Stoke Rochford Hall, Grantham, England

The following is from the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest.

HISTORIC DEVELOPMENT

The name of Rochford comes from the Rochford family who originated in Essex but moved to Lincolnshire in the 15th century. The old house which they purchased from the Neville family eventually fell into ruin and in the 17th century the estate came into the possession of Sir Edmund Turnor who in 1665 began to build a new house on the site of the old one. Around it he laid out formal gardens, parterres, and terraces before he died in 1707. The park was extended and landscaped during the 18th century, its layout being recorded on the 1799 Enclosure map. The gardens survived in part until the beginning of the 19th century but Sir Edmund's house was taken down by his successors in 1774 and by 1794 another, smaller house had taken its place (Country Life 1901). Mr Edmund Turnor resided in the new house until his death in 1829 and the estate passed to his son, Sir Christopher Turnor. By the 1840s the Turnor family fortune was considerable, allowing Sir Christopher to abandon the old house and its gardens. He commissioned the architect William Burn to design a grand new mansion, which was built between 1841 and 1843 on higher ground to the north-east. Burn also designed and built many of the cottages in the estate village of South Stoke and created formal terraced gardens for the Hall, which was given a new southern approach via a bridge crossing the lakes. The design of the pleasure grounds was undertaken by W A Nesfield, who collaborated with Burn on several occasions (The Gardener 1874). Sir Christopher Turnor died in 1886 and the estate passed to his son Edmund who resided elsewhere and let Stoke Rochford to tenants. On his death in 1903 Edmund was succeeded by his nephew Christopher who retook possession of the Hall. During the Second World War Stoke Rochford was occupied by the army and in 1940 Christopher Turnor died. The family continued to manage the park but in 1948, Kesteven Council opened up the Kesteven College of Education in the Hall and grounds. By 1978 when the College closed the Council had erected modern halls of residence in the west park. In October 1978 the National Union of Teachers purchased the lease from Kesteven Council and opened its National Education and Conference Centre. The site remains (2001) in divided ownership.