Visitor comments
Below are some comments from visitors of this website. Please feel free to add your own comments about Piercefield House and/or Park.
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22:22 24 August 2010
I think the price is still £2 million ... The actual mansion house is the building which is deteriorating the least , at present the vegitation which was cut back 2 years ago is 4 feet tall again covering most of the inside of the mansion and the immediate surroundings .. The two pavillions are stable now ,akthough a large stone dropped off from teh top recently and broke on the ground , not sure what those tudor rose type of decorations are , did you realise there were quite ornate carvings just under them? They were covered up to preserve them 2 years ago . I have pictures of them in the pictures section ...
The gardener's cottage behind is falling apart at a faster rate now , the kitchen wall has virtualy collapsed , again it is all overgrown and you cant get too near . The barn also is changing fast , the last part of the roof collapsed last summer , the far end, that part with the three arches ,collapsed this summer , The upheaval and deep ruts in the grounds in front of the mansion caused by the digger 2 years ago has healed nicely after being filled in about a year ago . The stables are much the same since the fire there in the 1980's . We have the heart foundation run there in october which should bring people and publicity to the grounds,
www.chepstowstampede.com/course.php
and let's hope the horse trials return next year . Can we move to the forums which Richard wallace set up? it is easier to conduct dialogue there we can edit our posts etc . follow the link at the top of this page . Nick ...
08:05 24 August 2010
just returned from working abroad for last couple of months, and just wondered , where are we with this little beauty... whats the latest..last i heard it could be bought for a pound ! Still think hotel would be amazing...any updates anyone..merci mucho regards sofia bristol.
17:57 15 August 2010
This isn't a comment, but a question.
I visited the mansion recently and thought it was beautiful and was disappointed with the Americans using it as 'target practice'.
However, I was just wondering what are those two little building each side of the mansion? Also, what are those carvings above the pillars? I thought they were Tudor Roses at first but when I got a closer look they don't seem like Tudor Roses at all.
I would appreciate if you could assist me with answers, thank you.
Scarlett, South Wales, Chepstow.
17:14 01 July 2010
See
www.spab.org.uk/advice/conservation-advice/buildings-at-risk/
12:12 26 June 2010
I had received plans from Jackson and Stops realtors at one time. We had a death in our family and I've been away from home for a couple of weeks, and have not had time to find the plans Jackson sent me. I am sure the realty company Jackson and Stops who had it for sale, can provide a set of plans for the remodel. So sorry I can't find mine at the moment. Roger Rhodes, Ohio, USA
12:59 06 June 2010
Hi Robin,
Thanks, yes it does work , the link that is. I will look at the estate agents details again and I remember talking to the Architect, so I know that plans are somewhere. I presume on the Local Council's website, so that the free way of looking at plans, if anyone's interested.
The Land registry will have the title deeds and plan, which will show you all or any coveneants/easements etc and the plan of the boundary under the title number. So anyone our there who wants to research this further can do for a small charge on the Land Registry site.
If anyone has done this already Title and plan, please tell me and that would save me £8.00. My email is :
venablesonline.propertybarons@btinternet.com
10:01 04 June 2010
Does this work for you ?
www.landregistry.gov.uk/www/wps/portal/!ut/p/c1/04_SB8K8xLLM9MSSzPy8xBz9CP0os3gfN1MTQwt381BD_2A3A08LT2cL49AwIwN_Y6B8JG55dyNKdBsYEqPbAAdwNCCgOxzkV_xuxycPch1IHo_9wal5-n4e-bmp-pH6UeYIkzyczIAmmbiZBzuZuBsbOBvph-gX5IaGRhhkBqRHOioCANc7aLQ!/dl2/d1/L0lDU0lKSmdvS1VRb0tVUSEvb0NvZ0FFSVFoakVDVUpSbUVBSUFuQmNFemdBIS9ZQTQ1NDUwLTVGMHN0eWowc3J5bndBISEvN19MRjU0MThHN1VIQjZGMEk0RjdTQjRHMzBDMi9ZUV9fXzk3L3NwZl9BY3Rpb25OYW1lL3NwZl9BY3Rpb25MaXN0ZW5lci9zcGZfc3RydXRzQWN0aW9uLyEyZk1hcFNlYXJjaC5kbw!!#7_LF5418G7UHB6F0I4F7SB4G30C2
09:42 04 June 2010
Hi Steve,
This is very interesting. I didn't know who owned it, do you know when they bought it and why. I could research them on the internet to see what they are about. How could it possibly be bought for a £1.00, I don't understand this, unless it's a Company in it's own right and it worth nothing. Am I missing something here, anyone know??
If they think that the access is not good, then of course it isn't but there could be other reasons, apart from the state of it, for example in the deeds going over other people's land, maintenance etc etc and to some extent, as far as I can remember it could be the fact that you have to use the entrance to the racecourse, or is there another entrance planned ??? We are stabbing in the dark here and if we are serious, have to find out what the score is, so to speak.
LOUISA
09:06 04 June 2010
you little star steve....this site gets better by the day !
23:23 03 June 2010
I recently took 2 representitives of the Reuben Brothers Group ( whom are the current owners ) up to the house as they were showing an interest in turning it in to a hotel ( a similar project has just been completed by the group to a property in Cornwall.
