7 Hammersmith Terrace is an historic house in the

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

borough of

Hammersmith and Fulham The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham () is a London borough in West London and which also forms part of Inner London. The borough was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former Metropolitan Boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham. The bor ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and the former home of English engraver and printer

Emery Walker Sir Emery Walker FSA (2 April 1851 – 22 July 1933) was an English engraver, photographer and printer. Walker took an active role in many organisations that were at the heart of the Arts and Crafts movement, including the Art Workers G ...

. Walker was an important figure in the English Arts and Crafts movement, and a close friend of textile designer

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

, who lived nearby. During his life, Walker furnished the home in an Arts and Crafts style, reflecting his friendships with Morris and others. The terraced house is a

Grade II* In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

listed building. It is four storeys tall, two windows wide with a Doric porch and built of brown brick with stucco to the ground floor. A blue plaque was erected by

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

. After Walker's death, his daughter Dorothy sought to preserve the interior of the house, while adding further items from the Morris family. As a result of this preservation work, the house now offers a unique example of an Arts and Crafts interior, preserved almost as it was during the life of its former inhabitant. The property is under the ownership of the Emery Walker Trust, a registered charity, who describe it as "the last authentic Arts and Crafts interior in Britain". The house may be visited through prebooked guided tours. Hammersmith Terrace is located immediately off the A4 road, west of

Hammersmith Broadway Hammersmith Broadway is a major transport node and shopping centre in Hammersmith, London. History The shopping centre opened in 1994, on the site of many now-demolished buildings, including The Clarendon Hotel (a music venue) and Palmers De ...

History

The seventeen houses on Hammersmith Terrace were built c. 1755, offering a cheaper alternative to more central London housing. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the Terrace was home to several artists and creative professionals, including the actor F. G. Stephens and

calligrapher Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

Edward Johnston Edward Johnston, CBE (11 February 1872 – 26 November 1944) was a British craftsman who is regarded, with Rudolf Koch, as the father of modern calligraphy, in the particular form of the broad-edged pen as a writing tool. He is most fa ...

. Emery Walker moved into number 7 with his wife and children in 1903, having spent the previous 24 years living at 3 Hammersmith Terrace. When Walker died in 1933, ownership of the property passed to his daughter Dorothy, who attempted to preserve the house and its contents. Upon her death in 1963, the house became the property of Dorothy's nurse-companion, Elizabeth de Hass. She followed Dorothy's attempts to preserve the house, which consequently remained in a similar state to when Walker was alive. Before her death in 1999, de Hass approached experts at various institutions, with a view to setting up a trust to continue managing the property. The Emery Walker Trust was established in February 1999, using money raised by selling print items in Walker's private collection. This Trust subsequently gained ownership of the house.

Present day

The Emery Walker Trust opened the house to the public for the first time in April 2005. Initially, there were fears that financial constraints would prevent future openings, but the house offers prebooked guided tours to individuals and groups each summer since. The house has a blue plaque to commemorate the life of its former resident.

Interior

The house has an Arts and Crafts interior that has changed little since Walker resided at the property, owing to the preservation work of his daughter and her nurse-companion. In particular, the house and contents bear witness to Walker's friendship with the textile designer

, who lived nearby. Walker and Morris became friends after Walker had first moved to Hammersmith Terrace, and the relationship between the families continued after Morris's death, with frequent visits to each other's homes. Morris's daughter

May May is the fifth month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars and is the third of seven months to have a length of 31 days. May is a month of spring in the Northern Hemisphere, and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. Therefore, May ...

contributed several items to the Walker household after her father's death in 1896, whether given to Emery himself or to his daughter Dorothy when she inherited the property. The

linoleum Linoleum, sometimes shortened to lino, is a floor covering made from materials such as solidified linseed oil (linoxyn), pine resin, ground cork dust, sawdust, and mineral fillers such as calcium carbonate, most commonly on a burlap or canva ...

in the entrance-way was a Morris design, and is the only known example of a Morris linoleum still in its original domestic setting. The property also features patterned wall-hangings and a blue flatweave rug from the Morris household, the latter bought by Dorothy at a house contents sale in 1939. There are also a few personal items belonging to Morris, including his spectacles and a lock of his hair. Other items within the house also came from individuals connected with the Arts and Crafts movement. When the architect

Philip Webb Philip Speakman Webb (12 January 1831 – 17 April 1915) was a British architect and designer sometimes called the Father of Arts and Crafts Architecture. His use of vernacular architecture demonstrated his commitment to "the art of commo ...

died, Walker inherited all of his possessions, including items of furniture that are still in the property. The

drawing room A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained, and an alternative name for a living room. The name is derived from the 16th-century terms withdrawing room and withdrawing chamber, which remained in use through the 17th cent ...

of the house contains a secretaire designed by Ernest Barnsley. The house's inventory also includes documents, such as an original proof of '' The Earthly Paradise'' by Morris and letters from

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

, and a teapot belonging to

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti (), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoo ...

. Miscellaneous personal possessions of Walker's also remain in the house, including souvenirs from his voyages abroad, and his 1933

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

membership card. Artworks include two oil paintings by Samuel Butler, better known as a novelist, of Soglio and

Westminster School (God Gives the Increase) , established = Earliest records date from the 14th century, refounded in 1560 , type = Public school Independent day and boarding school , religion = Church of England , head_label = Hea ...

; ''Christmas Roses'' an oil by Anna Hornby; and an oil painting by

Neville Bulwer-Lytton, 3rd Earl of Lytton Neville Stephen Bulwer-Lytton, 3rd Earl of Lytton, OBE (6 February 1879 – 9 February 1951) was a British military officer, Olympian and artist. Early life Neville Lytton was born in British India on 6 February 1879 while his parents ...

of his daughter ''Madeline''.

References

External links

*
BBC Radio 4 programme on the house
broadcast 28 January 2005. {{Coord, 51.489823, -0.242515, type:landmark_region:GB-HMF, display=title Historic house museums in London Arts and Crafts movement Houses in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Museums in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Grade II* listed buildings in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham