Rushpool Hall is one of the finest specimens of Victorian architecture to be found in North Yorkshire. It was constructed at the head of the valley gardens in Saltburn-by-the-Sea in the years 1863-4 for Mr John Bell, one of the Victorian pioneer Ironmasters of Bell Brothers a company that controlled and worked the ironstone mines at Skelton-in-Cleveland. It seems logical that the magnificent Rushpool Hall was built with the first ironstone raised from Bell Brothers Skelton Shaft mine. After John Bell died in 1888, Sir Arthur Dorman (of Dorman Long Iron & Steel Works) moved in. Sir Joseph Walton, coal mine owner, active Wesleyan Methodist and Liberal Party MP purchased the property after it was renovated in 1906 following the great fire on 20th February 1904. The Hall was almost destroyed when a maids candle accidentally caused a curtain to catch alight. The construction of the outer walls built from ironstone mined in the Bell brothers Skelton shaft mine is probably the main reason why the Hall survived the fire. It is today a hotel and premier wedding and function venue. Our image is taken from a post card post marked 21st September 1904, so must have been very topical at the time!
Image courtesy of Olive Bennett, additional information courtesy of Rushpool Hall.
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