Hathershaw Hall is a 16th-17th century

Grade II* listed building 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 Ir ...

Hathershaw Hathershaw (or, archaically, Hathershaw Moor) is an urban area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It occupies a hillside to the immediate south of Oldham town centre, and is bordered by the districts of Coppice and Fitton Hill to, respect ...

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...

, England. The present structure is the single surviving range of a once considerably larger manor house. It is situated in what was the

historic History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

county of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

Description

Hathershaw Hall is a long, low, two-storey stone house standing back from Hollins Road; it faces south across an open space surrounded by a dry-stone wall. It comprises two distinct sections, the older is believed to date from the close of the 16th century, the more recently constructed eastern end the result of a rebuild a century later. The original section is of unremarkable vernacular architecture and difficult to date accurately. The site was occupied by a

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

in the 15th century, and part of the hall's structure may be from that building. Its older portion is about 54 feet in length with a slightly projecting wing at the west end. The east end appears to have been rebuilt in 1694 in a more regular and grander manner. It is taller with

quoins Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th century encyclopedia, t ...

at the angles and square-headed two-light windows, each with a centre

mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

and transoms. The floor-line is marked by a string course below which the walling is of large square blocks, and above it of narrower stones. This portion of the building is about 38 feet long. The roofs of the two parts are at different levels, and covered with grey stone slates and stone ridge tiles. The gable ends are surmounted by ball-shaped, ornamental stone finials retained from the original structure.

History

The present building is a fragment of a more extensive complex of buildings, most probably arranged around a central courtyard. Following abandonment by wealthy owners, much of the original hall was demolished and the remaining portion was divided into five cottages. When the hall was divided into cottages many traces of its original appearance were lost. It was in a decayed condition in 1826. By repute the hall was the home of a 17th-century

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

family who lost part of its possessions as a result of the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. For many generations it was the home of the Sandford, or Sandiford, family.''The Builder'' Vol. 59, 1890, p. 13 The Sandfords owned the house in the 17th century and were presumably Royalists. In the 18th century it was acquired by the Sidebottoms and Alexander Radclyffe Sidebottom was the owner in 1856. In the 1970s the building was extensively renovated and many changes made when the hall was divided into cottages were reversed. It now comprises a large house with the westernmost portion a separate cottage; the whole building privately owned. Hathershaw Hall is one of very few buildings in Oldham built before the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

References

{{Reflist

External links

Description with a photograph of Hathershaw Hall
Houses in Greater Manchester Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester