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You are here: Home>Places>Estates

Estates

The big estates surrounding Westerham were Valence and Dunsdale to the east and Squerryes to the west.

Squerryes Court has been the seat of the Warde family for over 300 years.
There is little doubt, from the evidence of an old plan of Squerryes drawn by Arthur Hewes, and dated 1686, that Sir Nicholas Crisp was the builder of the present house.

Alongside the big estates surrounding Westerham, there were also three moderate-sized estates sited within the town itself, being Squerryes Lodge and Winterton House south of the High Street, and The Grange, north of the High Street.

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  • Big houses in the town on 1869 map

    Big houses in the town on 1869 map

    The three big houses in the town could also be considered estate houses as they had extensive grounds and land ownership. On the 1869 map shown here these were 1 The Grange,  2 Winterton House,  3 Squerryes Lodge.
    Reference: 0085
  • Big houses in town 1 The Grange

    Big houses in town 1 The Grange

    ‘The Grange’ was a large estate which included The Paddock and all the land Churchill School now stands on, Fir Cottage at the bottom of the School drive, ‘Knipes Cottages’ next to today’s Castle Antiques, and the little row of cottages leading from them down London Road towards today’s Touchline Physiotherapy business. These were ‘Grange ...
    Reference: 0087
  • Big houses in town 2 Winterton House

    Big houses in town 2 Winterton House

    On the south side of the High Street stands Winterton House, so named from its having been the residence of Harriet née Board, the Countess Winterton in the early nineteenth century. The current Winterton House was reputedly built in 1811 by Hughes Minet a wealthy Huguenot and there are indeed Minet descendants buried in the ...
    Reference: 0086
  • Big houses in town 3 Squerryes Lodge

    Big houses in town 3 Squerryes Lodge

    Squerryes Lodge. As the name implies, the Lodge of Squerryes Court, this venerable old building is tucked away at the end of Lodge Lane, on the north bank of the fledgeling River Darent. Hookers Almanack for March 2nd 1889 records: Funeral of Mrs Mariana Warde, widow of the late Admiral Charles Warde, of Squerryes Court, who died ...
    Reference: 0088
  • Dunsdale a view of the mansion from the front

    Dunsdale a view of the mansion from the front

    Dunsdale Dunsdale was often considered the ‘dower-house’ of Valence and had a chequered history of ownership and tenancy. Earliest references to an original mansion at Dunsdale appear in 1823 with the owner recorded as one John Humphrey, who had purchased Dunsdale along with 142 acres of farmland when the Hill Park estate was split up in ...
    Reference: WH1014
  • Dunsdale doorway detail

    Dunsdale doorway detail

    Carved from Caen stone, the design of the doorway appears as free-form vegetation strings carved in a delicate, balanced way which is not unattractive and complements the rugged stone of the tower itself.    
    Reference: WH1012
  • Dunsdale Estate plan

    Dunsdale Estate plan

    This detailed plan shows the coach road from the north lodge via Home Farm crosses the lake and goes right round the mansion to arrive outside the doorway on the north-west tower.
    Reference: 0092
  • Dunsdale garden and grounds

    Dunsdale garden and grounds

    The position of the house raised on the bluff of a small valley was utilised to advantage by the landscape gardener Edward Milner. No landscape plans by Milner survive, but evidence comes from the Estate particulars of 1884 which mention him.
    Reference: WH1008
  • Dunsdale mansion and pleasure gardens from the rear

    Dunsdale mansion and pleasure gardens from the rear

    This view shows the central conservatory and the parterre to the south side of the house.
    Reference: WH1020
  • Dunsdale postcard No 1

    Dunsdale postcard No 1

    This somewhat fairytale gothic mansion enjoyed an elevated, yet secluded position. In 1819 J. P. Neale, a noted author of the time, described the valley in which Dunsdale was situated as follows:  “The scenery excites feelings in the mind, which, though perpetually experienced by the lover of nature, never have been, nor ever will be ...
    Reference: WH1018
  • Dunsdale postcard No 1 reverse

