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Kettlethorpe Hall, West Yorkshire

Coordinates: 53°38′45″N 01°29′52″W / 53.64583°N 1.49778°W / 53.64583; -1.49778
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Kettlethorpe Hall

53°38′45″N 01°29′52″W / 53.64583°N 1.49778°W / 53.64583; -1.49778

Kettlethorpe Hall is a Georgian house in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The hall is a Grade I listed building. From 1847 until 1996, the grounds of the hall contained the façade of a 14th-century chapel on the front of a boathouse, which was a Grade II* listed building.

History

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Kettlethorpe Hall is a Georgian house on the outskirts of Wakefield, built by the Pilkington family[1][2] It is a two-storey building constructed of stone, and contains Doric columns.[1] The house underwent multiple renovations in the 19th century.[3] The first floor keystone showed the date of construction as 1727.[3]

Original façade of the Chantry Chapel on Wakefield Bridge on a boathouse in the grounds of Kettlethorpe Hall.

In 1847, the façade of the 14th century[4] Chantry Chapel (also known as the Sentry Chapel) on Wakefield Bridge was moved to Kettlethorpe Hall, and the original restored. The façade was attached to a boathouse folly,[5][6] beside the hall's artificial lake.[6] In 1859, the folly was temporarily used as a mortuary.[6][7] In the West Riding of Yorkshire volume of Pevsner Architectural Guides, Nikolaus Pevsner described the boathouse as "the most precious of all boat houses".[7]

In 1950, Kettlethorpe Hall was purchased by Wakefield Council, and was used as a retirement home until 1983. In 1988, the hall was bought by Yorkshire Preservation Trust, who converted it into two separate houses. Wakefield Council still owned the grounds surrounding the hall.[8] In 1996, the remains of the boathouse were removed from the grounds of Kettlethorpe Hall by Wakefield Council, who put it into storage.[5][4] The remaining stones of the boathouse became a scheduled monument, and in 2014, they were put into the secret garden at Thornes Park in Wakefield.[4][7] The stones were erected at an angle to make them easier to view.[7]

Nowadays, the house is privately owned, but the grounds are a public park.[5] In 1953, Kettlethorpe Hall became a Grade I listed building.[3] The boathouse is separately listed as a Grade II* listed building.[9]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Thornborrow, Peter; Gwilliam, Paul (2018). Wakefield in 50 Buildings. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 9781445659077.
  2. ^ Blyth, Ray (2018). "Fabulous Follies".
  3. ^ a b c Historic England. "Kettlethorpe Hall (1259736)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "New home for historic former Chantry Chapel frontage not seen since 1996". Wakefield Council. 8 July 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  5. ^ a b c Headley, Gwyn (2011). Follies of West Yorkshire. Heritage Ebooks. ISBN 9781908619372.
  6. ^ a b c The Yorkshire Archaeological and Topographical Journal. Vol. 11. Yorkshire Archaeological Society. 1891. pp. 166–167.
  7. ^ a b c d "Thornes Park, Wakefield, West Yorkshire: some peripatetic fragments". The Folly Flâneuse. 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  8. ^ Taylor, Kate; Taylor, Coral (2005). Not So Merry Wakefield. Wharncliffe Books. pp. 134, 143–44. ISBN 9781903425725.
  9. ^ Historic England. "BOATHOUSE AT SOUTH WEST END OF LAKE IN GROUNDS OF KETTLETHORPE HALL (1258156)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 February 2021.