Moor Park

Moor Park is a late 18th-century house, representing a rebuilding of a 17th-century structure originally belonging to Sir William Temple, who was renowned for his gardens.

The garden front (southwest elevation) is three storeys high, with a prominent central bay that projects slightly and has an angled facade. This central bay features three windows, while the flanking wings each have two. A decorative cornice runs along the first floor, with a moulded string course above it at the level of the second-floor window sills. Both cornices and string courses curve segmentally over the central bay window. Each wing features a wide, segmental arched recess containing a three-pane window on the second floor. The interior of the central bay is lined with panels, and a moulded string course at the head of the side wings is carried around the central bay. The central bay extends another storey, with a square window on each face, culminating in a second cornice and a pediment along the main wall line.

The entrance front displays symmetrical flanking wings of a similar design, with a later arcaded porch spanning the ground floor between them. Inside, a staircase features a “crinoline” balustrade, and the walls are adorned with oval plaster medallions within decorative plaster frames.

A range of altered, one-storey brick outbuildings adjoins the house to the northwest, now used for domestic purposes. The foundations of a former banqueting house and gazebo also remain nearby, to the northwest. A sundial, believed to mark the burial site of Temple's heart, is no longer present. The remains of the original terraced garden, leading towards the river, are still visible, though no architectural features survive. The landscape is now informal, with a notable cedar tree prominently positioned in front of the house, backed by the wooded ridge of the northeast side of the Wey Valley. The valley's scenic beauty, with its dense woodland and expanse extending from the railway near Farnham to the entrance of Waverley Park, remains largely unaffected by modern development.

Moor Park served as the residence of Sir William Temple and his wife, Dorothy Osbourne, for fifteen years. Jonathan Swift, while serving as Sir William’s secretary, wrote "A Tale of a Tub," "The Battle of the Books," and encountered Stella at the house. Charles Darwin was also a visitor, and Lord Roberts resided there in the early 20th century. Further detail regarding Sir William Temple’s garden and the existence of the 17th-century house can be found in a Country Life article from November 25, 1949.