    Dunsdale postcard No 1 reverse

    Reference: WH1024
  • Dunsdale postcard No 2

    Dunsdale postcard No 2

    This view shows the terrace to the frontage of the house with the distinctive evergreen wellingtonias in the near-distance.
    Reference: WH1025
  • Dunsdale postcard No 2 reverse

    Dunsdale postcard No 2 reverse

    Reference: WH1019
  • Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital grounds

    Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital grounds

    Comparing this black and white photo-postcard with the earlier aquatint one it is evident that the topiary work on the arches has grown. What beautiful surroundings for the convalescing soldiers to experience after the horrors of the trenches in France.
    Reference: WH1015
  • Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital, Belgian soldiers in recuperation

    Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital, Belgian soldiers in recuperation

    Known officially as Kent 38, Westerham, Dunsdale was registered in 1911.  On mobilisation the large empty house, then the property of the family of the late Norman Watney, was converted into a Voluntary Aid Detachment (V.A.D.) Red Cross hospital with fifty beds. By October 14th 1914 everything was ready for the forty-eight injured Belgian soldiers who ...
    Reference: WH0997
  • Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital, Dr. Ronaldson Russell and Miss Lucy M. Watney in close-up

    Dunsdale Red Cross Hospital, Dr. Ronaldson Russell and Miss Lucy M. Watney in close-up

    Seen here in a close-up from the last photograph,  Dr. John Ronaldson Russell took the position of Chief Medical Officer and Lucy M. Watney was appointed Commandant as Blanche Warde, initially appointed Commandant, had to stand down due to other commitments.
    Reference: WH1029
  • Dunsdale V.A.D Red Cross Nurses

    Dunsdale V.A.D Red Cross Nurses

    Of the three nurses standing together, the one in the centre is Blanche Theresa Warde.
    Reference: WH1030
  • Dunsdale water pump wheel at Cutmill

    Dunsdale water pump wheel at Cutmill

    Cutmill Pond The waterwheel at Cutmill Pond is dated 1858, the same as the mansion at Dunsdale. It supplied water via a reservoir and five filter beds to Dunsdale. The wheel is described as an undershot waterwheel with a 2.56/1 step-up gear to 2 crankshafts which could drive a single cylinder pump. It was able to ...
    Reference: WH1027
  • Home Farm hop gardens, Dunsdale

    Home Farm hop gardens, Dunsdale

    Renowned for the standard of its hop gardens, Dunsdale Home Farm would employ several families of hop-pickers for the August harvest as seen in this 1890s photograph from the Frederick Benson collection.
    Reference: WH0996
  • Home Farm hop kilns, Dunsdale

    Home Farm hop kilns, Dunsdale

    A prolific crop, the hop ‘pockets’ stand in numbered order ready for dispatch. Each is stamped with the grower’s name, Joseph Kitchin. The long brick built ‘kiln’ was used for drying the hops prior to weighing and bagging.
    Reference: WH0994
  • Johnstone at Dunsdale 1901 census - 1

    Johnstone at Dunsdale 1901 census - 1

    Under the ownership of Norman Watney, the mansion of Dunsdale was reputed to have become the dower-house of Valence and was tenanted to retired merchant Francis John Johnstone and his family from the time of Watkins’ purchase in 1890 to the year of both Watkins and Johnstones deaths in 1911. It is somewhat ironic that ...
    Reference: WH1006
  • Johnstone at Dunsdale 1901 census - 2

    Johnstone at Dunsdale 1901 census - 2

    This continuation reveals the extent of domestic staff that were employed by the Johnstones
    Reference: WH1007
  • Johnstone leaves Dunsdale 1911 census

    Johnstone leaves Dunsdale 1911 census

    The year before he died, Francis Johnstone moved the family to Sidmouth in south Devon. Dunsdale was not re-let and the empty house and gardens naturally went into decline.
    Reference: WH1010
  • Map 1891 Dunsdale

    Map 1891 Dunsdale

    This section of the 1891 O.S. map shows the North Lodge, Dunsdale Farm and the Victorian gothic mansion itself, built for and occupied by a wealthy industrialist Joseph Kitchin in 1858. In 1880 the estate was sold to William Bryant, but by 1885 had been resold and purchased piece by piece over then next four ...
    Reference: WH1045
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