Birley Old Hall is a small English country house situated in the Birley Edge area of the City of

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

, England. The hall stands in an exposed situation at almost 200 metres above sea level on Edge Lane, some six km NW of the city centre and has been designated a 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 Irel ...

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

as has the Falconry which stands in the garden.

History

The hall was constructed in two phases, the easterly facing wing was constructed in the

Late Middle Ages The Late Middle Ages or Late Medieval Period was the period of European history lasting from AD 1300 to 1500. The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period (and in much of Europe, the Renai ...

when it was known as “Byrlay Edge”, it was built with an oak

cruck A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which support the roof of a building, historically used in England and Wales. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally naturally curved, timber members that lean inwards and ...

frame with an exterior of squared stone. Part of the cruck frame can be seen on the Edge Lane side of the original wing. In 1705 J. Carr added a new and more impressive south facing wing at right angles to the original. The 1705 extension has been described as having “restrained elegance” and included the construction of a

gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. Etymology The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries is "Mid 18th c ...

in the garden, called the Falconry. The hall underwent some alterations and additions during the late 18th and mid 19th centuries, including a two-storey addition to the original wing. The hall was used briefly as a

Youth Hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or shared ...

in the 1940s and was purchased by

Sheffield City Council Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under No Overall Con ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In 1959 the council leased the building to the steel manufacturers Daniel Doncaster and Sons as offices and the hall was extensively restored. The hall and Birley Edge lost much of its rural isolation in the 1960s when the Fox Hill council housing estate was constructed on land to the immediate south. The hall returned to use as a private dwelling in the early 1980s and once more was totally restored during its conversion back to residential use.''"Sheffield‘s Remarkable Houses"'', Roger Redfern, The Cottage Press, , Page 16 Gives historical details of hall. The interior of the house has features such as large fireplaces dating from the 1600s, along with exposed original stone work in one of the lounges and larger bedrooms.

Architecture

The hall is constructed from locally quarried squared stone and is L shaped, the 1705 building has a coped date stone above the main door with the inscriptionS “JC 1705” and “DD 1959”. The roofs are

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

d and hipped. The building has a mixture of

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 ...

ed,

sash A sash is a large and usually colorful ribbon or band of material worn around the body, either draping from one shoulder to the opposing hip and back up, or else running around the waist. The sash around the waist may be worn in daily attire, bu ...

and casement windows. Images of England
Gives architectural details of hall.Images of England
Gives architectural details of Falconry.

References

{{coord, 53.430472, N, 1.50455, W, scale:5000_region:GB, display=title Houses completed in 1705 Houses in Sheffield History of Sheffield Grade II listed buildings in Sheffield Country houses in South Yorkshire Medieval architecture