have owned the estate ever since. The Mainwarings of Whitmore are descended from the Mainwarings of Over-Peover, Cheshire (see the twentieth century Mainwaring Baronets). Five Edward Mainwarings served as High Sheriff of Staffordshire between 1645 and 1767.[2]

Today

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The house was leased out from about 1863 until the Cavenagh-Mainwaring family returned to occupation in the 1920s. One of the tenants, pottery manufacturer Thomas Twyford, occupied the hall for 30 years. The hall is a private residence. It is open to the public on two days per week between May and August.

Architecture

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The original hall was encased in red brick during the reign of Charles II and completed in about 1676. It has a balustraded frontage with nine bays and two storeys. There is a particularly well preserved Elizabethan stable block.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Pitt, p. 375
  2. ^ Dean et al. p. 21

Sources

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  • Pitt, William (1817). A Topographical History of Staffordshire. Newcastle-Under-Lyme: J. Smith.
  • Dean, John; Lucius, Piage; Slafter, Edmund; Colburn, Jeremiah; Trask, William; Waters, Henry; Edes, Henry (1995) [1879]. The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Vol. 33rd. Massachusetts: Heritage Books, inc. ISBN 9780788402937.
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52°58′6″N 2°16′58.9″W / 52.96833°N 2.283028°W / 52.96833; -2.283028