Peckover House & Garden is a National Trust property located in North Brink, Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
Peckover House & Garden is a National Trust property located in North Brink, Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
The house was built in 1722 and later bought by Alfred Southwell. [1] It was bought by Jonathan Peckover at the end of the 18th century. [2] Alexander Peckover was created Baron Peckover in 1907. During the period in which the building was in the ownership of the Peckovers, the building was known as Bank House. During the Second World War local tradition has it that Alexandrina Peckover, the largest contributor to the Wisbech Spitfire Fund, did so in lieu of giving up the railings in front of the house for the war effort. [3] The Peckovers, a Quaker banking family and owners of the Peckover Bank, presented the building to the National Trust in 1948. [4] The house was given a grade II listed building status in 1985. [5] The garden was filmed by the BBC in 1997. [6]
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The exterior of the house gives little idea of the elaborate and elegant interior of fine panelled rooms, Georgian fireplaces with carved over-mantels, and ornate plaster decorations.
At the back of the house is a beautiful 0.8 ha (2 acre) Victorian walled garden with interesting and rare trees, delightful summer houses and fruiting orange trees, thought to be 300 years old, roses, herbaceous borders, fernery, croquet lawn and 17th-century reed thatched barn. In the grounds is a pet cemetery still in use and nearby the Grade II listed 'White Cross of the Low'. The remains were dredged from the river Nene and once stood at The Low until the Reformation. [7] Across the river is another former Bank House (now Octavia Hill Birthplace House), this once belonged to James Hill, a merchant and banker, father of Octavia Hill a founder of the National Trust. It is also open to the public. A mantrap once belonging to the Peckovers is now on display in Wisbech & Fenland Museum.
The Barn was used as an amateur theatre during WWII and is thought to have been used as a theatre prior to the opening of the Georgian Theatre in Deadman's Lane. This Barn was fitted out as a restaurant and gift shop. Following the Covid-19 Lockdown the barn was controversially closed in order to create a meeting place for people living with dementia and those who care for them. [8]
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Cambridgeshire is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Peterborough, and the city of Cambridge is the county town.
Wisbech is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the Fenland district in Cambridgeshire, England. In 2011 it had a population of 31,573. The town lies in the far north-east of Cambridgeshire, bordering Norfolk and only 5 miles (8 km) south of Lincolnshire. The tidal River Nene running through the town is spanned by two road bridges. Wisbech is in the Isle of Ely and has been described as 'the Capital of The Fens".
March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. It was the county town of the Isle of Ely which was a separate administrative county from 1889 to 1965. The administrative centre of Fenland District Council is located in the town.
The Clarkson Memorial in Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England commemorates Thomas Clarkson (1760–1846), a central figure in the campaign against the slave trade in the British empire, and a former native of Wisbech. It was erected in 1880–1881 and is a Grade II* listed building.
Wisbech Grammar School is an 11–18 mixed, Church of England, private day school and sixth form in Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. Founded by the Guild of the Holy Trinity in 1379, it is one of the oldest schools in the country.
Wisbech Castle was a stone to motte-and-bailey castle built to fortify Wisbech on the orders of William I in 1072, it probably replaced an earlier timber and turf complex. The layout was probably oval in shape and size, on the line still marked by the Circus. The original design and layout is unknown. It was rebuilt in stone in 1087. The castle was reputedly destroyed in a flood in 1236. In the 15th century, repairs were becoming too much for the ageing structure, and a new building was started in 1478 under John Morton, Bishop of Ely. His successor, John Alcock, extended and completed the re-building and died in the Castle in 1500. Subsequent bishops also spent considerable sums on this new palace. The Bishop's Palace was built of brick with dressings of Ketton Stone, but its exact location is unknown.
Manea is a village and civil parish in the District of Fenland, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.
The Wisbech & Fenland Museum, located in the town of Wisbech in the Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, is one of the oldest purpose-built museums in the United Kingdom. The museum logo is W&F.
Leverington is a village and civil parish in the Fenland District of Cambridgeshire, England. The settlement is to the north of Wisbech.
John (Jack) William Gordon was an English writer of young-adult supernatural fiction. He wrote sixteen chlldren's fantasy novels, including The Giant Under the Snow, four short story collections, over fifty short stories, and a teenage memoir.
Alexander Peckover, 1st Baron Peckover LL FRGS, FSA, FLS, was an English Quaker banker, philanthropist and collector of ancient manuscripts.
The 2015 Fenland District Council election took place on 7 May 2015 to elect members of the Fenland District Council in England. It was held on the same day as other local elections. It used the new boundaries from The Fenland Order 2014.
The Angles Theatre is a theatre and historic Georgian playhouse in the market town of Wisbech, Isle of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England. It is among the oldest of Britain's theatres. The current premises consists of the original theatre building and a former library, originally an 'infant' school built in 1837, both of which are Grade II listed. The patrons are Sir Derek Jacobi, Jo Brand, Claire Tomalin and Dame Cleo Laine.
Arthur Artis Oldham (1886–1980) was an English historian. Arthur, his father and Harry (1858-1938), his uncle, were both corn-merchants. He joined the family business later.
Samuel Smith was an English photographer.
Jane Stuart, was a Quaker who lived and died in Wisbech, England. There is a long-standing tradition that she was a natural daughter of James II of England.
The 2019 Fenland District Council election took place on 2 May 2019 for all 39 seats of the Fenland District Council in England. It was held on the same day as other local elections.
Wisbech Town Council is a parish council covering the town of Wisbech in England. It is the successor to the Wisbech Municipal Borough. The Council is based at 1 North Brink, Wisbech where its committee meetings and full council meetings are usually held.
The Crescent consists of rows of terraced houses and religious buildings laid out as a circus in the town of Wisbech, England. Initiated by the developer Joseph Medworth and built between 1794 and c1815, it is a rare examples of a Georgian circus to be found in the United Kingdom. Most properties have Grade I or Grade II listed building status. Although some changes have been made to the various sites over the years, much of the Georgian facade remains as it was when first built. This development now lies within the Wisbech Conservation Area.
Caroline Southwood Hill was an English educationalist and writer. In 1837 she established and ran a Pestalozzian infant school in Wisbech, the building now survives as part of the Angles Theatre. She was involved in many co-operative ventures, and moved in a radical circle of other reformers. She wrote three children's books and contributed works to a range of publications such as The Nineteenth Century and Charles Dickens's Household Words.
