Bill Hill

Bill Hill is a large country house built in the 18th century and altered in the 19th century. It is constructed of brick with a stone plinth, stone strings at floor levels, and stone pilasters at the outer corners of the south front. The house features a wood bracketed cornice and a slate roof, standing three storeys tall.

The south front consists of a main block with five bays, flanked by later projecting one-storey wings. The main block has a plain stone string at the first floor level and a moulded string at the second floor, which is carried around the corner pilasters. The windows are sash style with glazing bars, featuring segmental heads on the ground and first floors. The central first-floor window has a stone surround that sweeps out and extends down to the first-floor string, while the remaining first-floor windows have fluted stone key blocks, with the second-floor string broken forward over each. The entrance includes a half-glazed central double door with a three-pane rectangular fanlight, set within a doorcase of fluted Doric pilasters. The entablature has an architrave that sweeps up in the centre into a frieze, with a cornice that is broken forward over the pilasters and in the centre, topped by a broken segmental pediment featuring a unicorn.

The flanking wings are one storey high, with a brick plinth, moulded stone cornice string, and a small blocking course, each containing three tall sash windows. The north front is made of plum-coloured brick with red dressings and has tall windows on the ground floor, with ground and first-floor windows being sash style with segmental heads, as well as a glazed central door and a rectangular fanlight with lead radiating and wreathed glazing.

Inside, the ground floor has been altered in the 19th century but retains an 18th-century stone staircase with a wrought and cast iron balustrade and a moulded mahogany handrail. The house was originally owned by Sir Montague Blundell, who later became Lord Blundell. In 1734, it was sold to Lady Harold, who married the first Earl Gower in 1736. She built the stables and made additions to the house, which remained in her family, leading to the construction of large 19th-century extensions that have since been demolished.