Old drawings and paintings of Shelford Old Hall

The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished in 1852.

A pencil drawing of Little Shelford Old Hall from the southern aspect, probably by Fanny Wale. The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished in 1852.

A pencil drawing of Little Shelford Old Hall, probably by Fanny Wale. The hall is seen from what is now Camping Close and the Whittlesford Road.
The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished in 1852.

A pencil drawing of Little Shelford Old Hall, from the northern aspect, by Louisa Wale. The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished around 1852.

A painting of Little Shelford Old Hall by Fanny Wale from A Record of Shelford Parva. While the painting shows the date 1860, Fanny would have only been nine year old at the time, suggesting she simply copied the date from the original painting. It was probably copied from the painting below which was owned by the Wale family.
The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished around 1852.

A pencil drawing of Little Shelford Old Hall from the eastern aspect, probably by Fanny Wale. The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished in 1852.

These are photos of a model of Shelford Old Hall in Little Shelford which is now the property of the Museum of Cambridge. The hall itself was built in 1640 and was largely demolished in 1852.

Part of the north wing of the historic hall remains. It is now known as the Lodge. It can be found at the junction of Whittlesford Road and Bridge Lane in Little Shelford. It is now a family home.

Old Shelford Hall was a Tudor development of a medieval hall house, and was modernised in the Georgian style by Thomas Wale on his return from Riga, Russia in the 1760s.

The model Colonel Wale made in the late 1840s shows U-shaped ranges enclosing an open courtyard.

A sketch re-produced in Fanny Wale's book gives an idea of the rambling and unpretentious charm of the buildings.

With its six staircases, beamed and oak-panelled rooms and enormous Elizabethan fireplaces it seems to have been a commodious and comfortable house, lived in and loved by generations of the Wale family. It was however not grand, and was in a poor state of repair when it was partially demolished in the 1850s.

By 1850 the new Hall was arising in the Park and a few years later most of the old house was demolished, with only a rump surviving on Bridge Lane to serve as an entrance Lodge.

Model

A copy of a Victorian pencil drawing of the Lodge, made by Rosemary Nicholls in 1977.

A pencil drawing of the lodge, what remained of Little Shelford Old Hall, probably by Fanny Wale after 1909. The hall is seen from what is now Camping Close and the Whittlesford Road. The first Shelford Hall, or the Old House, was built in 1640. It was altered in 1764 by Thomas Wale and then largely demolished in 1852.