The Gelli is a small country house situated between Tallarn Green and

Tybroughton Tybroughton, occasionally written Ty Broughton, is the name of a former civil parish, historically in the Maelor Saesneg area of Flintshire, Wales and now in Wrexham County Borough. The rather isolated rural area contains no nucleated villages, al ...

Wrexham County Borough Wrexham County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Wrecsam) is a county borough, with city status, in the north-east of Wales. It borders England to the east and south-east, Powys to the south-west, Denbighshire to the west and Flintshire to the ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. It is 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 ...

standing in a prominent position on the edge of a hill.

History

The Gelli was designed by the Chester architect John Douglas and built in 1877 for the Honourables Georgina and Henrietta Kenyon, who were the daughters of the 3rd Baron Kenyon of Gredlington.

Architecture

The house is built in three ranges (wings), each at right angles to each, other forming a

zigzag A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular. In geometry, this pattern is described as ...

or "domino" shape. It is constructed mainly in brick, with red

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

and

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...

dressings, and with some

timber framing Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden ...

in the upper storey. The roofs are tiled and the chimney stacks are brick. The west-facing range entrance range has 2½ storeys with a tower at its south end. The tower has a pyramidal roof with a

weather vane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...

incorporating the letter "K". The upper storey is

jettied Jettying (jetty, jutty, from Old French ''getee, jette'') is a building technique used in medieval timber-frame buildings in which an upper floor projects beyond the dimensions of the floor below. This has the advantage of increasing the avail ...

and timber-framed and its

tie beam A tie, strap, tie rod, eyebar, guy-wire, suspension cables, or wire ropes, are examples of linear structural components designed to resist tension. It is the opposite of a strut or column, which is designed to resist compression. Ties may be ...

includes a painted panel inscribed "G and H K 1877". The northeast range projects behind this and also has a turret with louvred openings for a pigeon loft. The third range projects forward at the south end; it is in one storey, and comprises the

coach house Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coa ...

, stables and accommodation for the groom. Internally the fittings and details are described as being "typically Douglas", although they are in pine rather than in his usual oak. The principal feature is the stair hall and staircase. The latter has balusters and

newel A newel, also called a central pole or support column, is the central supporting pillar of a staircase. It can also refer to an upright post that supports and/or terminates the handrail of a stair banister (the "newel post"). In stairs having st ...

s and it leads by a quarter-turn to an arcaded landing.

Critique

In its listing, it is described as "a very well preserved small country house in the Domestic Revival style characteristic of John Douglas, combining originality of planning and a rich vocabulary of detail in a striking picturesque composition.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gelli, The Grade II* listed buildings in Wrexham County Borough Houses in Wrexham Grade II* listed houses Houses completed in 1877 John Douglas buildings 1877 establishments in Wales

History

Architecture

Critique

See also

References