Stoneleigh

Stoneleigh is a mid-19th century house constructed from hammer-dressed stone with a pitched tile roof. The house exhibits an elaborate picturesque plan and features shaped gables, two storeys and attics. The windows are mullioned and transomed, most with pointed relieving arches that have continuous moulded imposts. A steep, two-centred arched door is set within a long gabled porch, which has arcades of three moulded two-centred arches on short columns, complete with elaborate foliate capitals. A three-storey tower is also present, featuring shaped gables and a pyramidal tile roof. Stacks are topped with a crocketed cornice and caps displaying geometrical ashlar ornament. A conservatory with a ripped roof is attached to the rear.

Around 1891, the Manchester architect George Faulkner Armitage (1849-1937) was commissioned by Henry Martin to build a billiard room. This room contained internal joinery of exceptional quality, earning it a double-page illustration in The British Architect in February 1891. Armitage’s involvement likely stemmed from his earlier recognition for art furniture and interior decoration displayed at the 1883 Huddersfield Exhibition, which was illustrated in The Cabinet Maker and Art Furnisher in September 1883. The billiard room has undergone alterations, but significant amounts of elaborate late 19th century joinery remain inside, potentially by Armitage.