Ashton Gifford House - Construction of Ashton Gifford House

Construction of Ashton Gifford House

The main house appears to have been built in two principal stages. The central part, of three storeys, has thick walls which were constructed as external walls and which now lie in between the central portion and the east and west wings of the property. It is surmised that this part of the property was constructed some time around 1806 by Benjamin Rebbeck, a local landowner who had purchased the property (including around 93 acres (380,000 m2) of land) from the estate of the Earl of Shrewsbury. Rebbeck lost the house to the mortgage holder in 1815 as a result of his spiralling debts, for which he was imprisoned in 1818, and the mortgage holder, William Hubbard, who is mentioned in the enclosure of Ashton Gifford, took possession of the house and added the two ashlar wings. William Hubbard appears to have been resident by May 1817 (at the latest). Hubbard also increased the size of the estate, to around 307 acres (1.24 km2).

The walled garden, which appears to have been constructed around this time, and which is still a part of the property, lies to the west of the current house. It has been described as the largest in the county (at 1.3 acres). It was in active use as a vegetable garden as recently as the 1980s, when the house was a school (see below).

A servants' wing was added in the mid-19th century, extending west from the main house and providing kitchens, domestic offices and servants' accommodation. This was damaged by fire in the 1950s, and demolished in the early 1970s. The western most portion of the wing remains, and is now in use as garages.