Building record 5993/0/10 - Beehive Cottage, Ashton Wold Estate

Beehive Cottage was built as a dog hospital in the early 20th century. It was converted to residential use in the early 21st century. The building is a T-shaped single storey building with half hipped slate roofs and two coursed rock-faced limestone chimneys on the ridge of the main range. It is a timber-framed and weatherboarded construction, the posts are supported on a brick plinth. The interior is modern, with new tiled late 19th century fireplaces. [Named Honeycomb Cottage by the NRHE database]

{1} The Ashton Estate, stretching from the River Nene near Oundle in the west to Ashton Wold in the east, has been occupied since Roman times. In the 18th century it was a well-known sporting estate, with avenues of chestnut trees planted in a cross as rides, and a number of fox coverts. In the early 19th century the estate was owned by William Walcot and was largely farmed by tenants, with Ashton Wold continuing as a sporting ground. However, there is no evidence that it had ever contained a manor house, and when in 1860 it was purchased by Lionel Rothschild the sale particulars described it as 'a very valuable and important landed estate', with sporting advantages, but no house adapted for the occupation of a gentleman. Both Lionel Rothschild and his son Nathaniel Mayer, 1st Lord Rothschild (1840-1915), showed little interest in the estate, and the only structural work undertaken in the 19th century was the building of a hunting lodge at Ashton Wold. However, when Lord Rothschild's second son, Nathaniel Charles (1877-1923) - known as Charles - discovered Ashton by accident whilst on a butterfly-collecting expedition with the vicar of Polebrook, he was so impressed by the rich fauna and flora of Ashton Wold that he persuaded his father to build him a house on the site of the hunting lodge. In 1900 Lord Rothschild commissioned William Huckvale to design not only a house, but a model farm, an entire complement of estate buildings which included the Steward's house, stables, gardeners' accommodation, a building to house a fire engine, a petrol store, kennels (now derelict) and a dog hospital, now Honeycomb Cottage. Most of the cottages at nearby Ashton were rebuilt to create a model village. The Rothschilds also became the first landowners in the country to provide their tenants with the luxury of both running filtered water and electricity, the latter generated by turbines housed in an old mill below the village on the River Nene, from where water was pumped to a water tower and so to the estate buildings. Each cottage had a bath house and was placed in a large garden planted with a lilac, a laburnum and fruit trees. High quality design and workmanship were consistent themes throughout the estate, employing traditional vernacular building traditions, with simple working buildings afforded the same care as were the dwellings, farmsteads and garden structures.

Honeycomb Cottage was built as a dog hospital (the kennels are slightly further to the east). Both buildings are shown on the estate map of c1901. The building was converted to residential use in the early 21st century.

Little is known about William Huckvale (1847-1936) who worked mainly for the Rothschilds and therefore had no need to publicise his work in the architectural journals, and was not a member of the RIBA. After setting up his own practice in London he came into contact with Alexander Parks, agent to Lord Rothschild. He designed a number of buildings for the Rothschilds on the Tring Park estate, undertook considerable work at the Rothschild bank in New Court in the City of London, and was the architect for the Royal Mint Refinery. He also carried out work on the Rothschild estate at Aston Clinton. The quality of his work is reflected in the 42 listed buildings he already has to his name, 13 in Tring and 29 on the Ashton Estate.

Honeycomb Cottage is a T-shaped single storey building with half hipped slate roofs and two coursed rock-faced limestone chimneys on the ridge of the main south-west range. It is of timber-framed and weatherboarded construction, the posts supported on a brick plinth. The entrance is to the rear of the north-east wing, and all windows are two and three light casements with glazing bars. The interior is modern, with new tiled late 19th century style fireplaces.

Honeycomb Cottage is not recommended for designation for the following principal reason. The alterations to this very simple building of specialised function have compromised its external appearance and internal plan form. No interior details survive, and its function is no longer evident.


[HER note: the house is known as Honeycomb Cottage in the listing file, but is now known as Beehive Cottage on OS mapping].

<1> ENGISH HERITAGE, English Heritage Listing File, Heritage Protection Adviser, 16th October 2009 (Report). SNN111579.

Record last edited

Feb 17 2025 6:57PM