Listed Building record MDO27363 - Merley House, Poole

A former country house, now a museum and flats, built 1752-60 for Ralph Willett with the wings added in 1772. Alterations were made to the house around 1805 for his heir John Willett Adye. The wings were demolished around 1813 and the house was altered on several occasions in the 20th century. The house is constructed from red brick in Flemish bond with Portland stone dressings, rendered to the sides and garden front, and a hipped slate roof. It is of a modified double-pile plan comprising a basement, two principal storeys and an attic storey. The ground around the house has been raised to partly conceal the basement, possibly by John Nash around 1805. The ground floor now houses a model museum and the upper floors have been converted into flats with the exception of a large room over the hall. The walls are of red brick in Flemish bond with Portland stone dressings, rendered to sides and garden front. The building has hipped slate roofs and rendered ridge stacks.

Built between 1752 and 1760 including two wings now demolished. Further additions about 1772 were demolished about 1813. The house is of three storeys, or brick with stucco and ashlar dressings and a hipped slate roof. <1>

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume II (South East) Part 2, 208-9 (Monograph). SDO149.

<2> Newman, J, and Pevsner, N, 1972, The Buildings of England: Dorset, 129-30 (Monograph). SWX1290.

<3> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey 1:10,000 scale map, 1974 (Map). SDO17396.

(SZ 00879832) Merley House (NAT)

<4> Historic England, Historic England Archive, BF104565 (Index). SDO14738.

MERLEY HOUSE, MERLEY PARK LANE, WIMBORNE, POOLE

<5> National Record of the Historic Environment, 458066 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Mar 3 2022 4:02PM