Marl Hall including terrace at front, Conwy, Conwy

History

Said by Robert Williams to have been built in 1661, dated by a beam in the hall. However the core of the present house is essentially a Georgian enlargement of the early C18. It was badly damaged by fire in the mid C18 and remained derelict and roofless throughout the C19 (as shown in a painting of the 1870s and on the 1890 Ordnance Survey), except for the E wing, which was the only part of the house that remained inhabited. From 1894 it was rented by the Birmingham Saturday Club, who later purchased, refurbished and rebuilt the house, with extensions at the rear, which opened as a convalescent home in 1903. It was a nursing home from 1965 and since 1971 has been an outdoor education centre.

Exterior

A Georgian style former convalescent home of 2 storeys and attic, of coursed freestone on a pebble-dashed plinth, with steep slate roof on a stone cornice. It has 3 stacks behind on the L side and another on the L-hand wing, all tall brick shafts with 2 round-headed panels. Rainwater goods have been retained, dating from the early C20 conversion.
The W entrance front is 7 bays in the main range with projecting hipped wings at the ends of 2 bays and 3 storeys. The central entrance has a moulded freestone surround of lighter brown stone, with bead-and-reel border and a pediment, to double panel doors under a small-pane overlight, within panelled reveals. Windows are 15-pane hornless sashes. On the eaves is a modern steel fence, behind which are 2-light casement windows to gabled dormers. Across the main range is a lean-to veranda on cast iron posts supporting a moulded wooden beam, with glazed roof. Wings both have 15-pane sash windows to ground and first floors. The L-hand (N) wing retains 9-pane sashes in the 2nd floor. In the R-hand (S) wing are replacement windows with plain glass to the L bay and 4-pane sash window to the R bay. In the return facing the main front, the R-hand (S) wing has a ground-floor half-glazed door in a former window opening, the upper 6-pane sash of which is now the overlight, 15-pane sash to the 1st floor and 2-light 2nd floor window opening to a balcony across the angle of wing and main range. The return of the L-hand (N) wing has 15-pane and 9-pane sashes similar to the front.
The L-hand (N) wing is brick in the side wall and of C18 fabric, except for the upper storey which has been rebuilt. Openings are grouped 1 3 to L and centre, all under flat arches. Windows are 15-pane sashes to ground and 1st floors, 9-pane to 2nd floor, except for inserted escape doors to the L end in 1st and 2nd floors, which in the 1st floor retains the original 6-pane upper sash as an overlight. The rear of the N wing is rubble stone. On its R side are 15-pane and 9-pane sashes to 1st and 2nd floors, while in the ground floor a door has been inserted, retaining an original 6-pane upper sash as the overlight. On its L side is a brick projection with similar sash windows.
The S wing is shorter than the N wing. Its side wall is whitened rubble stone to ground and 1st floor, brick to the 2nd floor. It has small replacement 1st and 2nd-floor windows. Behind it is a hipped 2½-storey lean-to, with lower 2-storey projection facing the yard, both with replacement glazing. Further behind is a lower 2½-storey gabled 2-window wing with replacement windows. It has an early C20 1-storey parallel range of rubble stone and larger quoins that continues around the rear as a lean-to, with small-pane casements in mullioned freestone surrounds.
The rear of the main range is rubble stone with light-brown freestone quoins, dressings and moulded cornice similar to the front. It has a central half-glazed panel door under a segmental head with mullioned overlight and leaded glazing. It is flanked by double-transomed 2-light windows, below a 6-light mullioned 1st-floor window, all with leaded glazing. Two superimposed flat-roof dormers have 2-light and 6-light windows. Set back on the R is a single bay with 15-pane sash windows and 2-light flat-roof dormer. To the R and L are rear wings, spanned by a coped dwarf wall and gateway with ball finials, enclosing a small rear courtyard.
On the L side of the rear entrance is a gabled rear wing of rubble stone, tooled-stone quoins and dressings, and some freestone dressings. It has 3-light mullioned windows with steel-framed casements, and in its side wall facing the main rear entrance is a reduced external stack. In its S roof slope is a large flat-roof dormer. On the R side of the back entrance is a 3-storey T-shaped rear wing of rubble stone with rock-faced and freestone dressings, and moulded cornice similar to the main range. It has leaded glazing to windows in stone surrounds, including 4-light windows in the rear wall, and added escape stairs on the N side. To the N of this wing are 15-pane and 9-pane sash windows in the main range.
In front of the main range and N wing is a raised terrace shown on the 1890 Ordnance Survey. It comprises a buttressed retaining wall of coursed rock-faced stone and moulded coping. In the centre is a convex arc of stone steps. At the R-hand end the wall returns and abuts the main range. At the L end the wall returns into the bank opposite the end of the N wing.

Interior

The entrance hall is finished with scribed plaster. It has a rear lateral fireplace with a segmental corbelled arch below a raked hood. To its R is a wide Tudor arch, with foliage spandrels, leading to the stairway. Above it is a moulded string course. The ceiling has 2 cross beams. Doorways to the L and R have wooden surrounds and segmental pediments, panelled reveals and Arts-and-Crafts influenced half-glazed doors with leaded lights.
The full-height dog-leg stair has Jacobean style fretwork balusters, square newels and retains some moulded finials. At the base of the stair, on the L-hand side, is a wooden segmental arch to a half-glazed door with side panels.

Reasons for Listing

Listed for its special architectural interest as primarily an early C20 convalescent home of definite character, with significant earlier origin as a country house.

External Links

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.