Standish Hall

Standish Hall was a estate and country house, built in 1573, owned by the Standish family in the south-west of Standish, Wigan. No traces of the original building remain today.

Not to be confused with Myles Standish Hall.
Standish Hall
Postcard of Standish Hall circa 1915
General information
AddressStandish, Greater Manchester, England
Coordinates53°34′26″N 2°40′08″W
Construction started1573

History
Drawing of Standish Hall, by John Preston Neale circa 1845

The original building was a Wattle and daub H-shaped building constructed in 1574. In 1684 a wing to the north built of brick was added and during the same time many alterations were made to the original house. In 1748 another three-story brick wing was added to the west. The moat, which surrounded the house was filled up in 1780. A final extension further west was added in 1822.[1]

By the late-19th-century the hall stood in extensive parkland with forests, grasslands and large fishponds. The hall and its Roman Catholic chapel were at the centre of the estate, which had a series of interconnecting path systems and possibly a ha-ha to the south. A track to the north led to the Hermitage.[2]

The last member of the Standish family to live in the hall was Charles Strickland Standish. He later let it to Thomas Darwell, the Mayor of Wigan, in 1824 or 1825.[2]

After Henry Noailles Widdington Standish died in 1920 leaving no children,[3] the estate was broken up and hall put up for auction. It failed to reach its reserve price of £4,800 and so was withdrawn. The Tudor wing and chapel were eventually sold, dismantled and transported to America. The remainder was left in ruin with the last part of the hall, which had been split up into two smaller houses, being demolished around 1982.[1]

Catholicism
Cat 'i'th' Window Cottage

From 1559 Catholic mass was said at the hall. In 1694 the hall was suspected to be a centre for Jacobitism, and many of the Catholic gentry from the area were put on trial. During the Jacobite rising of 1715, Ralph Standish joined the Scots Army and was sentenced to death (through later reprieved) for his actions in the Battle of Preston. In 1742 a new chapel was built at Standish Hall.[4]

The nearby Cat 'i'th' Window Cottage is associated the hall, local tradition says the placement black plaster cats in its windows indicated when there was a Catholic mass being held there (or that there were government troops in the area).[4][5]

References
  1. Historic England. "Standish Hall (41975)". PastScape.
  2. "Standish Hall Park". parksandgardens.org. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
  3. "Standish Papers". National Archives.
  4. "Standish - St Marie Of The Annunciation". taking-stock.org.uk. Taking Stock.
  5. Cat I'th'Window Plaque - Wikimedia
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