Broadleys

Broadleys is a house constructed between 1898 and 1900 by C.F.A. Voysey for A. Currer Briggs. It now serves as the headquarters of the Windermere Motor Boat Racing Club and is located on Newby Bridge Road, Cartmel Fell, overlooking Lake Windermere.

The house is built with roughcast walls, stone dressings, and a hipped slate roof. Its layout is L-shaped, comprising a west-facing range overlooking the lake and a north-facing service range. It is a single-storey building with an attic. A prominent dripcourse runs over the ground floor, and the wide eaves are supported by slender, curved brackets.

The east facade, which serves as the entrance, features three bays. The central bay projects beneath a hipped roof, while the third bay has a gable containing a porch on the left-hand side, its right side cut by the roof of the service wing. A slate plaque, inscribed with lettering designed by Voysey, records the building's construction. Continuous wooden mullioned windows with leaded glazing and rectangular quarries illuminate the stairwell’s interior. The entrance is defined by a porch supported by two wooden Tuscan columns and trellis sides, with a studded door and decorative strap hinges. A large, cross-axial stack is also a notable feature.

The adjoining four-bay south facade of the service range has stone mullioned windows arranged 4:1:4. Dormers with flat tops and cornices are set into the first floor. The south end of this range originally included a recessed loggia, now infilled, although the cornice remains. A more recent entrance and windows have been incorporated, along with a flat-topped stone dormer with a cornice and a 4-light window above. A porch with three Tuscan columns, a door with strap hinges, and flanking lights mark the entrance to the fourth bay.

The west facade, with three bays, features three bowed bay windows rising through the eaves, and flat-topped cornices. The central bay window illuminates the hall, containing six lights with two transoms, while the upper lights are smaller to fit under the eaves. A round window is set within a stone surround on the right. A large lateral stack and a raking angle buttress are positioned on the right-hand end. The north facade exhibits varied fenestration, which includes stone mullioned windows. A basement at the west end has two entrances and a 4-light window. The ground floor features mostly 4-light windows, and a tall, narrow stair window with two transoms is also present. Dormers with continued gutters are visible on the first floor, along with two lateral stacks. The east gable end has a segmental-headed coal door with a dripstone, a 4-light window, and a 3-light dormer.

The interior retains many original fittings, including panelling and fireplaces. The hall features an enclosed balcony with braced beams and Tuscan columns, along with two grotesque corbels and glazing. The stair has newels that extend to the ceiling, featuring flat cornices, horizontal handrails, and stick balusters with heart motifs. Ventilation grilles have a bird and bush design. Original window catches remain. Broadleys is considered one of Voysey's finest houses and one of the most significant buildings of its date in Europe.