Wardle Old Hall

Wardle Old Hall is a private house that was originally a farmhouse, dating from the early 18th century. It is constructed of red brick in Flemish bond and features a slate roof. The building has two storeys and five bays, with an ogee moulded stone plinth. Giant Doric pilasters are present at the quoins and flanking the central entrance bay. The entrance is highlighted by a stone doorcase that has eared tops and bottoms, a keystone adorned with a foliage motif, a pulvinated frieze, and a pediment with a dentil cornice. This entrance contains a four-panel door, where the lower panels are raised and fielded, and the upper panels are glazed. The windows are slightly recessed sashes with stone sills and sunk brick panels below, featuring glazing bars and gauged skewback flat heads. The first-floor window in the center bay has a stone key with a grain motif. A moulded stone gutter cornice runs between the pilaster caps, which are decorated with triglyphs and guttae. The roof has lead hips and two symmetrically placed stacks with arch-headed sunken panels. Built-up window openings are found in the north and south gables. At the rear (east), there is a two-storey, two-bay wing made of red brick, topped with a roof of large slates; the ridge of this section aligns with the eaves of the main house. Inside, the rear wing features chamfered beams, exposed ceiling joists, and original roof trusses. The main building has wide three-panel doors on unusual "H" hinges with a single long leg. Wardle Old Hall is listed as Grade II* due to the high quality of its Baroque facade.