The Old Tower

The Old Tower is a fortified house dating from the late 14th century or early 15th century, with alterations and additions made in 1852 by William Atkinson and further modifications in 1902-1903 by Sir Robert Lorimer for Joseph Harris. The building features extremely thick dressed red sandstone walls, a 20th-century battlemented ashlar parapet, and ashlar chimney stacks. It has a 20th-century angle turret and cupola, with a roof that is hidden from view within the parapets.

The structure is a three-storey square tower with lower rear extensions that are two and three storeys high, forming an overall L-shape. These extensions are of two different builds and are constructed of red sandstone ashlar under a graduated greenslate roof with a crow-stepped gable. The tower has various two- and three-light stone-mullioned windows from the 19th and 20th centuries, all set under hoodmoulds. The left return wall features two small upper-floor windows, while other blocked windows are obscured by ivy growth. The extensions include a 20th-century doorway in the re-entrant angle and similar two- and three-light windows as those found in the tower.

A glazed orangery connects the Old Tower with the main house, Brackenburgh. There have been internal alterations in the 19th and 20th centuries. The building is reputedly constructed as a residence for the warden of Inglewood Forest, although there are very few references to it in historical records.