Fairfax House
| Fairfax House | |
| Yorkshire | |
|---|---|
 Fairfax House | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | SE60465158 |
| Location: | 53°57’24"N, 1°4’48"W |
| City: | York |
| History | |
| Built 1740s | |
| For: | John Carr by Viscount Fairfax |
| Country house | |
| Information | |
| Owned by: | York Conservation Trust |
Fairfax House is a Georgian townhouse, at No. 27, Castlegate, York, the county town of Yorkshire. It stands close to Clifford's Tower, within the walls of the ancient city.
The house was probably built in the early 1740s for a local merchant and in 1759 it was purchased by Charles Gregory Fairfax, 9th Viscount Fairfax of Emley, who arranged for the interior to be remodelled by John Carr. After the Viscount's death in 1772, the house was sold and subsequently passed through a number of local families before spending some time as a Gentleman's Club, a Building Society and a cinema. The property was bought by York Civic Trust in the 1980s and completely restored to its former grandeur. Fairfax House is now a museum open to the public and a Grade I listed building.
History
In 1761, Viscount Fairfax employed the Yorkshire architect John Carr to remodel the house. The work was completed in 1765.[1] The interior has some of Yorkshire's finest mid-C18 plasterwork by James Henderson (fl. c. 1755–1778)[2] and Giuseppe (Joseph) Cortese (fl. c. 1745–1778)[2] and carved woodwork. The wrought iron balustrades on the staircases were by Maurice Tobin (fl. 1762)[2][3]
Viscount Fairfax died in 1772 and his title became extinct. Subsequent occupants included Sir Walter Vavasour, 6th Baronet of Haslewood (1780), William Danby (1787), Peregrine Wentworth (1792), Sir John Lister Kaye, 1st Baronet Lister-Kaye of Grange (1820) and Mrs Ann Mary Pemberton (1840–65).[4] At some point after this, Fairfax House, renamed St George’s Hall, became neglected and fell into disrepair, and in the late 19th and early 20th century, part of the property was used as a dance hall.
In 1921, St George's Cinema, adjacent to Fairfax House, was opened, only to close in 1970. However, between 1982 and 1984, the York Civic Trust renovated the building and turned the defunct cinema's entrance into the main entrance to Fairfax House. The York Conservation Trust subsequently took over the house, leasing it back to the Civic Trust.
On the death in 1980 of Noel Terry (of the Terry's chocolate factory), his collection of Georgian furniture and clocks was donated to Fairfax House.
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Fairfax House) |
- Fairfax House
- National Heritage List 11587621: Fairfax House
References
- ↑ Colvin, Howard (2008) [1954]. A Biographical Dictionary of English Architects 1660–1840 (4th ed.). New Haven and London: Yale University Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-300-12508-5.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Beard, Geoffrey (1966). Georgian Craftsmen and their Work. London: Country Life Limited. pp. 167, 164, 182.
- ↑ Nikolaus Pevsner: Pevsner Architectural Guides
- ↑ Fairfax House, Castlegate, description by York Conservation Trust