Description

BIRDSALL THE PARK
SE 86 SW
7/23 Birdsall House
20.9.51
GV II*

Country house. Late C16 origins, remodelled 1749 with addition of second
storey to main range, and right wing of 1872. For the Willoughby family,
the Lords Middleton. 1872 section by Salvin. Ashlar, Welsh slate roofs.
Central range connected to side wings by single-cell units, with service
wing to rear parallel to right wing. Main facade: central 5-bay, 3-storey
range flanked by single-bay 2-storey sections linking with 2-bay, 2-storey
side wings. Central section: steps up to hexastyle Tuscan portico in antis
with balustrade and plain entablature. Central double-leaf 8-panel door in
rusticated architrave with metope frieze and pediment, flanked by unequal 6-
pane sashes in keyed architraves. First floor: 4-pane sashes in keyed
architraves, the central one being eared and shouldered,with band above.
Second floor: 4-pane sashes in keyed architraves. Moulded cornice.
Balustrade with blind panels. Hipped roof. Linking bays each have
elliptical-arched tripartite sashes and moulded cornice with 6-panel double-
leaf doors in rusticated surrounds to returns. First floor set back, lit by
4-pane sashes in keyed architraves. Band and plain parapet. Side wings
each have pair of elliptical-arched tripartite sashes to ground floor each
in correspondence to three 4-pane sashes, with keystones breaking continuous
band, to first floor. The returns towards the courtyard are similarly
treated, although of one bay only. Garden facade: central 5-bay, 3-storey
range flanked by 7-bay, 2-storey wings with canted central sections and
additional 4-bay, 3-storey wing to left. Central section: central 3 bays
break forward with rusticated pilasters. Plinth and floor bands. Steps to
half-glazed door in keyed rusticated architrave with pulvinated frieze
carrying pediment. 4-pane sashes in keyed architraves throughout. Central
window to first floor in eared and shouldered architrave with double
keystone. Moulded cornice. Balustrade with blind panels. Outer wings have
4-pane sashes in keyed architraves except round-arched openings to ground
floor of canted bays. First-floor band to outer bays of left wing. Plain
parapet. Left wing: 4-pane sashes beneath keystones throughout. Plain
parapet. Interior: contains several fine state rooms, including oval
drawing room of c1780 and ballroom of c1790. Richly carved doors to rear of
house suggest that the main front was towards the garden in late C18. Work
by Salvin includes Doric screen to dining room, fireplaces in Long Hall,
massive wooden main stair and delicate quadripartite vaulting on first
floor. The house was the first in England to have a private gas system
installed. Pevsner N, Yorkshire, York and the East Riding, 1972. York
Georgian Society: Annual Report 1975.

Listing NGR: SE8150664842

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Birdsall House at Wikipedia
• Wikidata Q60745995

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  Berkshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings
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  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
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  Warwickshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Lancashire: Liverpool and the South-West (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  The Shredded Chef: 120 Recipes for Building Muscle, Getting Lean, and Staying Healthy