The Rookery, Nantwich

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For other uses, see Rookery (disambiguation).

The Rookery, 125 Hospital Street, Nantwich

The Rookery, or 125 Hospital Street, is a substantial Georgian townhouse in Nantwich, Cheshire, England. It is at the end of , on the north side, at the junction with Millstone Lane (at

 WikiMiniAtlas
SJ6558752192). The existing building dates from the mid-18th century and is listed at grade II; English Heritage describes it as "good" in the listing.[1] Nikolaus Pevsner describes it as "square and stately."[2] It incorporates an earlier timber-framed house at the rear, which probably dates from the late 16th or early 17th century.

The Rookery is one of a group of houses dating originally from the 15th and 16th centuries at the end of Hospital Street, which include Churche's Mansion, number 116 and numbers 140–142.[3] These buildings survived the fire of 1583, which destroyed the town end of Hospital Street together with much of the centre of Nantwich.[4] The Rookery is believed to stand near the site of the medieval Hospital of St Nicholas, which gives Hospital Street its name.[5]

Description[]

The Rookery is a large detached Georgian building of two storeys, in red brick with stone dressings under a tiled roof. The front façade faces Millstone Lane and is set well back from the street behind a brick wall. This face has two projecting end wings, with decorative stone quoins at each corner. The main central doorway is flanked by paired Roman Doric columns and has a fanlight and curved pediment above.[1][2] Two large three-light sash windows to the ground floor and three similar windows to the first floor all have wooden pilasters; the main doorway is also flanked by single-light windows.[1] On the interior, the main staircase is described as "good" by English Heritage.[1]

The existing building incorporates an earlier timber-framed house at the rear, which probably originally had a central hall and flanking wings.[1][6][7] Local historian Jeremy Lake has dated the roof timbers as late 16th or early 17th century.[6]

In 2015, after many years of neglect, The Rookery was acquired by local developer ISL who restored the building in line with its Grade II status. The works included underpinning to include a new waterproof structural floor, damp proofing, a roof renovation and strengthening with insulation, roof valleys were replaced with lead, a new internal structural timber frame and insulation. The building was completely repointed and missing bricks were replaced with new hand-made Cheshire bricks, the sash windows were renovated with new mechanisms and new hand-made casements and fitted with toughened glazing. As part of the renovation, The Rookery was converted into five apartments.[8]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e Historic England. "The Rookery, Nantwich (1249343)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  2. ^ a b Pevsner, p. 288
  3. ^ Lake, pp. 13, 41–44
  4. ^ Hall, p. 104
  5. ^ Hall, pp. 5, 48–53
  6. ^ a b Lake, p. 43
  7. ^ Simpson, plate 24
  8. ^ "The Rookery, Nantwich". ISL. Retrieved 15 May 2021.

Sources

  • Hall J. A History of the Town and Parish of Nantwich, or Wich Malbank, in the County Palatine of Chester (2nd edn) (E. J. Morten; 1972) (ISBN 0-901598-24-0)
  • Lake J. The Great Fire of Nantwich (Shiva Publishing; 1983) (ISBN 0 906812 57 7)
  • Pevsner N, Hubbard E. The Buildings of England: Cheshire (Penguin Books; 1971) (ISBN 0 14 071042 6)
  • Simpson R. Crewe and Nantwich: A Pictorial History (Phillimore; 1991) (ISBN 0 85033 724 0)

Coordinates: 53°03′57″N 2°30′54″W / 53.0658°N 2.5150°W / 53.0658; -2.5150

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