Wesley House, Leatherhead

Last updated

Wesley House
Wesley House, Leatherhead, Surrey, England (1).jpg
Wesley House
LocationBull Hill, Leatherhead
Coordinates 51°17′48″N0°19′51″W / 51.2967°N 0.3308°W / 51.2967; -0.3308
Built1935
ArchitectC. H. Rose and H. R. Gardner
Architectural style(s) Neoclassical style
Listed Building – Grade II
Official nameWesley House, with Steps and Walls to Front
Designated6 April 1999
Reference no.1113328
Surrey UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Shown in Surrey

Wesley House, formerly the Council Offices, is a former municipal building on Bull Hill, Leatherhead, Surrey, England. The building, which was the headquarters of Leatherhead Urban District Council, is a Grade II listed building. [1]

Contents

History

Following significant population growth, largely associated with the development of family-based manufacturing firms, [2] the area became an urban district in 1894. [3] [4] Civic leaders initially established themselves in offices in Church Street. [5] However, as the responsibilities of local authorities increased, the council decided to procure purpose-built council offices: the site they selected on Bull Hill was occupied by an 18th-century building known as "Kingston House". [6] [lower-alpha 1]

The works began with the demolition of Kingston House which took place in 1933. [7] The new building was designed by C. H. Rose and H. R. Gardner in the neoclassical style and built in red brick with stone dressings. [1] At its official opening in May 1935, Viscount Wakefield unveiled a plaque to commemorate John Wesley's historic visit to Kingston House. [8] The design involved a symmetrical main frontage with nine bays facing onto the corner of Bull Hill and Leret Way with the end bays featuring sash windows with swan-necked pediments on the first floor; the central bay featured a flight of steps leading up to a doorway with a stone surround and brackets supporting an entablature. [1] On the first floor there was an iron balcony bearing the town's coat of arms and a prominent rounded headed French door flanked by full-height pilasters supporting a pediment. [1] At roof level there was a copper flèche and a weather vane. [1] Internally, the principal rooms were an entrance hall, which was decorated in an Art Deco style, and a semi-circular council chamber which jutted out to the rear of the building and featured fine wooden panelling. [1]

The council offices continued to serve as the headquarters of Leatherhead Urban District Council for much of the 20th century and remained a meeting place for the enlarged Mole Valley District Council after it was formed in 1974. [9] However, it ceased to be the local seat of government when the district council moved to modern offices at Dorking in 1983. [10] [11]

Renamed Wesley House to commemorate the connection with the Methodist theologian, the building was then occupied by the local Citizens Advice Bureau and by a security alarms business before being sold to a developer in December 1999. [12] The developer refurbished the council chamber, converted the remainder of the building for commercial use and added a glass and steel west wing onto the complex. [13]

Notes

  1. ↑ Kingston House was a private dwelling which had been designed in the Queen Anne style and built in the 18th century. The house was the home of the Richard Belson who invited the Methodist theologian, John Wesley, to preach a sermon in the house on 23 February 1791. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surrey</span> County of England

Surrey is a ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the west. The largest settlement is Woking.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dorking</span> Market town in Surrey, England

Dorking is a market town in Surrey in South East England, about 21 mi (34 km) south of London. It is in Mole Valley District and the council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs roughly east–west, parallel to the Pipp Brook and along the northern face of an outcrop of Lower Greensand. The town is surrounded on three sides by the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is close to Box Hill and Leith Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashtead</span> Village in Surrey, England

Ashtead is a large village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, approximately 16 mi (26 km) south of central London. Ashtead is on the single-carriageway A24 between Epsom and Leatherhead. The village is on the northern slopes of the North Downs and is in the catchment area of The Rye, a tributary of the River Mole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leatherhead</span> Human settlement in England

Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey, England, about 17 mi (27 km) south of Central London. The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole, from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxon period, Leatherhead was a royal vill and is first mentioned in the will of Alfred the Great in 880 AD. The first bridge across the Mole may have been constructed in around 1200 and this may have coincided with the expansion of the town and the enlargement of the parish church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Mole</span> Tributary of the River Thames in southern England

The River Mole is a tributary of the River Thames in southern England. It rises in West Sussex near Gatwick Airport and flows northwest through Surrey for 80 km to the Thames at Hampton Court Palace. The river gives its name to the Surrey district of Mole Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Elmbridge</span> Local government district in Surrey, England

Elmbridge is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Esher, and other notable towns and villages include Cobham, Walton-on-Thames, Weybridge and Molesey. The borough lies just outside the administrative boundary of Greater London, but is mostly within the M25 motorway which encircles London. Many of the borough's urban areas form part of the wider Greater London Built-up Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mole Valley</span> Non-metropolitan district in England

