Eastgate House, Rochester
Eastgate House | ||
---|---|---|
OS grid reference TQ74486833 | | |
Built | 1590/1 | |
Built for | Sir Peter Buck | |
Governing body | Eastgate House Trust | |
Listed Building | ||
Type | Grade II* | |
Designated | 24 October 1950 | |
Reference no. | 1086482 | |
Eastgate House is a Grade I listed Elizabethan townhouse in Rochester, Kent, England.[1] It is notable for its association with author Charles Dickens, featuring as Westgate in The Pickwick Papers and as the Nun's House in The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Now a Dickens Museum, the grounds of Eastgate House contain the Swiss chalet in which Dickens penned several of his novels.
History
It was built in the 1590s for Sir Peter Buck, Mayor of Medway and Clerk of the Cheque at Chatham Dockyard.[2][3] The house then became home to five generations of his family.[4] In 1687, the Parker family inhabited the house and then in the 1750s, the Bartholemew family owned the house until the mid-18th century.[5] In 1761, it was owned by Annabel Darwin. Then in 1791, it was occupied by James Reed. It is unclear who first set up a school on the site (James or his widow).[5] The school is mentioned in as a freeschool in 'The History and Antiquities of Rochester and Its Environs' by Samuel Denne in 1772.[6] In 1841, it became a Victorian boarding school for girls governed by Rebecca Norton.[7] The house is famous for its association with Dickens, featuring as 'Westgate' in The Pickwick Papers in 1836, and then as the 'Nun's House' in The Mystery of Edwin Drood in 1870.[2] In 1870s, it became a private house once more, owned by Samual Shaw, a wholesale coal merchant. Who was born in Wandsworth, Surrey. This was to be their last home in England, before leaving for Canada.[8] It became a young men's hostel in 1890 and then a
Architecture
The brick exterior is fragile and expensive to repair.[10] The structure has the date 1591 on a beam in one of the upper rooms of the house.[2][3] Current renovations include removal of pipework and wiring. Additional elements include heating and lighting features, as well as a new lift and a staircase to replace one which was previously removed.[11] Conservators made some discoveries after removing layers of interior paint: the mysterious drawing of a man's face within a 16th-century setting, and a pattern of black lines with similarity to a plaster painting discovered on the second floor.[12]
Grounds
At the time of completion, the grounds of the house were "extremely large stretching westward a considerable distance along St. Martins Lane to St Chad's Lane and northward".[13] In the 1920s, Sir Guy Dawber designed the gardens, annexe building and cottage of the property.[2]
References
- ^ Historic England. "EASTGATE HOUSE (1086482)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f "Eastgate House". Medway Council. Archived from the original on 31 March 2014. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-86195-441-5.
- ^ Furness, Hannah (21 May 2012). "Charles Dickens building damaged by free runners". The Telegraph. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
- ^ a b "A Brief History of Eastgate House". friendsofeastgatehouse.org. 2014. Archived from the original on 20 July 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
- ^ The History and Antiquities of Rochester and Its Environs, p. 4, at Google Books
- ^ a b Sharp, Jess (19 July 2017). "Eastgate House in Rochester opens to public after revamp". kentonline.co.uk. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
- ^ "The Story of Samuel William Shaw and Helen Maria York". Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
- ^ "Rochester's Eastgate House to be transformed". BBC. 11 December 2012. Retrieved 8 May 2014.
- ^ Furness, Hannah (21 May 2012). "Charles Dickens building damaged by free runners". The Telegraph. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ^ McGuinness, Alan (11 November 2013). "Cafe funds to help Eastgate House in Rochester". Kent Online. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ^ "Mysterious face found in Rochester's Eastgate House". Kent and Sussex Courier. 12 May 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-78306-131-0.
External links
- Eastgate House - city tourism information