Stayley Hall
Encyclopedia
Stayley Hall, also known as Staley Hall, is a Grade II* Listed Building in Stalybridge
, Greater Manchester
. The structure dates to at least the 16th century – it appears on maps from 1577 and 1580 – but may be older. The first records of the de Stavelegh family as Lords of the Manor
date from the early 13th century.
Stayley Hall is referred to in the diaries of Sir Ralph Staveley
in the early 15th century. The hall was originally timber framed
, but was stone-clad during the 17th century. It is situated on a knoll making defence of the building a relatively easy affair. The external walls and the roofing slabs are made from locally quarried gritstone
. The inside of the building has been altered as parts of it were let as cottage tenements and the plaster has fallen off showing the original lattices of wicker work and clay daub. Part of the staircase still remained in 1871 although the floor was dilapidated even then.
Sir Ralph Staley had no male heirs and after his death his daughter, Elizabeth Staley, married Sir Thomas Assheton, uniting the manors of Ashton and Staley. Elizabeth and Thomas had no sons. Margaret, the eldest of their two daughters married Sir William Booth of Dunham Massey
The younger daughter, Elizabeth, was widowed without children. She continued to live at Staley Hall until her death in 1553. In her will she left her share of the lordships to the Booths.
John Wesley
visited Staley Hall in 1745 and a commemorative stone tablet was placed on the Hall's wall around the time of the visit.
In 2004 the Metropolitan Borough Council
announced that they had granted permission to a developer to build 16 homes next to Staley Hall. A condition of the planning consent was that the hall be restored. As of 2008 the hall is still deteriorating. It is now listed as being in very bad condition on the English Heritage
buildings at risk register.
Stalybridge
Stalybridge is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside in Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 22,568. Historically a part of Cheshire, it is east of Manchester city centre and northwest of Glossop. With the construction of a cotton mill in 1776, Stalybridge became one of...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
. The structure dates to at least the 16th century – it appears on maps from 1577 and 1580 – but may be older. The first records of the de Stavelegh family as Lords of the Manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
date from the early 13th century.
Stayley Hall is referred to in the diaries of Sir Ralph Staveley
Ralph Staveley
Sir Ralph Staley or Ralph de Stavelegh was lord of the Manor of Staley Hall, Stalybridge, England. His stone effigy is to be found in St Michael and All Angels Church, Mottram.-References:...
in the early 15th century. The hall was originally timber framed
Timber framing
Timber framing , or half-timbering, also called in North America "post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs . It is commonplace in large barns...
, but was stone-clad during the 17th century. It is situated on a knoll making defence of the building a relatively easy affair. The external walls and the roofing slabs are made from locally quarried gritstone
Gritstone
Gritstone or Grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for paper and for grindstones to sharpen blades. "Grit" is...
. The inside of the building has been altered as parts of it were let as cottage tenements and the plaster has fallen off showing the original lattices of wicker work and clay daub. Part of the staircase still remained in 1871 although the floor was dilapidated even then.
Sir Ralph Staley had no male heirs and after his death his daughter, Elizabeth Staley, married Sir Thomas Assheton, uniting the manors of Ashton and Staley. Elizabeth and Thomas had no sons. Margaret, the eldest of their two daughters married Sir William Booth of Dunham Massey
Dunham Massey
Dunham Massey is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. The parish includes the villages of Sinderland Green, Dunham Woodhouse and Dunham Town, along with Dunham Massey Park, formerly the home of the last Earl of Stamford and owned by the National Trust...
The younger daughter, Elizabeth, was widowed without children. She continued to live at Staley Hall until her death in 1553. In her will she left her share of the lordships to the Booths.
John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
visited Staley Hall in 1745 and a commemorative stone tablet was placed on the Hall's wall around the time of the visit.
In 2004 the Metropolitan Borough Council
Tameside
The Metropolitan Borough of Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after the River Tame which flows through the borough and spans the towns of Ashton-under-Lyne, Audenshaw, Denton, Droylsden, Dukinfield, Hyde, Mossley and Stalybridge. Its western...
announced that they had granted permission to a developer to build 16 homes next to Staley Hall. A condition of the planning consent was that the hall be restored. As of 2008 the hall is still deteriorating. It is now listed as being in very bad condition on the English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
buildings at risk register.