Henry Lonsdale Home (Rose Hill)

The Henry Lonsdale Home, also known as Rose Hill, is an old people's home that was originally built as a house in 1835 for John Smith Bond. The building is constructed from polished ashlar sourced from Cumwhinton Quarry and features a chamfered plinth course, a slate roof with lead hips, and a moulded eaves cornice. The south front has two storeys and a three-bay centre, flanked by diagonally projecting semi-octagonal corner bays. A tetrastyle curved Roman Doric central porch with an ornamental frieze and a cast iron balcony above enhances the entrance. The panelled door, which has a patterned fanlight, is set within a rounded arch surround that includes a keystone. Sash windows with glazing bars are present, featuring plain surrounds. The west and east faces are constructed of Flemish bond brickwork, and there are ancillary buildings to the north that include parts of the pre-1835 farmhouse. The property passed by marriage from the Bond family to the Lonsdale family, who resided there until 1975. It was bequeathed as an old people's home and underwent conversion from 1980 to 1981 by the County Architects Department, while retaining its original appearance and internal fittings. Original plans and a written agreement with builder Thomas Robson can be found in the County Record Office.