FEBRUARY 2025

26/28/30 Wilfred Place

Our first Building of the Month nomination for 2025 goes to the spectacular buildings which make up

26/28/30 Wilfred Place.

The house was built on part of the open field, on a strip called Lyons Well Flat, which had a spring

used by local people for water. It belonged to the Huntington/Moira family. Lyon Well Flat was sold

to Edward Mammatt, a local solicitor and banker. In about 1788-89 he built Number 28 and 30, and

also a stable block on the north-west corner of the land. The house was simply called Lyons Well.

Mammatt was the solicitor for Calke Abbey and he had bought the building materials intending to

extend the Abbey, but when the plan was abandoned, he used the materials for these buildings.

The intention was to extend these buildings into a terrace and this accounts for the odd proportions

whereby they are too tall for their width. Otherwise, these houses are typical of the 1790-1820

period, with a Tuscan pillared porch over a pair of doors.

The layout of No. 28 is smaller, and while No.30 has the two middle rooms above the porch which

project into No. 28 at the front, No. 28 has the small room projecting into No. 30 on the second

floor. If the terrace had been built, this alternating pattern of rooms would have continued.

The internal features of the buildings, eg architraves, shutters and a Hopton Wood limestone hall

floor, all suggest a 1790s date. To provide access for water, the spring was built into the basement

kitchen as a well and interconnects both houses. Between 1810-20 No. 26 was built on the gable for the coachman who had access to the kitchen for water.

Janet Spavold, who recently gave a talk to Ashby Civic Society on the topic of ‘How to read a House’

has lived in No. 28 since 1975 and outlines below a potted history on previous owners (census

information provided by James White – Senior Conservation Officer for NWLDC).

By 1822 the houses and Lyons Well Flat belonged to Mr Kirby who was a nurseryman.

By 1837 the houses were known as Wilfred Place (still Tamworth Road) and belonged to Mr John

Smith (who built a smaller trap house and stable on the NE corner of the plot).

By 1849 Mr Vickers had bought the Nursery and maybe the stable block.

The 1851/61 census states, one house was occupied by John Bindley (a retired glue manufacturer)

who died in 1862.

In the 1871/81 census No. 28 was occupied by John Daniel (a cheese agent) In 1891 the house was

occupied by his widow Mary and in 1901 was then occupied by their daughter Emily.
In the 1871/81 census No.30 was occupied by Ann Simmonds (a retired Farmer) Ann was the widow

of Joseph Simmonds of Measham House. She died in in 1885.

In the 1891/1901 census the house was occupied by their daughter Maria.

In the 1911 census No. 28 (then called Lyon’s Well) was occupied by Henry Yates (a colliery cashier).

In 1921 the three houses were bought by Mr Tugby from Moira, who probably lived in No. 26 until

his death in 1957. His sister Edith Maud Tugby who lived in Rawdon Terrace inherited them and sold

No.26 to Mr and Mrs Wilson, and No 28 and 30 to Mrs Green.

In 1974 Mrs Green separated No’s 28 and 30 (selling No.30 to Amber Properties Ltd and No.28 to a

local family).