Apart from the restoration to the facade , as the main body of the hotel would sit behind, was that,
the main problem of access and egress of the site. There was also talk of it being sold off for a £1.00.
I will inform all as and when i can find out anymore.
15:09 03 June 2010
Hi Everyone,
I don't live close to Peircefield, but am willing to do my bit. Firstly I think it's the Charity set up we need to know about. I have briefly looked at this before as we have an old mill that needs restoring. It's not that complicated, although there is time and effort involved. If we want to raise money to buy the property, we need to secure it with the vendors at a good price. Although I am not very experienced at money raising, I think although I might be wrong, that if you send emails letters to people, associations etc, you might get a blank answer, unless you are already a charity.
I have looked at trusts and fund raising methods and most criteria for saving old buildings, is you must be a charity.
Although I am not saying that putting a letter together would not be a good idea, maybe that we show us the way forward by getting comments from people in the know and what they think is the way forward. For instance SAVE, as suggested should be able to give us a good idea of procedure etc.
Looking forward to comments
LOUISA
11:59 03 June 2010
I think we should compose a 'formal letter' of interest. Then look for e-mails of people to send the letters to. What does anyone else think? Who wants to do what?
19:54 02 June 2010
After visiting Piercefield House 4 years ago, I became enthralled with it and the character and stature it gives to the area.
I have been reading some of the comments with interest and I would be very interested in being involved as a "friend" of Piercefield. Unfortunately I don't have money to put into the project but would be willing to give some time for letter writing, research, admin or getting my hands dirty clearing weeds!
I live locally and the charity sounds like a great idea.
18:26 02 June 2010
this seems to be moving along in a grand fashion..up for anything..bloody bravo chaps..yeee ha looks like we got ourselves an amazing little group..onward and upwards chaps..ps think this would make the most amazing hotel phaps x.love sofia x
16:47 02 June 2010
I have been exploring the websites:
www.soane.org/index.html
and
www.soane.org/links.html
If we could compose a letter and make a list of the people on the links that might be a start.
I e-mailed
mnicholson@soane.org.uk who is the Development Director for Fundraising at the Soane Museum, but have not heard back. Perhaps if we put forth some sort of organized effort in contacting people we might bring something about in terms of at least awareness and perhaps more.
13:28 02 June 2010
Louisa,
Thanks for your last post earlier today. The point you make about this website is right. More importantly, you are right about the necessity of setting up a Friends of Piercefield Trust/Charity. I had an e-mail from SAVE Britain's Heritage yesterday containing five suggestions I want to follow up. This morning I rang someone who has restored a late 18th century mansion in Sussex to get more ideas - about the process of actually setting up a charity. He made another set of suggestions. If you would like to contact me about all this then you can get my e-mail address from Richard.
11:53 02 June 2010
Some interesting ideas and comments happening on here recently.
I'm happy to help where possible too and if I can change the site in any way to help with things, that can be done too.
11:29 02 June 2010
Hi Mark,
Just a little comment about your comment. Don't you think that the site we are on is as you have described. Personally I think we should set up , if you want to call it, 'Friends of Peircefield ' trust or charity. From this we can get funding and grants etc, without it there won't be much chance.
A plan needs to be put in place.
1. Funds to buy the property.
2. Funds to do up.
I think it's that simple. It will be a very long process and alot of hard work. Someone mentioned volunteers to clear the grounds, that's a good idea.
How much is it up for sale for, I think it was £2 million the last time I looked. It might be possible to purchase the house separately from the, what was it, 123 acres, or look at separating the house from the outbuildings, leaving the cottage etc for the vendors to keep, with an option of us buying at a later stage, because we can't get the whole amount to purchase straight away.
Just some thoughts, but if anyone wants to do this, then they need to communicate some ideas pronto and not just a few comments about how sad the place looks.
Louisa
15:48 01 June 2010
I would like to say thanks to Roger, Sofia and Louisa for their kind comments following my post here. I have recently contacted SAVE Britain's Heritage to ask them for their advice on how to pursue the ideas and had some new ones. I will report back on this site in the next few days about them.
In the meantime, here's another idea for consideration by those interested in Piercefield's future. Why don't we set up a 'Friends of Piercefield Park' organisation? This could act as source of news about the place, those with an interest in it and its history and attempts to rescue it. It could have a small membership fee (say, £5 a year) and a newsletter. It could pool ideas about all this. If (i) no private developer is keen on taking over the place and (ii) the council (allegedly) is not bothered about it shouldn't we do something ourselves? Surely (to use a famous phrase)'we cannot go on like this' ?
09:31 28 May 2010
Hi, Is there anyone who is experienced in setting up a charity or trust.
LOUISA
11:48 27 May 2010
if we are all living in the similar area maybe we should push this one, see how many people out there to muck in ... unfortunately i am away abroad now for the whole summer..working ... but will keep in touch...how vry exciting..sofia
09:59 27 May 2010
Hi everyone, It sounds like a fab idea. I have seen the house and tried to get a business colleague to buy it, but too much work.
My company are also builders and we speacialize in listed building work, although this is greatly advanced from the normal grade ii, I am sure that our skills and advice can bring some advantages to the pot.
We need to think about the process and make a clear plan of action.
Louisa
02:35 27 May 2010
I'll help anyway I can. Just let me know what I can do to help organize it.
09:54 26 May 2010
mark thomas
you are making sense...lets do it...lets set something up.. its a shocking waste to see this wonderful building decay even further...
12:51 25 May 2010
As someone who has long had an interest in the history of country houses I visited Piercefield a few months back. I was both shocked at the damage it has suffered over the past 90 or so years and charmed by its grandeur and beauty. The house's plight (as I see it) is this. No wealthy individual or company prepared to renovate the house and its outbuildings for profit has emerged after years of advertising it for sale. The asking price for the house and the land attached to it in the sale is anyway unrealistically high, especially because the cost of renovation would surely be more than the commercial value of the restored buildings. So, (along the lines of other recent comments on this site) surely instead a charitable trust should be formed to buy and rescue Piercefield. This has been done successfully at other mansions like Copped Hall in Essex. The building could be acquired and then gradually cleared of undergrowth and debris while being protected from vandalism. At a time when youth unemployment is increasing, it would surely be worthwhile to set up an MSC-type scheme for able-bodied young people to clear the site and its grounds of undergrowth and debris. At the same time, fund-raising could take place and perhaps some carefully-controlled opening to the public could be done. There is a tremendous interest out there in the history of house and its grounds and this could be harnessed. People would give money to an appeal if they were assured that the house would be rescued and have a real life again.
01:48 11 April 2010
I was always kind of surprised that the Soane Societies of UK and of USA has not initiated some kind of fundraising drive to restore this architectural marvel of John Soanes. I am willing to donate and I'm sure there are others also.
www.soane.org and
www.soanefoundation.com
13:30 10 April 2010
A splendid idea to start a save piercefield house campaign ,There doesnt seem to be any news around confirming any sale yet .. Please use the new forum now to continue these conversations, see link above , it will enable quicker easier responses from people ..
10:47 10 April 2010
Hi Judy,
Yes that would be great, I think a few people have had the same idea. But firstly has anyone bought it, as an earlier comment suggested. ???
23:01 09 April 2010
I am so pleased to see some work going on to this fantastic house,i only wish someone could restore it to its former glory, so many things could be done with the house to maintain its future, if i had a couple of spare million i would be on the case myself...maybe i could start a campaign to save Piercefield House, anyone agree?
10:24 23 March 2010
Good site you got here , keep doing your job , you are good in it.
13:51 22 March 2010
I hope it does get restored, but I can't imagine it would be a worthy property investment as a retirement home as it's a purchase price of £2m and an estimated £12m to restore the property and I don't think any planning permission would be granted on the grounds. That said, I could be wrong.
10:46 22 March 2010
I have frequently walked in Piercefild Park since renting a house in Shirenewton last year and much admired the property. Just recently I bumped into a gentleman who told me that he was or is in the process of buying the estate via his property company, I believe called Denham Developments.He advised me they propose to develop the house possibly into a retirement complex. However, on speaking with the current owners & agents marketing the property, all are unaware of any potential purchaser! I should also imagine
restrictions that may be imposed by the Council & CADU could be quite severe. All said, I sincerely hope whom ever comes along will treat the property with the sensitivity it truely deserves.
22:50 21 March 2010
Having just spent all friday in the library of the Soane looking at all the original plans and all articles that the museum has on Piercefield, I was informed by the Architectural archivist the house has been recently purchased!? Does anyone know if that information is correct? I saw the outline plans for what the new owners intend to do and it looks fantastic... Just wondering if it will happen. Thanks
20:47 18 March 2010
I am amazed, this post is so good ,thnx.
15:43 18 March 2010
Thanks for this post, I was looking for information like this.
22:05 28 February 2010
Great find Nick, it's about 50 mins in if you can't wait to see the house, but it's all a pretty good show so all worth a watch.
21:50 28 February 2010
The wye valley walk and Piercefield House and the Eagles nest were featured on BBC Countryfile tonight , the old house was filmed and some of the walks looked at . well worth seeing ...
www.bbc.co.uk/i/r973p/ to see the programme on the i-player
or it will be repeated on thursday March 4 2010, BBC 1 about midnight ..
( Please delete this post after a week )
06:50 10 February 2010
The work was definately done for structual reasons. It wqas unfortunate that the work was carried out when we had a lot of rain, hence the ground was torn up. I work for the racecourse and it affected the Horse trials held up here. The contractors were ordered to put the ground back to a state so it could recover. We have had several potential buyers viewing the house in the past 6 months , but have heard nothing. An architect is due to go up soon but we shall wait and see.
13:34 09 February 2010
Well, I think the thing is that the current owners don't want to spend any money on it. The work that was done was to stabilize the structure and try and stop it from getting any worse. I presume to safe guard the money they hope to get from selling it. As it is grade listed the conservation officers would have been involved with the work, so if you want to know why it's been left like this, I would phone them and find out. If they don't sell it soon, then the structure will get worse over time and more stabilizing work will be needed.
01:39 09 February 2010
They started this preservation work so long ago and no work has been done to it in at least a year!!! They made a mess of the site and have just left it, it ruins a beautiful scene, i have been going to the piercefield since i can remember and i am all for it being restored and preserved but where are the builders? Why start something if they are not going to finish it ?
10:23 08 February 2010
Hi Jon,
Does this mean that you have been through the process and no go, if so I am sorry about this, as it needs immediate help.
If they can't see the light then they are just making it worse, eventually falling down. There must be something that can be done?? What did they say about your renovation proposals?
19:49 06 February 2010
Louisa - the problem is council doesn't give a toss and when they do put ridiculous conditions on the renovation and the owners are asking too much for it. So it is a case of site back and wait for a reality check.
17:06 24 January 2010
I have just written at http://tinyurl.com/ydb2jul
Blame the Government. As with most of the properties shown on the "Restoration" TV series, successive governments have imposed punitive inheritence taxes to such an extent that the inheriting owners of these properites could no longer afford to maintain them.
Charles John Clay inherited Stapenhill House from his father, who bought Piercefield in Chepstow - which is now a ruin for exactly the same reason...
My grandfathger, Gerard Clay (see
www.spanglefish.com/gerardclay), Charles John's second son, lived at Stapenhill House until he was married in 1906. On honeymoon, he and his bride stayed a few days with his grandfather, Henry Clay, at Piercefield.
06:04 07 January 2010
Val
Many thanks for your info. I know the former occupants Mr & Mrs Young ( No Relation to me ) lived here for a number of years. He too was a gardener , but for the racecourse. I also know from Monmouthshire Council that the lodge was built in 1870. I would love to know if or how much much of our present garden was established by George . If you do have anymore information i would be fascinated to hear.
16:49 06 January 2010
Steve
I think your lodge house is the one George Stephens (an ancestor of my husband's)lived in. On certificates I have it is called Piercefield Lodge. His 3rd wife Lucy nee Turner was a domestic servant, probably at Piercefield and George was a gardener. Their daughter Frances Agatha was born at the lodge on Feb 12th 1878.
George has a very prominent headstone in St Arvans churchyard with a very sentimental verse. He died on March 9th 1908. I have more info on the famiily but it may not be relevant to this website.
Val
06:43 19 December 2009
I currently live in the lodge house ( known as Middle Lodge ) on the main road to St Arvans and wondered if anyone had any pictures or knows of any history to the Lodge. I have recently restored the lodge and currently work for Chepstow Racecourse.
21:51 25 November 2009
Debbie:
Have a look in the Articles section and picture section , the piece titled "Summer 2008 Preservation work" that lists and shows what happened . I watched it progress through the year . They have removed loose stones from various parts and cemented and pointed the tops of the walls to prevent water getting in and frost causing more cracks . There is a huge wooden support inside at roof level to hold the centre interior wall , those amazing cast Iron balcony supports are at a crazy angle but prevented from collapse with a scaffold tower .They repaired the chimneys as best they could and shored up the door and window openings to prevent collapse in the future . The large opening on the ground floor on the left as you look at the front face has been repaired , the beam was badly sagging but they have repaired that and it is straight now .
As i see it they have improved the building structurally , It was far from secure before the work was carried out. Some big chunks of the interior and one of the chimney stacks fell in years ago now but I haven't seen any further major deterioration since I have been visiting from 1986 , I have seen FAR more deterioration in the stables ( Lost its roof and upper floor in a fire at the end of the 1980's ) , barn ( Lost it's roof in a fire around 2002 ) and cottage ( rotting away and stone crumbling due to weathering ) than the main building .
Regarding your decorative panels on the pavilions they are still there , protected by the wood panels .. ( picture NW037) In fact the pavilions had a LOT of useful work carried out , some lintels and walls partially reconstructed and the top of the walls made good. It is believed about £350000 was spent on all this work .
Val:
Its not so bad as you think although Its not good , it hasn't been for decades but its very resilient considering it hasn't had a roof for probably 70 years . I say that because the roof joists have been cleanly sawn off presumably when the house was stripped in the late 1920's? There is no roof debris at all in the building, just a few beams from the 1st floor joists .
The lodge at the main gates is the "Lions Lodge" , there is another lodge half way along the main road to St Arvans on the right inserted in the main wall , that's known as the "Middle Lodge" ( Picture NG133) and probably the one you mean . The cottage was left furnished , I remember seeing chairs and a piano in the front room and beds and a bath upstairs in the late 1980s but they have collapsed into the ground now .I also remember seeing smoke coming from the chimneys in the earlier 1980's so who lived there then I do not know .I didn't go too close to the Cottage in those days It would be fascinating to learn about the servants of which there were about 30 .
There could well be one or two gardening implements still left near the cottage by the way !
Just after your visit in 2004 the undergrowth was cleared from the buildings ,the trees growing close to the walls and inside were left , this clean up was done as the site was put up for sale in 2005 ..the trees were felled in mid 2008 when the preservation work started , they started growing in the war time from the number of rings i counted in their trunks.
There are a lot of pictures on this site which would take some hours to look at but hopefully they tell a lot of the story when you dig deep into them ... more to be added soon I feel ..
Throughout 2009 nothing has happened apart from the ruts being filled in early in the year which were made by the digger, the undergrowth had a good year, 5 feet tall around the cottage making it impossible to see much of it . The last of the roof of the Barn fell in .
The chestnuts , Blackberries , Elderberries and Apples were fantastic .
Some good news , the Wye Valley Walk is being restored along the woods at the bottom of the grounds , the Alcove Viewpoint is nearly finished which overlooks Chepstow castle, and the Platform , Grotto and Giants cave being made good , the Eagles Nest viewpoint at the North end of what used to be Piercefield Grounds is open again after restoration .
It was disappointing not to have the International Horse trials this year and also the British Firework Championships , I hope they return in 2010!
13:00 24 November 2009
I am sad to hear that Piercefield has deteriorated so much. We visited it in June 2004 as my husband's 2xgreat grandfather George Stephens was a gardener there from the 1870's until he died in 1908. The family lived at Piercefield Lodge. Would this have been at the gates or what I see mentioned as the gardener's cottage? Anyone know anything about the domestic servants and gardeners?
16:35 20 November 2009
Does anybody know about the "preservation" work that has been carried out recently? The whole of the front looks much more unstable since this work was done, also large chunks of the building are missing since my last visit 2-3 years ago, including some decorative panels. Where the wooden support frames have been put in the windows they have often pushed out surrounding stones to get them in there or they are not supporting the stonework in the places where it clearly needs supporting. It looks like it could fall down at any minute now, where as it looked sturdy and relatively safe last time.
09:28 06 November 2009
Hi Sonia,
This was three years ago, when the house first came up for sale,so I don't think it was him. Maybe some part of the royal family, because of historical and architectural interest, but I presume that the deal didn't go any further.
17:59 05 November 2009
the Royal person interested in the house i believe was Edward V11.
13:05 28 October 2009
Hi Jon,
Firstly the park is listed. I can't remember which, if it's Grade 1 or Grade 11* there isn't much chance of modernizing it. I suppose that's not quite true, as there isn't anything there at the moment internally, so when you say modernize, you could mean a modern kitchen, which is a fitting not an architectural feature and can be removed at any time!!. The plans, I presume have been passed with listed building consent, as the council I assume considered the house and buildings, as derelict. So if someone hasn't lived there for a long time, the council say, sorry that's not a house anymore, so you'll have to apply for planning permission and listed building consent to do up and I presume that this is what has happened to Piercefield.
I am not quite sure what you mean by the Sloane bit. Are you talking about the house only and then does that include the pavilion buildings, that I understand were originally connected to the house.
There are buildings in the grounds that are as important as the house, the walled garden and gardener’s cottage for instance. I love that bit.
So you are right I think to say that the restore is a little over the top, as I can imagine the Architect wanted to be involved with this once in a life time opportunity to restore such an Architecturally important building, the local conservation officer probably wants a slice of the pie too and I can imagine that they will be eager to be looking over the shoulder of anyone eventually brave enough to take this on. I understand that royalty were interested at one point, but who I don't know. As the house and park is grade 1 or grade 11* then the interior is as important as the exterior, so the money is in the reproduction of the interior architectural features. Plaster work, fireplaces,flooring etc etc, it's all very specialist contractor work and they are very expensive. We have worked on listed buildings and owned several ourselves. The only thing you can do is comply and negotiate , research and tweek out the end result. The scenarios involved with building work are vast,it looks easy on the plan, but then it can bite you on the behind when you come to carry out that operation. Have you watched grand designs, when that chap did up the scottish castle, what a man, and he didn't necessarily look up to the job, but achieved it. I was thinking of the part when they dug out the interior and an internal structural wall collapsed!!.
Anyway I could go on for ever, if you are interested in buying it, then why havn't you already, it's been sitting there for three years on the market.If you need any help, building wise,or personal support or negotiating building work, agents, architects, contractors etc etc etc, then I can help.
Or we form a group to take the burden.
LOUISA
18:13 27 October 2009
I have tried to leave a comment returning Jon's comment's but an error keeps coming up and I have tried all day
20:42 26 October 2009
From a local point of view what is key part of the main house. the soanes part, the original house or the whole gamut. I've looked at the drawings and the numbers just don't stack up. which i guess is why nobody is brave enough to bite the bullet. If there are volunteers out there that wish to help restore the soanes part and get rid of the old part then let me know. I'm stupid enough to seriously consider biting the bullet. As for the park, if you don't mind the work being done with a 50 tonne bull dozer and 5,000 trees planted then let me know. I can project manage it and have enough capital to buy the land and do the main house but only with a modern interior. There is no point trying to reproduce the old. That rotted long ago. If you could help me in that goal then email me
jon@myeco.biz . I am serious and am looking for a building but this place could be a monster money pit without local help and positive input. And yes if anyone has noted my name is similar to st pierre country club. That was the family seat in the 14th century. So I am looking to move the family back to the area. Unfortunately, I don't have enough to buy out the marriott hotel group...to achieve that. But this is a very good second best. Thanks. Jon
09:12 26 October 2009
Hi All,
Thanks for info Nicholas. I am not sure that she's into old houses. This project isn't just for people with money, but people with an obession. It's rather like the titanic but on land. It's charm what is left and I can see that if you wern't very very careful it could turn out to be a gin palace. To put back it's character will take years of research and reclamation of materials etc etc. If anyone wants to buy this place and do up, it will need a Trust setting up or charity to surport funding, including a hell of a lot of volunteer work and admin.
Personaaly I have enough to do, but if and the bif if, a few like minded people wanted to get together and set up a charity/trust and raise the money great. Is there anyone out there who wants to put their money/time/effort/scarifice into this???
Comments received with interest
16:52 24 October 2009
What a wonderful idea! Let's get in touch with J K Rowling as soon as possible.
22:52 23 October 2009
hello louisa , It is still for sale , Has anyone thought of asking J K Rowling to buy it ? It would make a fine Harry Potter centre and Museum ... She went to school in chepstow and could see the house from her school ..
13:04 23 October 2009
Hi, Who has bought Piercefield and doing it up, I have been watching this site for three years now and no mention is made of the new owners
18:45 30 September 2009
We spent several hours at this magical spot whilst on holiday in Tintern this August. We will endevour to upload our pictures in the next few days.
Al, being a Soane fanatic, felt a 'connection'!
We are at a loss as to why no work has progressed at the site since seemingly last summer, is this the result of local authority conservation planning intransiegence? Why haven't SAVE Britains' Heritage become more involved?
This is truly one of the 'undiscovered gems' of this glorious country of ours.
Just our opinion.
Cheers, Sarah & Al Wilsher.
16:03 15 September 2009
what a lovely building so sad are heritage is disapearing how typical of this country that we allowed american troops to damage the building i wonder how much of our heritage has been lost apart from the plunder of our buildings being taken abroad by such people as willaim randolf hurst american film producer and alround thief and vandal of our wonderful country
18:10 09 September 2009
The walk from the leaisure centre to the wye valley walk is presently closed . They are renovating the alcove , the viewing platform , the grotto and giants cave and also clearing dead trees along the walk to and past the mansion . It should have been complete by july but still a lot to do from what i saw last night when i walked over .
Park in the leisure centre then walk out to the main road , turn right and walk up the road , past the zebra crossing and head down the hill , half way down just past the cloisters road is an opening / archway through the wall , take that and follow the path through the trees straight on , you come to a gate after about 7 minutes follow the path further on with the racecourse on the left and the mansion will rise majesticaly out of the ground as you approach . Have a look and you might find you can get past the fence they errected a year ago . Dont forget the stables and barn and cottage and it's garden the apples are ripe now ! , allow at least 2 hours to see it all . The vegitaion is strong this summer , its about 4 feet tall around the cottage making access very difficult but with welligton boots you could make it closer . Good luck and please report back on your experience .. N .
12:52 09 September 2009
Hi if you follow the directions from Gloucester to Chepstow going down the A48 when you arrive into chepstow you will come over a bridge with traffic lights at the end with a big Tesco store to your left follow this road all the way up round the hill until you reach a big round about you will need to take the 4th exit following signs to tintern follow this road all the way down the hill until you reach another smaller roundabout and chepstow racecourse will be right infront of you where the mansion is you can take the 3rd exit on this roundabout and go up the hill slightly until you reach the leisure centre on your left where you can park and the walk starts there hope this helps, you can also looj for directions on google maps and aa route planner to chepstow leisure centre as the walk begins there and it has a map of the walk and is signposted.
16:52 08 September 2009
i would like to vivit piercefield park but can not find how to get there can anyone help please reply i will be comming from gloucester
18:27 31 July 2009
On Thursday we went to walk from St Arvans into Chepstow but got detoured back to Piercefield Hall. The brownies were very interested and thought it was a lovely sight however we became confused as to what it was. Many suggestions arose including a spa house and a race course owners house so when I returned i decided to find out. I was intrigued at the history behind the house. It would be lovely if it was restored.
19:40 29 May 2009
A good place to start looking for the Walters of Piercefield is
www.familysearch.org
An "advanced search" for John Walter with the parents John Walter and Lucy Barrington and the year 1687 reveals that John had 3 brothers: Thomas, Barrington, and William. Only Thomas is shown as having children.
My own lineage goes back through Thomas Walter (1512), son of Nicholas (1480).
Perhaps our cousins still living in the area could help us further.
03:33 28 May 2009
Merfyn,
I think a good place to start searching for the Walters of Piercefield would be at
www.familysearch.org -
From the menu bar at the top of the page, choose "Search Records" and then "Advanced Search". About half-way down the resulting page is another "Advanced Search" link, choose that one.
Fill in the following boxes:
*First Name - John
*Last Name - Walter
Father - John
Last Name - Walter
Mother - Lucy
Last Name - Barrington
Event - All
Year - 1687
Country - England
Then click on the "Search" button and you will go to a page where you can choose the Ancestral File, and from there, a graphical "Pedigree".
The records at FamilySearch seem to stop at John Walter (1687), but I'm sure that later records exist somewhere. Perhaps some of our cousins still living in the area near Piercefield could help us.
As for my records, they are rather complete, but my lineage goes back to Thomas Walter (1512), the second son of Nicholas Walter (1480).
I can be reached at hwalt713 at yahoo dot com.
19:19 27 May 2009
Henry George Walters, I am trying to link my family line back to the John Walters of Piercefield and so would appreciate it if you could post any details you have of the last John Walter (1687).
03:32 12 May 2009
When I win the lottery, I'm going to restore this house. It is a shame that no one has done anything with it. This house just breaks my heart. But I guess the economic situation all over the world is to blame. You would think the Soanes Societies in London and in New York would put some money into it just to keep it from further deterioration. Just breaks my heart.
22:05 18 March 2009
"The big urban legend" - please does anyone know if there are tunnels going from the mansion to the river wye? As far as I can remember it has been the biggest topic re Piercefield Mansion. Look forward to hearing from anyone who can solve the mystery!!
20:09 19 February 2009
I wonder if anyone knows who used to live in the cottage in the walled garden next to Piercefield. When I first visited Piercefield in the early 1990's the cottage was still lived in but now sadly it is a ruin.
01:17 05 February 2009
My son Henry and I are descended from the original Walter family that built the Piercefield House. According to our records, 9 generations (8 of them named John!) lived there:
1. John Walter (~1450- ) Leased the lands in 1515 from the Prior of Chepstow.
2. Nicholas Walter (~1480- ) m. the daughter (~1484 - ) of William Cowys
3. John Walter (~1510- ) m. Margaret Gethin (~1514- )
4. John Walter (~1540-1590) m. Lucy Cooke (~1544- )
5. John Walter (~1567- ) m. Bridget Robnet (~1571-1625)
6. John Walter (1597-1640) m. Elizabeth Waters ( - ) (his cousin)
7. John Walter (~1619-1680) m. Catharine Elmes ( -1703)
8. John Walter (1649- ) m. Lucy Barrington (1707- )
9. John Walter (1687- ) sold Piercefield House in 1727 to Thomas Rous.
We are glad to see that the place is receiving some much-needed care, and we hope to visit some day.
Best Wishes from Oregon, USA
03:14 04 February 2009
I am an architect & descendent of the Walters who owned Piercefield Park. What fun to discover a part of my family history. I'd love to help with any restoration plans.
17:26 08 January 2009
I am a descendant of Susanna Hookey a daughter of John Russell. My grandmother Violet David(Nee Hookey) owned black curtains trimmed with attractive tapestry style trimmings. A little of these trimmings adorn a chair of mine! I was always told they came from Piercefield Park!
12:03 05 January 2009
It was the house of the young scholar and poet Elizabeth Smith (1776-1806), George Smith's daughter. Sketches of her daily life in the Piercefield house (probably the happiest part of her short life) can be found in her posthumous "fragments of prose and verse" collected by Henrietta Bowdler or in De Quincey's "Literary reminescences".
00:27 05 January 2009
wow what a place, i took my children out for a lovely walk, and we were all enchanted by the mansion and grounds, so much to see, and not enough time! looking forward to my next visit. I would love to of seen it in its former glory, hopefully someone will buy it soon and restore it! However that would sadly mean no more visits!
22:52 29 December 2008
I really hope that if someone is restoring the place they do it tastefully, and keep the Victorian features.
I love the website, always been fascinated by this place since I was little.
Does anyone know the location of the entrance to the cellar? I'd love to go down for a poke around.
22:32 22 November 2008
What a great site. Lovely to know that someone is working on the place.
Our family legend was that two ladies - Annie Moriah and Pearl Morris went to try to reclaim to estate, claiming that Valentine Morris had not been assisted by the crown while defending St Vincent W.I. and was owed a considerable amount of money.
I am from George and Jemima Morris line of Pontymister, Risca, Gwent.
00:46 09 November 2008
What a fantasic place and website
15:05 22 July 2008
I went to view the house about 2 years ago, when it first cam eon the market. I got a couple of interested parties together with money i might say to buy it and restore, unfortunately the parties weren't that interested as it's very specialist. although we being builders and specializing in grade listed buildings, we were, but no money. Anyone out there with the money, we can do the job, and deal with the listed building consents, although i realise it's status, it merely a perfect money pit, so be warned. Would be a good project for the telly and any madly rich person out there who wants to up their national profile or company.
Email me:
venablesonline.propertybarons@btinternet.com
Louisa
23:14 11 June 2008
Absolutely fascinating! It will be an enormous restoration project, and will take many years to complete. Unfortunately money always plays a major role in these things. Please find the right individual or group who will do it correctly and share with all the people who have such fine memories and interest in the property. I wish I lived closer as I would definitely take part in whatever community, group or individual process would be necessary to assist. My wife is Carol Piercefield Willis, and we have no idea how the family name came about, but we enjoy imagining some type of connection to this beautiful area. (our home is in Arizona, USA)
17:55 09 June 2008
It's funny to see the old place again. I grew up in Crossway Green, close to the Mansion, and as kids we used to ramble all over it (and under it...and never found the 'secret tunnel'.) I can remember the 'gas' signs on the stable doors. Back then, one could still climb what was left of the main staircase - but it looks as if that has all fallen in now. The stable actually still had its roof on in 1967 and I remeber chasing bats around in the loft! On one occasion a ram had somehow got itself up into the loft. When we tried to corner it to bring it down the stairs, it rammed the upper loft door and sailed straight out into mid-air landing with a hell of a thump but thankfully unharmed. Let's hope it is never transformed into some sterile conference centre hotel.
21:15 04 May 2008
A great 3 hour walk around this great building today. I am very interested to see some photographs between 1901 and 1923.
23:22 27 April 2008
Excellent work, Nice Design
11:10 29 March 2008
I have been to explore the basement tunnel, but could only go so far, it seemes to be some sort of drainage. but i know of caverns under the wye valley so it is possible that it runs to a smugglers cave close to the river. i am putting this comment to find out if anyone could give me information on the tunnel, as i am intrigued to find out were it leads. much appreciated for any help.
04:23 05 March 2008
Let me point out us a Morris descendant, Valentine was a descendant of the Walters Family. John Walters had a daughter, Jennings, she married Sir William Morris. Sir William Morris was the great great grandfather of Valentine, and my 9th great grandfather. Believe me if I had the money, I would buy it in an instant, as this is my ancestoral history. I too, would love to see pictures of it when it was lived in.
17:37 27 February 2008
They sould put this house on most haunted lol to visit ghostly spirits there.. that would interest me ! would be cool!
20:07 23 January 2008
Hello from Poland, I visit the web site thanks to my friend Nick from Chepstow who shared his impressions about Piercefield Park with me. I am impressed with the story of Piercefield as well as of the idea to create this web page and allow visitors to download their articles. It is worth recommending, in my opinion. Congratulations!
00:34 28 December 2007
I was thrilled to find this site on this wonderful house, which i discovered while walking the crosscountry course.I would love to see pictures of the house in its prime,and how wonderful it wud be to see it restored.I think its very sad that a House of this grandeaur and history has gotten into this state. You must visit this wonderful house to experience the mystery and splendor of this place. Hope to see some more photos soon.
22:56 29 October 2007
When you see such historical beauties like these, they just make my heart flutter, as it is a wonderful masterpiece. I so hope it does have a full renovation to bring it back to its original glory, though in a way a bit of a maintenance wouldn't tamper with too much history.
I love the oval window and i have been past here on the way to the forest of Dean a few times but never actually been there. I would love to go one day, i'll probably wait til the spring or summer and make a whole day of it, as it is atleast worth a full day visit if not a weekend! I love history and places. Thank you to my friend for sending me a link!
18:18 19 October 2007
Many thanks for this site, many a time i have considered starting up a site, to try to bring the plight of the house the the attention of the world.
I have visited the house on many occasion. I used to live in Wyndcliffe Court owned by The Clay family, who once owned Piercefield. from my liiving room window i would look out across the racecourse and see the house in all its beauty.
All i can say is this house a magical quality, and unless you've stood in its shadow you can not truley appricate its power.
Whilst living at Wyndcliffe I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with Mr and Mrs Clay (my adopted grandparents as i called them) and the stories Mr clay told me about Piercefield were amazing, and i saw pictures of the house in its hay day. Even pictures of Mr Clay's sister's 'coming out' ball, not long before the family moved out of Piercefield permantly and into Wyndcliffe.
I would urge anyone who has the oppurtunity to visit this grand old lady (treading very carefully as there are a few rather large holes in the ground now!!)
I now live in the Midlands and so don' get to see her every day, but she holds so many wonderful memories that I was privilidged enough to expereince.
Long may she stand tall of Chepstow
Fi
20:34 19 September 2007
also, If I had $4,000,000 us. I'd buy it
20:30 19 September 2007
I've never been here, but I would like to go at some point considering my last name is Piercefield.
10:06 22 August 2007
Thanks for the site!
It's wonderful to discover yet another beautiful ruinous house in the woodlands of Britain.
I only found out about Piercefield yesterday-evening, when watching the BBC on a programme on walking. Googled this morning, et voilá.
Sold + restored; fine!
Made safe + allowed to slumber in the woods; also fine!
Want to visit one day!
grtz Robert
22:24 20 August 2007
Valentine Morris was an ancestor. I visited Wales & Monmouthshire County a few years ago. Wandered thru the Piercefield ruins & I have mixed feelings on it's sale & possible restoration.
10:02 10 August 2007
Just visited the estate agents w/s 2C if still for sale, but details are no longer registered with them. Anyone know if sold, or withdrawn from sale? I WOULD buy if I had the dough, plus The Mount down on Welsh Street too, but just can't afford it!!
18:13 28 June 2007
Hi! Thanks a lot for the site! I was found many intersting there!
Bye, I will visit you again!
10:15 26 June 2007
I have always been a lover of history and particularly historic buildings but it breaks my heart that this beautiful old building has been left to decay as it has. Although, I must admit that much of the romanticism of old ruins lies in its current state when compared to its former grandeur.
The Piercefield has always held a particular warmth for me having lived in Chepstow most of my life. As a child I remember running to the mansion and back as per school cross country runs. I have explored every inch of this ruin over the years but it is definately looking much sadder today than it ever has. We used to be able to run and touch the pillars of the entrance and gain access to the cellar area (generator room) but sadly these are now gone too.
What I would would love to see are some interior photos of its former glory? Anyone?
18:48 01 June 2007
Having visited theis grand old house today I think anyone that for one minute thinks the place is going to be restored is living in cloud cuckoo land. I'm aware of course that given enough money just about anything can be restored but come on......be serious! It would take literally millions of pounds and anyone that has accumulated that kind of wealth is not usually a fool and thats what you'd need to be to embark on a restoration of something this far gone.
22:45 21 May 2007
It is a great shame that so many people have watched this extremely impressive building deteriorate without taking steps to slow the process of decay let alone maintain it. The sooner it is sold to someone who can restore the buildings and give them life again, the better.
23:22 17 April 2007
I visited the house with my father when i was roughly 10 years old, i recently decided to take a look online to see if i could find any information on the house. I am a little disturbed to read that the house is up for sale, it should be left for all to enjoy.
15:58 29 March 2007
I hope this wonderful place is never sold. It should remain accessible to be enjoyed by the public.
00:06 16 March 2007
A beautiful place to visit and enjoy a nice walk, especially on a day when the weather is nice.
I definately recommend a visit.
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