Listed Building: BELFIELD HOUSE (467286)

WEYMOUTH SY6677NE BELFIELD PARK AVENUE 873-1/30/21 (West side) 12/12/53 Belfield House II* Formerly known as: Belfield House BUXTON ROAD. Country house in own grounds. c1775 (Ricketts). To designs of John Crunden, by Isaac Buxton for his wife; the SE front and Drawing Room reconstructed early nineteenth century, and late nineteenth century conservatory Portland stone basement, main walls yellow brick in Flemish bond, with stone dressings, some rendering, slate roof. PLAN: a late classical design with portico of giant Ionic columns on basement, to a simple plan with a principal, single-depth room each side of the geometrical staircase backed by an octagonal salon. The rear of the house, facing SW, has a full-width later glazed conservatory built to the terrace at the main floor level, facing the remains of a formal garden layout. EXTERIOR: 2 storeys and basement. The entrance (NE) front has 1:3:1 windows; the rusticated basement has, under the portico, wide 6-pane sashes flanking a central pair of part-glazed doors, and a similar sash each side in the corps-de-logis. The tetrastyle Ionic portico has a quadrant of 16 stone stairs with nosings each side, with iron railings, and carries a full entablature and pediment. The main wall has Doric responds to the outer columns. At the piano nobile are large Palladian windows, under brick arches with brick tympana, and with Portland stone Doric half-columns and responds, on a sill band, with aprons divided by plain pilasters. Above these are near-square 6-pane sashes, under a small necking band and on a sill band. The centre has tall 6-pane sashes flanking a wide panelled door with 9-pane glazing, in a moulded architrave with entablature, with 3 blind oculi over. At first floor are three 4-pane sashes to necking and sill bands. At either end of the front are panelled pilasters, with slight plinths stepped forward in the rusticated basement. There are deep stacks each side of the centre. The NW front is in yellow brick, with a lunette to the full-width pediment, above three 6-pane sashes with head and sill bands, and at the piano nobile 3 tall 12-pane sashes recessed in arched brick panels. The basement has three 6-pane, and to right the conservatory at the first floor, above a wide arched opening containing a door and side-lights. The rebuilt SE front is rendered, with full-width pediment on a lunette over 3 wide 6-pane sashes. The piano nobile has a large tripartite 10:18:10-pane sash to a balcony on paired brackets and 4 very slender cast-iron shafts, under a tent hood with lattice supports, with 6-pane sashes to the basement. The rear, facing steeply rising ground with sets of steps, has a projecting 3-sided centre section, with 6-pane sashes, the central one blind, with keystones and brick voussoirs, to a sill band, and with a 2-course brick eaves band, moulded cornice and blocking-course; beneath, and mostly concealed by the conservatory, are broad brick arches over recessed panels each side of the octagon, which has a pair of French doors to the conservatory. The full-length wood framed conservatory has gabled ends with finials; part of the roof at the NW end, over kitchens and service rooms, has felted tile finish, but the remainder is glazed. The transom lights have tinted glass. Below the terrace, extending from the conservatory, is a rendered wall with various windows, including a wide tripartite sash. INTERIOR: not inspected. RCHME describes the geometrical stair with stone treads and wrought-iron balusters to a mahogany handrail, and moulded cornice to the well. The upper landing has paired columns with attic bases and enriched capitals to a moulded cornice. The Drawing Room has a reeded plaster cornice, white marble fireplace, and nineteenth century reeded architraves to doors and windows. The Dining Room has eighteenth century moulded cornice, doors and fire surround, with a shell pattern cast-iron grate of c1840. The Octagon Room has eighteenth century moulded plaster cornice and door surrounds, and fireplace with yellow marble architrave, with reeded white marble borders and central elliptical painted medallion. A fine house retaining most original detail, formerly standing in extensive grounds, now mainly developed with twentieth century detached houses. The architect for the house is better known for his design of Boodles Club in London. The former coach-house and stables remain at No.60 Buxton Road (qv), converted to dwellings. (RCHME: Dorset: South-East: London: 1970-: 340; Ricketts E: The Buildings of Old Weymouth, Wyke Regis and the South Harbour: Weymouth: 1975-: 24). Listing NGR: SY6675677885

Record last edited

Oct 22 2009 11:36AM