Birley Spa is a grade-II listed community bath hall and a Victorian bathhouse in the

Hackenthorpe Hackenthorpe is a village 5 miles south east of Sheffield’s city centre, now classed as a historic township of the city. Due to much expansion, the village became a part of Sheffield city during the 1950s. During much of the late 19th and 20t ...

district of the

City of Sheffield The City of Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough in South Yorkshire, England. The metropolitan borough includes the administrative centre of Sheffield, the town of Stocksbridge and larger village of Chapeltown and part of the Peak Di ...

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 ...

History

The bath house was built for Charles Herbert Pierrepont, 2nd

Earl Manvers Earl Manvers was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for Charles Medows Pierrepont, 1st Viscount Newark. He had already been created Baron Pierrepont, of Holme Pierrepont in the County of Nottingham, and Viscou ...

and the

Lord of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

of Beighton in 1842, and initially was a hotel with spa baths beneath. Subsequently, it was used for many years as private dwellings. In the 1973 it was given

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 ...

status.

During the mid 1800s a committee was created consisting of Thomas Staniforth from the Thomas Staniforth & Co Sickle works, Edward Hobson, George Cox of Beighton and John Tillotson, schoolmaster of Beighton. A man named George Eadon was selected from eleven applicants who applied for the post of manager of the 'Bath Hotel', and was paid a salary of twenty pounds and was provided free rent and coal. By 1895 the baths were failing to make a profit and only a single plunge bath remained in use, it appears the hotel itself was closed around 1878 and it is believed that the

removed the marble from the building himself for personal use. Around 1895 John Platts was the proprietor of the property, he was a well known gardener and a farmer. By the time of the 1920s and 30s, the grounds of the bath house were transformed into a Pleasure Ground for children. Mr Moulson and William Smith were the proprietors at this time. The grounds featured a wishing well, a sand pit, swing boats, a paddling pool and the large lake behind the house was used for boating and fishing. There was also a 'wonder tree' in the wooded area beside the house, which was a large oak tree said to be over 1,000 years old. When the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

began in 1939, the grounds were closed. The grounds was transferred to Sheffield Corporation in the 1950s, and in the early 2000s it became part of the Shire Brook Valley Local Nature Reserve. The building was restored in 2000/2002 and for a time was open for tours by the public, but this has recently ceased. In June 2018 renewed interest was brought to Birley Spa due to its neglect, and a Friends of Birley Spa group was formed. The Friends Group was formed in response to the Councils intention to sell the building. The sale was withdrawn and the Bath House has been made an Asset of Community Value. Talks are ongoing with the Council to secure a sustainable future for the Spa. The building requires extensive repairs, due to lack of maintenance and neglect. Plans are underway for fundraising events, and applications to funding bodies will be submitted. Work has started with volunteers, supported by Park Rangers, to restore the grounds.

References

External links

{{SheffieldStructures Commercial buildings completed in 1842 Grade II listed buildings in Sheffield Public baths in the United Kingdom Spas 1842 establishments in England