Benwell, Pendower Hall

HER Number:
5329

District:
Newcastle

Site Name:
Benwell, Pendower Hall

Place:
Benwell

Map Sheet:
NZ26SW

Class:
Domestic

Site Type: Broad:
Dwelling

Site Type: Specific:
House

General Period:
Early Modern

Specific Period:
C19

Form of Evidence:
Extant Building

Description:
Large house, circa 1870, for J.W. Pease, banker. Coursed squared sandstone with ashlar dressings; Welsh slate roof. 2 storeys and attics. Interior - stone arches to corridors, marble entrance floor, high quality Jacobean-style panelling to former dining room, panelled ceiling, 17th century-style staircase, marble chimney pieces, early 18th century-style chimney pieces in rear wing, 4 high quality glass panels, original fitted bench and Jacobean-style cast iron fire dog in former billiard room. First occupied in 1867, Pendower Hall became a school in 1920 and then a Teacher's Centre. There was originally a large lawn to the south front of the house, another to the west, and kitchen gardens. To the north-east were stables and a coach-house (demolished in the 1920s), and a lodge/gatehouse. Most of these 60 acres have been swallowed up by modern housing and another school. The majority of the interior has been changed significantly from the original scheme, however the entrance hall and library in particular still present a comparitvely 'original' appearance. Many rooms include original fittings such as doors, fireplaces, wood panelling, fitted seats and cupboards. Used as an auxiliary hospital during the First World War by the Joint War Committee (British Red Cross and the Order of St John of Jerusalem). Between 2017-2018 Vindomora Solutions Ltd conducted a building survey of Pendower Hall. The assessment identified three phases of development. The first being the hall's construction in 1867 followed by extentions added between 1867 and 1894. From the 1920s onwards the hall was modified to operate as a school. LISTED GRADE 2

Easting:
2146

Northing:
6474

Grid Reference:
NZ21466474

Lats/Lons:

Sources:
<< HER 5329 >> Dept. of National Heritage, of Buildings of Special.Interest, 11/560; W.M. Crawford, 1985, Pendower, Newcastle upon Tyne - notes on a Victorian Mansion, unpublished note; J.C. Mabbitt, 2003, Pendower Hall, Benwell, Archaeological Assessment; www.donmouth.co.uk/local_history/VAD/VAD_hospitals.html (accessed 2014); British Red Cross, 2014, List of Auxiliary Hospitals in the UK during the First World War; Liddell, T. 2019. Pendower Hall, the 19th-21st Century, Vindomora Solutions Ltd, HER4861