Allerton Hall facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Allerton Hall
Allerton Hall
Location	Clarke's Gardens, Allerton, Liverpool, Merseyside, England
OS grid reference	SJ 415 855
Built	c. 1736
Built for	John Hardman, William Roscoe
Architectural style(s)	Palladian
Listed Building – Grade II*
Designated	14 March 1975
Reference no.	1063751
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Allerton Hall is a historic building located in Clarke's Gardens, Allerton, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is officially recognized as a Grade II* listed building. This means it is a very important historical site that needs to be protected.

History of Allerton Hall

Early Owners: The Lathom Family

During the Middle Ages, the land where Allerton Hall stands was owned by the Lathom family.

In the early 1600s, Elizabeth Lathom managed Allerton Hall. She made sure her sons were cared for. She also planned for her young grandson, Richard Lathom, to inherit the property when he grew up.

English Civil War and Changes in Ownership

Richard Lathom, the grandson, fought for the King during the English Civil War. Because he supported the Royalists, Parliament took his family's estate in 1652.

In 1654, Parliament sold the estate to John Sumpner for £2,700. However, the Lathom family, who were Catholic and faced penalties for their religion, managed to stay on the property for a while longer. It wasn't until 1670 that the Sumpner family fully took over Allerton Hall.

In 1666, a "hearth tax" was collected. This tax was based on how many fireplaces a house had. Allerton Hall had eight hearths, showing it was a large and important house for its time. Only Speke Hall nearby was bigger.

The Hardman Family and Slavery Connections

In 1736, John Hardman and his brother James bought the estate for £7,700. John Hardman was a merchant from Rochdale who traded with the West Indies. It is believed that the current Allerton Hall building was constructed around this time. The Hardman family, who owned the hall, were involved in about 46 voyages that transported enslaved people across the sea between 1729 and 1761.

William Roscoe and Later Owners

In 1754, the property passed to James Hardman's widow, Jane. Around 1779, William Roscoe, a lawyer and abolitionist, bought the house. An abolitionist is someone who works to end slavery. Roscoe finished building the house. However, he had to sell it in 1816 because he became bankrupt, meaning he ran out of money.

During the American Civil War, an American named Charles Kuhn Prioleau rented the mansion. He was from South Carolina and supported the Confederate States, which were the southern states that wanted to keep slavery. He married the daughter of the hall's owner.

In the early 1900s, the Clarke family owned Allerton Hall. They generously gave the building to Liverpool City Council in 1927. Sadly, the building was damaged by two fires in the 1990s.

Architecture of Allerton Hall

Allerton Hall is built in the Palladian style. This style is inspired by ancient Roman and Greek temples. The building is made of red sandstone and has three floors.

The hall is designed to be very balanced and even on both sides. It has eleven sections, called bays. The middle three bays and the two bays on each side stick out a bit. The central three bays form a portico. A portico is a porch-like entrance with Ionic columns and a triangular top part called a pediment. The ground floor of the building has a rough, textured stone finish called rustication.

Even after the fires, some original parts of the house remain. There is a room on the west side with panelled walls. It also has a decorative plaster ceiling, known as stucco, in the fancy Rococo style. Parts of William Roscoe's old library also survived. Outside, to the west of the house, there is a sundial from 1750.

Allerton Hall Today

In 2009, Allerton Hall was operating as a public house, which is like a pub or restaurant, and was known as the Pub in the Park. As of 2017, it is called Allerton Hall - Farmhouse Inn.

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