Most references to a Workhouse or Poor-house in Leamington relate to premises in Court Street. However, before trying to establish some details of this place it is probably appropriate to deal more widely with how the community of a small place like Leamington Priors in 1800 cared about and cared for the poor. Generally, there … Read more
Benjamin Satchwell and his friend William Abbotts were instrumental in enabling Leamington to develop as a spa town after they discovered a source of mineral water on Abbotts’ land. At the time Abbotts owned and managed the Black Dog (see article), a pub on the High Street, whereas Satchwell occupied a thatched cottage on the corner of what … Read more
There are reports that the Roman Catholic church was using the Apollo Rooms in Clemens Street and a chapel in Tower Street for services about 1822. However, this article is a tale of two later buildings because the Roman Catholics moved from one church to another. George Street. In the eighteenth century Roman Catholics worshipped inconspicuously. They … Read more
From the Portobello Bridge between Warwick and Leamington can be seen an intriguing group of old brick riverside buildings. The Rock Mill, a watermill built in 1792, is the most prominent; this stands next to a substantial Georgian house. Both of these have been redeveloped in recent years, with a row of modern town houses … Read more
Benjamin Satchwell and William Abbotts were credited with the initial development of Leamington as a spa town. Once a source of spa water was discovered by Satchwell and Abbotts in 1784 on land belonging to Abbotts in Bath Lane (later Bath Street) a bath house was built and Satchwell set about promoting Leamington Priors as … Read more
The Manor House lies at the centre of the old Lillington village, a short distance from the parish church of St Mary Magdalene, and the site of three village farms. It is thought to have been built in its present form in about 1700, though internal inspection reveals clues to an earlier building on the same … Read more
Manor Farm was the largest of the three Lillington village farms, extending over 230 acres to the Cubbington boundary. At the turn of the 19th century, all three farms were owned by local landowner Matthew Wise, whose family had owned the land since it was divided into fields almost a hundred years before at the … Read more
Lillington Parish Church is Anglo-Saxon in origin, and though the present building dates mainly from the 1480s and up to the Victorian period, there is probable Saxon work still to be seen in the south wall of the chancel, and a Saxon doorway in the Lady Chapel. Settlers from East Anglia reached this place between … Read more
This pair of terraced cottages on the east side of Church Street (previously Church Lane), numbered 15 and 17, are a survival from about 1700. No other cottages from this date or previous to it, are known for sure in Leamington Spa. There is an isolated cottage at the eastern edge of Packington Place, behind … Read more
The Bowling Green Inn, along with the Dog Inn (see article), was one of the original alehouses of the village of Leamington Priors. They were situated opposite each other across what is now the High Street (then London Road). There were two successive Bowling Green Inns in Church Street (then Church Lane) with the earliest … Read more
Thomas Abbots and Benjamin Satchwell were villagers living in Leamington Priors south of the River Leam during the 1700’s. They were good friends and very influential in the development of Leamington as a thriving spa town. Whereas Satchwell lived in a thatched cottage in what is now New Street and acted as postmaster, Abbots owned … Read more
Abbotts’ Baths (or Well) were a key factor in the step-change in the fortunes and growth of Leamington Priors. The man they were named for was William Abbotts who ran The Dog Inn (sometimes the Black Dog) on the south side of High Street from 1776 to 1793. This inn was to the east of … Read more
Contact the Secretary, Margaret Rushton: secretary@leamingtonhistory.co.uk
November 7, 2026
November 6, 2026
November 6, 2026