Rushden Hall - Rushden, Northamptonshire, UK - Pre-Victorian Historic Homes on Waymarking.com

The oldest part of Rushden Hall lies in the south and the east front dates to the Jacobean period. Parts of the hall are as early as the 14th century with the east front having Dutch gables from the 1600s. Listed Building details can be viewed here visit link

A brief synopsis of Rushden Hall can be seen on Wikipedia: visit link

'Rushden Hall is the oldest domestic building in the town, once owned by many families throughout the year including the Sartoris family and the Pembertons family. The hall now functions as the head office of the town council and some rooms are available for hiring. It lies in 32 acres (130,000 m2) of land which now is a public park (Hall Park).'

Rushden Research Group has an excellent article here: visit link

'Though a private Manor, Rushden Hall, as early as the 13C appears to have been associated with officers of Higham Park or Castle and later with John of Gaunt, son of Edward III.

Robert Pemberton 1461, first of the family which occupied the Hall for 200 years, M.P. for Northampton 1477-8, High Sheriff in 1480, Usher of the Chamber to Richard III.

Robert Pemberton 1542-1609, Gentleman Usher to Elizabeth I, his brother Sir Goddard Pemberton M.P. for Lewes and High Sheriff of Hertfordshire, (their fine tombs to be seen in St. Mary's Church).

Sir Lewis Pemberton High Sheriff of Northamptonshire in 1616, died 1639, the last of the family to live at the Hall which became the home of John Ekins of Chester House, Irchester, a family with Parliamentarian sympathies, his grandson, another John, died in 1740.

The Fletcher family first recorded in 1755, Thomas Fletcher seems to have typified the Georgian 'Squire', hunting and shooting with a liking for horse racing, John Fletcher sold the Hall for 'the benefit of creditors' in 1836.

Thomas Williams, a man with a considerable fortune came from Berkshire and was in residence in 1822, High Sheriff in 1829, married twice he fathered some twenty one children and died at Windsor in 1881 aged 85 years.

The last family to occupy the Hall as a home appear in about 1840, when the newly married Frederick Urban and Mary Ann Sartoris took up residence, their grandson, Arthur Hugh Sartoris inherited the Estate, selling the property in 1929.

Rushden Urban District Council purchasing in 1931 from Mr John Todd.

The Hall architecturally, is a complex mixture of styles both internally and externally — the early 16C arches within the Front Hall survive from the Great Hall of the Tudor house. The fine east front with its 'Dutch' gables and semi-circular bay windows, being post-Jacobean were probably built by Sir Lewis Pemberton, about 1630. Thomas Williams between 1820-30 carried out many alterations, adding the centre bay to the east front and re-modelling the south front, erecting the embattled porch (from elsewhere) and dividing the Great Hall into other rooms, incorporating the arms of Williams, Bcrthon and Cunningham into the ceiling of the Front Hall, the old Lodge and gates were of this period. F U Sartoris added the two gabled projections to the north-west incorporating a new kitchen and servants quarters, a second bay on the south front and the stable block.

Internally the two staircases possess original 17C balustrades though reconstructed, the linenfold panelling and 'Flemish' overmantle were brought from Bristol, the fire-back beneath depicts the arms of Edward VI and came from Higham Castle.

The wall surrounding the old kitchen garden is worthy of note being built without mortar, according to Cole 'the engagement entered into with the builder, was, that it should be erected without lime or soft mixture of any kind, and that, if even a bee could creep in between the interstices, the contract should be void'.'

Earliest Recorded Date of Construction: 01/01/1350 Additional Dates of Construction: Sir Lewis Pemberton rebuilt Rushden Hall in the 1600s with his father Robert Pemberton. Information available thanks to Pevsner: 19th century alterations with square bay-windows to the south. Identical semicircular bay to the wings added in the centre in the 19th century. In 1820 Thomas Williams reconstructed the hall unfortunately losing some aspects. Talbot Brown, Panter & Partners restored and converted the hall in 1970. Today it is divided into flats, a refreshment room and a public hall. Architectural Period/Style: Medieval Type of Building e.g. Country House, Stately Home, Manor: Manor House Interesting Historical Facts or Connections: 13th century to 1929 saw local squires own the hall with the Pembertons, the Ekins, Fletcher and Sartoris families of particular importance. About 1460 Robert Pemberton became associated with the hall. He was the MP for Northampton, the High Sheriff and the usher of the chamber to Richard III. During Elizabeth I's reign his grandson Robert Pemberton lived here and he was one of her ushers. Robert's son Sir Lewis Pemberton was the High Sheriff of Northamptonshire and he was the last member of the family to live here until he died in 1639. After the Civil War John Ekins owned the hall, he was a parliamentarian from Chester House, Irchester. His family continued to live here until 1740. From 1755 until the 1820s the Fletcher family owned the hall. A room is named after Mr Fletcher when as he was warming himself by the fire a powder horn in his pocket exploded shattering the windows but not harming himself. Rushden Hall was owned by Thomas Williams in 1820 until the Sartoris family lived here from 1840 to 1929. The hall was sold in 1929 by Arthur Hugh Sartoris. He was the last member of his family to own the hall the first being Frederick Urban Sartoris. Rushden Urban District Council purchsed the hall in 1931 from Mr John Todd. Listed Building Status (if applicable): Grade II Listed on 9th December 1949 Main Material of Construction: Local limestone with a clay tile roof Private/Public Access: Private with a Public Hall in a Public Park Opening Hours (if applicable): From: 12:00 AM To: 12:00 AM Related Website: [Web Link] Rating: Architect (if known): Not listed Landscape Designer (if known): Not listed Admission Fee (if applicable): Not Listed

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