Marston House

Marston House is a country house built around 1650, later rebuilt around 1700 for the Duke of Cork and Orrery, with significant alterations in the late 18th century and substantial additions in the 19th century. The house features squared and coursed Doulting stone, dressed quoins, a moulded and dentilled eaves cornice, a balustraded parapet, and a slate mansard roof with rubble stacks that have oversailing courses.

The central block is two stages high with a symmetrical arrangement of two bays, each pair stepped forward. It has sash windows with glazing bars set in triple keyed moulded architraves. The central bays include a ground floor verandah supported by four Ionic columns and an entablature, with small flat-roofed glazed porches on either side.

To each side of the central block are large 19th-century wings that project outwards, each two stories tall with eight bays. These wings feature two pedimented projecting sections, sash windows with glazing bars, and some ground floor windows set in semi-circular headed recesses or Gibbs surrounds. The western wing has exceptionally large openings with cornices above, leading into the ballroom.

At the west end, there is a distressed conservatory with pedimented gables and ball finials. The rear entrance is located in a projecting single-storey mid-19th century wing, which has a moulded cornice and parapet, a lantern roof, and paired segmental-headed niches flanking an aediculated door opening with large paired two-panel doors.

The interior primarily dates from the mid-19th century, with a notable elaborately plastered ballroom, especially its ceiling. The west wing also contains a billiard room and library, featuring decorative plasterwork, shelving, and fireplaces in the 18th-century French style. The formal entrance hall has paired cantilever staircases, one of which is damaged, with cast iron balusters and a moulded handrail, leading out of a colonnaded vestibule.

The east wing includes domestic offices, with a stable block and coach house located at the rear around a courtyard. The rear forecourt is marked by two pairs of elaborate stone gate piers with stepped circular caps. A terrace is accessed by two flights of steps, with an additional flight leading to the grounds behind, all featuring balustraded handrails.