Overstone Hall, Northamptonshire - Dec 2012

[steve2109]

This has been on my list of to do sites for a while and this weekend decided to tick it off as other explores would require a boat to get to due to the current rain !! I gave UE-OMJ a call to see if he wanted a post xmas explore and off we went.

The Hall is completely gutted and incredibly dangerous as OMJ found out when steadying himself on a staircase only to have the structure he was holding fall off in his hand ! It must have been an impressive sight before the fire devastated it. The Cellars are all intact and we spent the majority of time in there (less chance of being hit with falling masonry).

Part of the Hall is still occupied by New Testament Church of God.

A brief History then the pics:

The Hall was designed in 1860 for Lord and Lady Overstone by William Milford Teulon but it took so long to build that Lady Overstone died before it was completed.

For its time, Overstone Hall was highly advanced, built with double walls, giving it the earliest known cavity wall insulation. It also had a central heating system called Mr Price’s Apparatus, gas lighting and a butler’s lift.

In the early 20th century it was rented by a shipping magnate who entertained lavishly, then it became a college, a girls’ public school until 1979 when it passed through speculators to the New Testament Church of God for £100,000 in 1980.

The fire a decade ago left more than half the building gutted, including the fabulous carved wooden staircase, the library, parquet flooring and massive oak timbers carved with fruits and flowers.

Since then it has gently rotted.

 

[urban phantom]

that looks amazing great pictures thanks for sharing

 

[UE-OMJ]

And a few from me....

Cheers...

 

[Pen15]

Nice to see this site again. Well done to you both on capturing the remaining spirit of the place!!

 

[flyboys90]

Beautiful building and very interesting cellers,thanks for sharing both of you.

 

[perjury saint]

Good stuff you pair! Those cellars look ACE!

 

[ZerO81]

You certainly tell that it was once a grand ol place!

Nice shots both of you, cheers for posting

 

[shot_in_the_dark]

ace shots from both of you. really impressive looking place, even as a shell.

 

[Chris34]

Very nicely captured guys, puts my pics to shame. I saw a little of this place before it burnt down, sad to see it's so ruined. "PreciousStones" on here has a campaign on to try and save this place; there's a link in my signature, the best of British to her

 

[MrDan]

The first few photos look like a movie set! Amazing place and a shame about the fire. I wonder what the future holds for Overstone Hall.

 

[UrbanX]

Lovely photos both of you, place is still looking good hats off to ya!

 

[PreciousStones]

Your shots are great guys, we appreciate your efforts to capture what is left of Overstone. However we are campaiging to preserve this house and as you found out yourself the house is in a very dangerous and perilous state. Half of the house is derelict from the fire but it is not abandoned entirely. It has people living in the undamaged wing who will contact the police should trespassers enter the house. The fence is around the house to prevent vandals and trespassers from breaking in and damaging the masonry and what is left of the orginal features further. We as a group are at present in negotiations with the owners for permenant security on site which will include sensory and audible intruder security lighting and alarms, inside and outside the perimeter, CCTV, recorded surveillance 24/7 and security guards patrols with dogs.

If you appreciate Victorian architecture and genuinely would like to see Overstone House have a future then you are welcome to join our group. We will have open days where with guidance of our builders you can legally enter the house and take photographs of what is left of this once majestic beauty. As for your quote ' If there is a fence around it then it must be worth looking at'. The fence is round it to keep vandals and trespassers out and to protect the house from further damage. The house is still owned and is Private Property. So far the house has been broken into twelve times in six months, we have had everything from drunken raves in the dining room, graffiti on original Victorian plasterwork, every bespoke original marble fireplace butchered and stolen, copper and lead wiring ripped out, lead repeatedly stolen from the roof, original sash windows smashed, a 'weed' factory growing in a maids bedroom and just six weeks ago, kids broke in and set light to the formers servants hall destroying the original features such as bell pulleys and burning through to the bedroom above and this was in the 'Undamaged' part of the house. A lovely way to treat a majestic house ! This is why there is a fence around it and why security has been put in place. So if you do genuinely appreciate what we are attempting to achieve with Overstone House then please by all means join us before there is nothing left to photograph.

www.facebook.com/OverstoneHouseActionGroup

 

[UE-OMJ]

@ PreciousStones All I am going to say as a response is that we (explorers) follow a strict code, we do not damage or steal and we DO NOT break in. Had the side been secure we would have walked away...

