Tulketh Hall was a country house in

Ashton-on-Ribble Ashton-on-Ribble is a suburb of Preston, Lancashire, England. The population at the 2011 census was 4,459. Ashton-on-Ribble was recorded in the ''Domesday Book''. Demographics The 2011 census records the ward's population at 4,459; in 2001 the ...

, which is now a suburb of Preston,

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 Lancashi ...

, England. It was demolished in 1960.

History

In the 12th century, Tulketh was the location of Tulketh Priory where a group of monks from

Savigny Abbey Savigny Abbey (''Abbaye de Savigny'') was a monastery near the village of Savigny-le-Vieux (Manche), in northern France. It was founded early in the 12th century. Initially it was the central house of the Congregation of Savigny, who were Benedi ...

, Normandy, lived until they moved to

Furness Abbey Furness Abbey, or St. Mary of Furness, is a former Catholic monastery located to the north of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. The abbey dates back to 1123 and was once the second-wealthiest and most powerful Cistercian monastery in the coun ...

in 1127. Documentary evidence of a hall at Tulketh dates from the 14th century, when it was inhabited by Laurence Travers, a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

. In the 17th and 18th centuries, Tulketh was the home of at least three families—the Werden family, the Rawstorne family and then the Hesketh family. It was remodelled in the 17th century by Roger Hesketh (d. 1791) in the 18th century. In the 19th century, the exterior was

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

ed, although 18th century interior elements were kept. The building had

battlement A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

s and a tower, which was also castellated. By 1844, Tulketh Hall was in the possession of

Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood Sir Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood, 1st Baronet, (9 May 1801 – 12 April 1866) was an English landowner, developer and Member of Parliament, who founded the town of Fleetwood, in Lancashire, England. Born Peter Hesketh, he changed his name by ...

. Along with most of the rest of his property, Hesketh-Fleetwood sold Tulketh in the 1840s to cover his debts. It was bought by a Preston solicitor, and then the Rev. Thomas Johnson; the hall was then used as a

vicarage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of religion. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, parsonage, rectory or vicarage. Function A clergy house is typically own ...

for St Mark's Church. It was remodelled again around this time. In 1898 the hall was bought by the Catholic

Brothers of Charity The Brothers of Charity are an international religious institute of Religious Brothers and associate members at the service of the people most in need in the field of education and health care. The institute was founded in 1807 by Peter Joseph T ...

as a "home for working boys" and a home for "infirm and afflicted boys", but by 1901 had been converted to St Thomas's Home Industrial School for Roman Catholic Boys. After a troubled history in which an unusually high number of the boys and staff died from various serious illnesses the school closed in 1924. Later, it served as the offices for

Tulketh Mill Tulketh Mill is an Edwardian former Cotton mill, cotton-spinning mill in Balcarres Road, Tulketh, Preston, Lancashire, Preston, Lancashire, England. It was designed by Fred Dixon (architect), Fred Dixon of Oldham and built for the Tulketh Spinnin ...

. After the Second World War the house was used as an Army Infantry Records Office until the building was damaged by fire in 1952. Tulketh Hall was demolished in 1960. The site has been developed for housing (Tulketh Crescent and Hesketh St).

References

;Footnotes ;Bibliography * * * * {{City of Preston buildings Former country houses in England Buildings and structures in Preston Demolished buildings and structures in England Country houses in Lancashire British country houses destroyed in the 20th century Tulketh Buildings and structures demolished in 1960