Longley Hall And Garden Wall To Front

Longley Hall is a farmhouse, likely built in the mid-18th century. It has undergone alterations but incorporates older fabric, including a datestone from 1668. The construction is brick with a sandstone plinth and sandstone quoins on the rear and west gable, topped with a slate roof and two brick chimneys. The building has a double-depth, two-bay plan with a single-storey lean-to addition to the rear.

The south front, which faces the garden, is characterized by a two-course band at the first floor level. There's a gabled porch, offset to the right, and three four-pane sash windows on the ground floor, with four above, all with slightly segmental brick heads. The left gable wall has one window on each of three floors, and quoins extend up to a half height of the rear corner. The right gable wall has four irregularly placed windows over four levels. The rear elevation features the single-storey lean-to with stone quoins, a narrow stairwell light above, a large window at ground floor, and a segmental-headed two-light casement window on the first floor.

Inside, large, mostly chamfered beams are a prominent feature, and some include cyma stops. One beam, in the kitchen (ground floor, left), has roll moulding on the soffit and one side, but is roughly chamfered on the other – it may have originally been a hearth bressummer. A parlour door features geometrical bolection-moulded panelling, H-hinges, and a decorated iron bolt on the inner side. A full-height, dogleg staircase has a closed string, turned balusters, a moulded handrail, and square newels. Timber-framed partitions are found at the first floor. A lintel above a former backdoor (now concealed under the lean-to) has an oval panel lettered in relief "ER."

Historically, the original hall was probably built by William Latewis around 1544, a recusant who lost his estate in 1607. In the 17th century, the hall was owned by the Rigby family, including Edward Rigby, Sergeant-at-Law, who died around 1682. During the mid-18th century, the property belonged to James Parkinson of Preston, an apothecary. It is believed that the house was rebuilt during this time by a member of the Parkinson family, incorporating elements of the earlier structure.

The garden wall to the south, constructed of handmade brick with ridged sandstone coping of a 17th-century style, is L-shaped and encloses the east and south sides of the garden.

Group Value: Longley Hall possesses group value due to its historical significance and architectural details.