Dunham Hall

Dunham Hall is a great house, largely dating to the 1730s and 1740s, designed by John Norris for George Booth, 2nd Earl of Warrington. An earlier service court exists from around 1721, and alterations were made in 1905-7 by Compton Hall, including a significant change to the south front. The building is constructed of Flemish bond brick with stone dressings and green slate roofs, arranged around a double courtyard.

The south front, originally 11 bays and of three storeys, was altered in 1905 to resemble a 17th-century design. Four bays were reduced to two storeys with the addition of dormers, and a three-bay, stone pedimented centrepiece with coupled columns was added, giving the appearance of a smaller number of bays. A modillion eaves cornice runs along the roofline. A central coat of arms featuring the motto "A MA PUISSANCE" (to the utmost of my power) is displayed prominently. Ground floor windows are sash windows with stone architraves; first-floor windows are similar but with keystones and pediments to specific bays, and second-floor windows are square-shaped.

The east front is 11 bays wide, featuring a stone plinth, plain eaves cornice, and coped parapet. Windows are primarily 12-pane, 16-pane, or Victorian sash windows with architraves and keystones, with two semi-circular headed stair windows standing out. The two right bays project, while the two left bays are recessed. A prominent three-bay, single-story bow window dominates the facade, accessed by a stone step approach.

The north front is nearly symmetrical, with 13 bays, with three bays projecting at each end. It has a stone plinth, eaves cornice, and coped parapet. The central doorway, with a perron, has a plain surround and a pedimented window above, ornamented with scrolls. Sashes with architraves and keystones fill the windows. Bays 10 and 11 were extended in ashlar in 1905, and bays 13 and 14 have mullion and transom windows.

The main courtyard, measuring 7 by 4 bays, features central, pedimented entrance features in ashlar with Ionic pilasters, a garland enriched entablature, and a cross window above with a segmental pediment. The north side is characterised by six full-height, two-light mullion and transom windows; other windows are cross or sash windows.

The kitchen courtyard is 7 by 6 bays and contains a total of 11 mullioned windows on the ground floor, 6 doors with stone surrounds and tripartite keystones, two “oeil-de-boeuf” (bullseye) windows, a segmental arched carriage entrance, 17 sash windows with architraves to the first floor, and 7 eaves pediments.

The interior of the main courtyard is one room deep, with corridors along the west and south ranges. The north side features a hall with a 1905 plaster ceiling, above panelling and a plaster frieze, both in a 17th-century style. An overmantel, possibly by Mr Boujet, is also of 17th-century design. The Green Saloon contains a screen of four scagliola columns, designed by John Shaw in 1822. The Chapel is panelled throughout with oak panelling, pews, and a reredos dating from the late 17th and early 18th centuries.