Mole Valley is a local government district in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Dorking, and the district's other town is Leatherhead. The largest villages are Ashtead, Fetcham and Great Bookham, in the northern third of the district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epsom and Ewell (UK Parliament constituency)</span> UK Parliament constituency since 1974

Epsom and Ewell is a constituency in Surrey represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2001 by Chris Grayling, a Conservative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epsom (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1885–1974

Epsom was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. From its creation in 1885 until its abolition in 1974, it was won by eight Conservatives. The winner took less than 50% of the votes in its contested elections once, in 1945, receiving 49.9% of the vote in a three-party contest. Six elections, the last being a by-election in 1912, were uncontested.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surrey County Council</span> English principal local authority

Surrey County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Surrey, England. The council is composed of 81 elected councillors, and in all but one election since 1974 the Conservative Party has held the majority. The leader of the council is Tim Oliver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westhumble</span> Village in Surrey, England

Westhumble is a village in south east England, approximately 2 km (1.2 mi) north of Dorking, Surrey. The village is not part of a civil parish, however the majority of the settlement is in the ecclesiastical Parish of Mickleham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leatherhead F.C.</span> Association football club in Leatherhead, England

Leatherhead Football Club is a football club based in Leatherhead, Surrey, England. The club is nicknamed The Tanners and plays home at Fetcham Grove. They play in the Isthmian League South Central Division. The club is affiliated to the Surrey County Football Association and is a FA Charter Standard club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Box Hill & Westhumble railway station</span> Railway station in Surrey, England

Box Hill & Westhumble is a railway station in the village of Westhumble in Surrey, England, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Dorking town centre. Box Hill is located approximately 1⁄2 mile (800 m) to the east. It is 21 miles 14 chains (34.1 km) down the line from London Waterloo. Train services are operated by Southern who manage the station, and South Western Railway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leatherhead railway station</span> Railway station in Surrey, England

Leatherhead railway station is in Leatherhead, Surrey, England. It is managed by Southern, with services provided by them and South Western Railway. It is 18 miles 2 chains (29 km) from London Waterloo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norbury Park</span> Park and mansion in Surrey, England

Norbury Park is an area of mixed wooded and agricultural land surrounding a privately owned its Georgian manor house near Leatherhead and Dorking, Surrey. On the west bank of the River Mole, it is close to the village of Mickleham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sessions House, Surbiton</span> Municipal building in London, England

The Sessions House is a municipal building in Ewell Road, Surbiton, London. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worksop Town Hall</span> Municipal building in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England

Worksop Town Hall is a municipal building in Potter Street, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, England. The town hall, which was the headquarters of Worksop Borough Council, is a Grade II listed building. It is used for meetings of Bassetlaw District Council, whose main offices are in an adjoining building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myrtle Grove, Bingley</span> Municipal building in Bingley, West Yorkshire, England

Myrtle Grove, also known since 1926 as Bingley Town Hall, is a municipal building in Myrtle Park, Bingley, West Yorkshire, England. The building, which was the headquarters of Bingley Urban District Council, is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woking Civic Offices</span> Municipal building in Woking, England

Woking Civic Offices is a municipal building in Gloucester Walk, Woking, Surrey, England. It is in use as the headquarters of Woking Borough Council.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Historic England. "Wesley House, with Steps and Walls to Front (1113328)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  2. ↑ Vardey, Edwina, ed. (1988). History of Leatherhead : a town at the crossroads. Leatherhead: Leatherhead and District Local History Society. pp. 149–152. ISBN   978-0-95-060091-8.
  3. ↑ "Leatherhead UD". Vision of Britain. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  4. ↑ Malden, H. E. (1911). "'Parishes: Leatherhead', in A History of the County of Surrey". London: British History Online. pp. 293–301. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  5. ↑ "No. 33224". The London Gazette . 26 November 1926. p. 7720.
  6. 1 2 Banks, Joyce (2002). "Some notes on early Methodism in Surrey" (PDF). Surrey Archaeological Society. p. 195. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 January 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  7. ↑ "Potted History No. 10: Kingston House / Wesley House - Leatherhead" (PDF). Leatherhead and District Local History Society. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  8. ↑ "Surrey". England's Christian Heritage. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  9. ↑ Local Government Act 1972. 1972 c.70. The Stationery Office Ltd. 1997. ISBN   0-10-547072-4.
  10. ↑ "Mole Valley council building too 'expensive to run'". Get Surrey. 14 October 2011. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  11. ↑ Vardey 1988, pp. 296–299
  12. ↑ "Wesley House saga ends with sale". Get Surrey. 24 December 1999. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  13. ↑ "Wesley House" (PDF). Halcyon Offices. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.