I also want to say I joined your facebook group earlier before you posted

 

[sweet pea]

well said omj

 

[UrbanX]

Your shots are great guys, we appreciate your efforts to capture what is left of Overstone. However we are campaiging to preserve this house and as you found out yourself the house is in a very dangerous and perilous state. Half of the house is derelict from the fire but it is not abandoned entirely. It has people living in the undamaged wing who will contact the police should trespassers enter the house. The fence is around the house to prevent vandals and trespassers from breaking in and damaging the masonry and what is left of the orginal features further. We as a group are at present in negotiations with the owners for permenant security on site which will include sensory and audible intruder security lighting and alarms, inside and outside the perimeter, CCTV, recorded surveillance 24/7 and security guards patrols with dogs.

If you appreciate Victorian architecture and genuinely would like to see Overstone House have a future then you are welcome to join our group. We will have open days where with guidance of our builders you can legally enter the house and take photographs of what is left of this once majestic beauty. As for your quote ' If there is a fence around it then it must be worth looking at'. The fence is round it to keep vandals and trespassers out and to protect the house from further damage. The house is still owned and is Private Property. So far the house has been broken into twelve times in six months, we have had everything from drunken raves in the dining room, graffiti on original Victorian plasterwork, every bespoke original marble fireplace butchered and stolen, copper and lead wiring ripped out, lead repeatedly stolen from the roof, original sash windows smashed, a 'weed' factory growing in a maids bedroom and just six weeks ago, kids broke in and set light to the formers servants hall destroying the original features such as bell pulleys and burning through to the bedroom above and this was in the 'Undamaged' part of the house. A lovely way to treat a majestic house ! This is why there is a fence around it and why security has been put in place. So if you do genuinely appreciate what we are attempting to achieve with Overstone House then please by all means join us before there is nothing left to photograph.

www.facebook.com/OverstoneHouseActionGroup

Its sad to hear about the damage. Although I'm sure you know the score with us lot (hence you've used a lot of our images to raise awareness of your campaign)

 

[PreciousStones]

@ PreciousStones All I am going to say as a response is that we (explorers) follow a strict code, we do not damage or steal and we DO NOT break in. Had the side been secure we would have walked away...

I also want to say I joined your facebook group earlier before you posted

Thank you for joining our group, I am not saying that Urbexers are vandals, (most of our photo's we have are from various Urbexers, who have now joined our group too and without whom we would not know what is left inside the house) Just that the site is unsafe, especially the fire escape and falling masonry as you are aware the house is in a dangerous and perilous state. The house however has recently had serious bouts of vandalism done to it and for this reason we will shortly have security in place and the site will be secure. As I said we are currently liasing with the owners on securing the house. We will be holding open days shortly where group members will have access to the inside 'undamaged' parts of the house where safe with our builders as guides.


www.facebook.com/OverstoneHouseActionGroup

 

[PreciousStones]

Its sad to hear about the damage. Although I'm sure you know the score with us lot (hence you've used a lot of our images to raise awareness of your campaign)

I certainly do know and am very grateful for the fantastic photo's. As I said the Urbexers I contacted helped me raise awareness of our campaign and joined the group. Sadly there are a lot of vandals who do not appreciate the historical beauty of the place and it's because of this we have had to post that the house will soon be secure. As I mentioned for those in the group who wish to view inside we will be holding open days where you will be welcome to come along and photograph to your hearts content.

Thanks for your help

Kerry

www.facebook.com/OverstoneHouseActionGroup

 

[Ramsgatonian]

That fire escape looks sketchy, it is reminiscent of the one at Millennium Mills - but less rusty!

This place looks creepy!