Mawdesley Hall

Mawdesley Hall is a "hall house" of the lesser gentry, later a farmhouse and now a house, likely dating from the early 17th century. It was updated in 1625 and 1655, with further alterations in the 18th and 19th centuries, and has been recently renovated. The main part of the house is timber-framed on a stone plinth, while the left wing is of sandstone with quoins and the right wing is of brick with stone quoins. The roof is covered in stone-coloured tiles, hipped over the front of the wings. The building follows an H-plan, comprising a two-bay hall range with a two-bay crosswing on either side.

The hall range is an irregular four-bay post and truss construction. It features a coved jetty to the first floor, coved eaves, straight arch-bracing to the wallplate, and ornamental herringbone bracing in the lower panels of the upper floor and one ground-floor panel. The entrance is at the right-hand end, through an altered arched doorway with arched-glazed side lights. Above the doorway is a row of small panels with convex corner bracing, extending leftwards over a chevron-patterned panel. The hall range has windows with ten lights, set on short studs, featuring wooden mullions and transoms. The first floor has intermediate posts and three inserted two-light casements. The rear of the hall range is of simpler post and rail construction, with some straight bracing to the wallplate. A large external stone chimney stack, offset at eaves level and terminating in two rebuilt chimneys, is located in the second bay.

The left wing is distinguished by a first-floor band and raised quoins; it contains a window on each floor, both vertically rectangular with moulded architraves and keystones, glazed as crosswindows with casement openings and glazing bars. The roof sweeps over the eaves. A similar window is on each floor of the left return wall, the lower one altered to French doors. The right wing has 19th-century windows altered to top-hung casements, and a chimney is situated in the centre of the ridge of each wing.

Inside, there is a diminutive storeyed hall with an entrance lobby and staircase in the fourth bay. A timber-framed partition divides the hall, which has two lateral beams with rounded chamfer, supported by brackets from the wallposts. Walls on three sides are wainscotted to three-quarters height, in three stages of muntin and rail panelling with scored lozenge decoration in the panels. A Tudor-arched stone fireplace in the middle bay of the rear wall features a lintel lettered 1625 (William Mawdesley), decorated moulded plaster overmantel bearing the Mawdesley arms, helm, and cresting, with the date 1655 and initials R M (Robert Mawdesley) at the bottom. An old oak staircase has apparently been remodelled or moved. A timber-framed partition wall extends to the right wing, with a first-floor doorway suggesting a contemporary continuation or a former wing in this position. The first floor of the hall part is laterally partitioned in the centre (not vertically aligned with the ground-floor partition), with convex bracing to the tie beam. The roof is windbraced. A moulded Tudor-arched hall-chamber fireplace is present, along with studded batten and board doors with ornamental strap hinges.