Stratton's Tower

Stratton's Tower is an observatory tower that has been converted into a dwelling. It was built in 1789 for Admiral J. Stratton of the Gage. The tower is made of red brick, some of which is vitrified and largely reused from a 17th-century brew-house that previously occupied the site. The structure stands 155 feet high and consists of five stages.

The lower stage is octagonal with unequal sides, featuring four larger sides that have blank arches. It has a plinth and a cyma recta cornice. On the southeast side, there is an entrance with glazed doors and a round-headed fanlight, supported by impost blocks. The upper stages are all round, with a short second stage that has four openings aligned with the arches of the lower stage, featuring nine-pane windows that are recessed with slightly cambered heads.

There is a plat band at the third and fourth stages, with four tall relieving arches on the same alignment, which include tall round-headed sash windows in the third stage and oculi with radiating glazing bars in the fourth stage. The openings on the north side of the second, third, and fourth stages are blind. The top stage has a plat band and a cyma recta cornice, with eight small-pane windows that also have slightly cambered heads. The tower is topped with a stone-coped embattled parapet, aligned so that the merlons sit over the windows.

Traditionally, the tower was built to view ships on the Thames, but it is more likely that it was intended for astronomical observation. The interior has not been inspected.