This article relates mainly to the first houses built on the Parade from Regent Street towards Victoria Bridge but also includes the single building on the north-west corner of the crossroads of the Parade and Regent Street. First, a little about the history of this area. The southern end of what is now the Parade from the … Read more
By 1875 the Leamington Town Council had replaced the Leamington Priors Commissioners who had, in turn, replaced the Local Board of Health. The Commissioners had a base in Church Street adjoining the poorhouse, which they shared with the local magistrates as a Sessions House. It is likely that the Commissioners were persuaded to leave the Church Street … Read more
Thanks very largely to the support of Dr Thursfield, Chairman of the Library Committee, a purpose-built, modern Library and Technical School opened on the site of Perkins’ Gardens in Avenue Road, in 1902, and was used until 1999. It was designed by J Mitchell Bottomley of Leeds and built by Richard Bowen of Tavistock Street. The foundation stone was laid … Read more
Oak House was one of a pair of very substantial villas designed by William Thomas around 1836. However, The Furze, the adjoining villa (see article) stood at 89 Upper Holly Walk and was much the larger of the two. Originally the two houses stood at Nos 25 and 27 Holly Walk (Upper). Neal Einerson, a noted biographer … Read more
As Leamington, north of the Leam, was developing as a Spa Town during the early part of the nineteenth century, developers were anxious to acquire land for building. However, the Reverend Edward Willes, a major landowner of eastern Leamington, was not anxious to sell. When he died in 1820 his son, also Edward, moved the … Read more
The Willes family were major landowners in Leamington, mainly in the east of the town. It was Edward Willes (1787-1847) who released much of the family land during the early part of the 19th century, which led to the development of the Leamington we know today, including the renowned Jephson Gardens. The family lived at Newbold Comyn … Read more
To the north east of Leamington are Newbold Comyn and the Campion Hills. It was here that the Willes family had their manor house (see article). Slightly to the north was an imposing farm house and stables, (still in use today as the Newbold Comyn Arms) and again just further north and to the east, was … Read more
The first suggestion for a railway connection to Leamington appeared in a report of a survey for a railway from Coventry in February 1839. The route was proposed as a branch to connect the towns of Leamington and Warwick to the London to Birmingham line which had been opened on 17th September 1838. Milverton was a … Read more
Milverton Lawn is now apartments, but was once a substantial Victorian family home, with a ballroom and fine reception rooms. The first owner of the house was a Leamington banker, Hubert Lloyd Esq, whose initials are still to be seen engraved in the design of the columns flanking the main entrance. In 1851, Hubert Lloyd and family lived … Read more
Marlborough Hotel started life in the 1850s as a private Regency house, Elmley Lodge, in Brandon Parade, designed by builder, Benjamin Bradshaw. It was No 4 Brandon Parade and later No 48 Holly Walk. The house was to provide the future home for distinguished nobility and clergy in the 19th century and then developed as a Boarding … 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
Built as the Wise family home in the Queen Anne style in about 1740 with a handsome Chippendale staircase and two dovecotes at the foot of a three-acre garden, the Manor House subsequently saw many alterations and adaptations. When Matthew Wise married, he built Shrubland Hall on the outskirts of the town, leaving the Manor House to become … Read more
