Historic Liverpool Dwellings - Woolton Wood & Camp Hill

 

Woolton Wood Mansion

Camp Hill, with its panoramic views across the Mersey estuary, was, from 150 BC, the site of  an Iron Age fort which is also reputed to have been used by the Romans. The name of Woolton, recorded in the Domesday Book as Uluentune, is derived from 'Wulfa's Tun', from the Anglo-Saxon personal name Wulfa and the Old English tun meaning village, farm or homestead. Woolton Woods formed part of the estate of Woolton Hall, which from 1772 was owned by the Ashton family, well known prominent Liverpool citizens. In the 1850s ownership of the estate passed to William Shand, who married one of the daughters of Henry Ashton. A large house known as Woolton Wood had been built on top of the hill in the 1820s and by 1871 was the home of Liverpool-born Holbrook Gaskell, a prominent chemical manufacturer with an alkali works (Gaskell, Deacon & Co.). The Gaskell family, whose family tree can be traced back to the 16th century, were resident at Woolton Wood with the 1881 Census listing him at Woolton Wood, age 68, with his wife, daughter, son, 3 visitors and 9 servants. The Gaskell family were Unitarians, and the proximity of the house to Gateacre Chapel may have been a consideration for them.
Holbrook Gaskell was a keen orchid grower with his collection being described as "one of the finest in the north of England". After his death (age 96) in 1909 his head gardener, Henry Corlett, remained at Woolton Wood and further developed the walled garden, which also included a notable fernery. The estate - the mansion and its surrounding woods, gardens and other land - was acquired in 1917 by Col. James Reynolds, who in turn sold it to Liverpool Corporation for recreational use. The walled garden opened to the public in 1921 as an Old English Garden, and in 1927 a Floral Cuckoo Clock was presented by the family of James Bellhouse Gaskell (Holbrook's son) in memory of his long connection with the area. The house itself was demolished in 1948, but of course the woods and garden still survive as a much appreciated local amenity. Sadly the cuckoo clock is no longer operational.

  

Meanwhile another estate known as Camp Hill had been created to the south of Woolton Wood. The two mansion houses stood close to one another on the west side of School Lane, but this was the only the 'tradesmen's entrance'. Other visitors would have entered via the gates next to the respective lodges: in High Street (near Quarry Street South) for Woolton Wood, and in Hillfoot Road for Camp Hill. This was not an unusual arrangement; the wealthy residents wanted their guests to be impressed by the long drive through their grounds before reaching the house.
The Camp Hill mansion, built in the 1850s, was by 1881 the home of Droitwich-born Frederick Herbert Gossage (1832-1907). Like his neighbour, Holbrook Gaskell, he owned a large soap factory in Widnes and was, as a result, a business acquaintance of his neighbour. At the 1881 Census he and his wife were away from home, the house being occupied by their 2 daughters, 2 sons, 1 niece, 2 nephews, 1 visitor and 11 servants. In 1921 a subsequent owner, Charles James Williams, bequeathed the estate to Liverpool Corporation. Once again, the house has now gone, but the lodge and the grounds - including the sunken Dutch Garden of Meditation created in 1928 - survive as part of the wider 'Woolton Wood & Camp Hill' public open space.

Abbots Lea

On Beaconsfield Road, near Woolton Hill and opposite Calderstone Park, was built Abbots Lea, a solid two storey sandstone house, possibly built from Woolton sandstone with a slate roof, an attic and seven bays. The first bay breaks forward under the gable, the second bay gabled porch has a Tudor-arched entrance and glazed extension and the sixth bay has a two-storey rectangular bay window. This was the home of William Gossage JP, the son of  Frederick Herbert Gossage, and also a soap manufacturer. With the family soap factory in Widnes, he perhaps had a private carriage to get to Widnes as other merchants would do in the high Victorian era that would have lived here.
Abbots Lee was first gifted to the community by the Gossage family in the early 1900s and was used as a hospital school in World War II. It is now a large special school providing holistic education for students aged 3-19 living with Autism and cognitive learning difficulties/disabilitiesSchool, a city council school.

see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2022/12/historic-liverpool-dwellings-knolle-park.html