Woolley Hall

Michael Wentworth began rebuilding Woolley Hall in 1635. The new Woolley Hall consisted of an H-shaped building of moderate size. An east wing was added to the south front around 1680. The western wing was added during the mid eighteenth century. The eastern wings which form the rest of the present building were added in the early nineteenth century. The house is constructed of hammer-dressed sandstone, with a slate roof. There are four storeys including the attic and basement. The main entrance is located at the south side of the house. There is an open porch, built in 1800. Over the steps to the main entrance, a balustrade<nowiki/>d balcony is supported by two pillars. A semicircular…

In the mid-fourteenth century, the nucleus of what became the Woolley estate belonged to Sir William de Notton, a man of local origin who achieved wealth and fame as a lawyer, and was later appointed Lord Chief Justice of Ireland. He derived his name from Notton, the village to the east of Woolley. His lands in Woolley and Notton passed in 1365 to Sir William Fyncheden, by whose executor they were sold in 1377 to John Woodrove (or Woodroffe / Woodruffe) of Normanton. There is apparently some confusion as to whether Rilston's manor house stood on the same site occupied by the present Woolley Hall. J.W. Walker, in his work on the Manor and Church of Woolley, seems to have assumed that Sir…