Wroxall Abbey Hotel

The Wroxall Abbey Hotel began as a country house, later used as a school from 1963 to 1996, and now operates as a hotel since 2000. It was built circa 1866 by Walter Scott of Liverpool for James Dugdale, a descendant of Sir William Dugdale. The building is constructed with a stone ashlar plinth, red brick with stone dressings and grey brick details, and has a complex slate roof with various brick stacks. It is High Victorian Gothic in style, with a complex plan and a ten-bay main range. The main entrance features glazed double doors set within a four-centred arched surround, flanked by single-light windows having quatrefoils at the top under a common transom, some with carved end stops to the hood moulds. A three-light mullion and transom window, with two transoms and cusped lights, is above the entrance, accompanied by a stone oriel window with richly carved sides. The attic has plate tracery windows, and the gable end above the entrance displays armorial bearings. Stone string courses are visible between the ground and first floors, and between the first floor and attic. The left return has regular fenestration of stone mullion and transom windows, with an angled bay window to the ground floor left and right. The rear features regular fenestration and a double oriel on Aberdeen granite columns to the left. Inside, a prominent open-well main staircase has a stained glass window by T. Drury. Many rooms retain original Victorian fireplaces, and the tall hall has an encaustic tile floor. A painted ceiling is a distinctive feature of the secretary's room on the ground floor, to the right of centre. A railway track, including a turntable, is located in the basement.