- Joined
- May 26, 2009
- Messages
- 111
- Reaction score
- 395
Woodchester Mansion is a country manor house that was never completted. The original plans for the house were drawn up by Augustus Pugin, who fell ill before he finished them, so Charles Hansom then took over as architect. The manor grounds were landscaped by John Speyers and Capability Brown.
William Leigh started building his new manor house between 1858 to 1870, but as William Leigh died in 1873 all building work stopped suddenly. Rooms were left as they were and the doors closed. Other members of the family either did not want to finish the house or could not afford to do so. It remained closed for the next 61 years when the American army used it for a short while, just before D-Day. It then was closed up apart from a few ground floor rooms being used as a cattle shed! The Mansion is now in the hands of a restoration trust who aim to preserve the building, but NOT finish it. The trust open the house to the public for a few days a year, and this weekend is one of them!
'Most Haunted Live' have shown a number of TV programmes for the mansion.
The front door.
The back of the Mansion, or Chaple end. Note: many of the windows have never had any glass in them.
Inside, looking up over three floors. The arch wooden 'scaffold' it the builder's original, and has never been removed.
The start of a vaulted ceiling, the ladder has been there since 1873 left by a builder!
Doors that lead nowhere, with no floors.
Fireplaces with no rooms or floors, halfway up the walls.
This room was used as a cow shed!
Cows were ties up here.
Looking from room to room, with no glass in the windows the light is amazing.
An incomplette staircase, note the stone ceiling bosses have only been rough carved.
The detail. The stonework is of the highest quality. Some of the paper pattens for these arches from 1868 were found on site.
My little Ubexer having an explore of his own!
From the first floor.
The floor is unfinished, and you can seen the vaulted ceiling from the room below.
Down tools and leave!
Stone bath.
Hot and Cold taps???
Inside of the roof, note the builder initals and 1856!
I hope you like the pics!
N.
William Leigh started building his new manor house between 1858 to 1870, but as William Leigh died in 1873 all building work stopped suddenly. Rooms were left as they were and the doors closed. Other members of the family either did not want to finish the house or could not afford to do so. It remained closed for the next 61 years when the American army used it for a short while, just before D-Day. It then was closed up apart from a few ground floor rooms being used as a cattle shed! The Mansion is now in the hands of a restoration trust who aim to preserve the building, but NOT finish it. The trust open the house to the public for a few days a year, and this weekend is one of them!
'Most Haunted Live' have shown a number of TV programmes for the mansion.
The front door.
The back of the Mansion, or Chaple end. Note: many of the windows have never had any glass in them.
Inside, looking up over three floors. The arch wooden 'scaffold' it the builder's original, and has never been removed.
The start of a vaulted ceiling, the ladder has been there since 1873 left by a builder!
Doors that lead nowhere, with no floors.
Fireplaces with no rooms or floors, halfway up the walls.
This room was used as a cow shed!
Cows were ties up here.
Looking from room to room, with no glass in the windows the light is amazing.
An incomplette staircase, note the stone ceiling bosses have only been rough carved.
The detail. The stonework is of the highest quality. Some of the paper pattens for these arches from 1868 were found on site.
My little Ubexer having an explore of his own!
From the first floor.
The floor is unfinished, and you can seen the vaulted ceiling from the room below.
Down tools and leave!
Stone bath.
Hot and Cold taps???
Inside of the roof, note the builder initals and 1856!
I hope you like the pics!
N.
Last edited: