Worsley Court House

{{Short description|Building in Worsley, Greater Manchester, England}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}} {{Infobox building | name = Worsley Court House | native name = | image = [[File:Worsley Court House 01.JPG|240px]] | caption = Worsley Court House | former_names = | building_type = | architectural_style = | location = [[Worsley]], <br />Greater Manchester, | owner = [[Salford City Council]] | coordinates = {{coord|53.4994147|N|2.3817829|W|type:landmark|display=inline,title}} | completion_date = 1849 | height = | floor_count = | architect = }}

'''Worsley Court House''' is a conference and weddings venue in [[Worsley]], [[Greater Manchester]], England. Built in 1849 for [[Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere]] as the local [[Manorial court|manor court]], it was later used as a [[magistrates' court]]. In 1966, it was granted [[Listed building#Categories of listed building|Grade II listed status]].<ref name="EH">{{National Heritage List for England|num=1067484|desc=Worsley Court House|access-date=23 June 2025}}</ref>

==History== Worsley Court House was built in 1849 for [[Francis Egerton, 1st Earl of Ellesmere]] to be the [[Court leet|court leet]], the manorial court of [[Worsley]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Moss |first1=John |title=Great British Family Names and Their History What's in a Name? |date=30 March 2019 |publisher=Pen & Sword Books |isbn=9781526722812 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Great_British_Family_Names_and_Their_His/t04IEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22worsley+court+house%22&pg=PT26&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> Before the courthouse was constructed, the site was used to house the village stocks. During the 1850s, the courthouse was also used as a night school for local tenants and estate workers.<ref name="VisitSalford">{{cite web |title=The Courthouse, Worsley |url=https://www.visitsalford.info/worsleycourthouse.htm |website=Visit Salford |access-date=23 June 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170718172358/https://www.visitsalford.info/worsleycourthouse.htm |archive-date=18 July 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The court leet last sat in 1888, and from then it was used as a [[magistrates' court]].<ref name="VisitSalford" /> The 1st Earl of Ellesmere and his son [[Algernon Egerton]] both used the courthouse for election meetings when they were [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|MPs]]. On 27 December 1873, the Worsley Troop of the [[Duke of Lancaster's Own Yeomanry]] hosted a grand ball at the courthouse. The building also served as Worsley's town hall until the Urban District of Worsley was created in 1894.<ref name="WCT">{{cite web |title=Worsley Court House |url=https://worsleycivictrust.org/Publications_files/Court%20House%20150%20years.pdf |website=Worsley Civic Trust |access-date=23 June 2025 |pages=16, 20}}</ref>

In 1923, [[John Egerton, 4th Earl of Ellesmere]] sold his Worsley estates including the courthouse. Bridgewater Estates Ltd owned the courthouse and used it for private functions. It was sold to Worsley [[Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland)|Urban District Council]] in 1966 for £6500 and was granted [[Listed building#Categories of listed building|Grade II listed status]] that same year.<ref name="WCT" /> The building was extended the following year. In 1974, ownership passed to [[Salford City Council]].<ref name="VisitSalford" />

==Architecture== The courthouse has a slate roof and is [[timber frame]]d on a projecting stone [[plinth]], and is one of the earliest examples of the [[Black-and-white Revival architecture]] in the United Kingdom.<ref name="EH" /><ref>{{cite book|last1=Hayman|first1=Richard|title=Timber-framed Buildings |date=18 February 2021 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=9781784424268 |page=60 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Timber_framed_Buildings/E0DrDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22worsley+court+house%22&pg=PA60&printsec=frontcover}}</ref> The studded framing has square panelling in its [[gable]]s. The building centres around the large hall with tall gables surrounded by lower single-storey rooms. The gables have decorative [[bargeboard]]s and [[finial]]s. The doorway has a [[Tudor architecture|Tudor arched]] surround and a studded door. A ground-floor [[loggia]] with a [[balustrade]] forms a porchway.<ref name="EH"/>

==See also== {{portal|Greater Manchester}} * [[Listed buildings in Worsley]]

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== * [http://www.salford.gov.uk/council-buildings-and-venues/weddings-parties-functions/worsley-court-house/ Worsley Court House ]

[[Category:Grade II listed buildings in the City of Salford]] [[Category:Buildings and structures completed in 1849]] [[Category:Tourist attractions in Salford]]