Hundreds of people will walk past this old hall that was once owned by the Hobson family.
If you are looking for beautiful and historic buildings, you might opt for visiting Cambridge city centre and, more specifically, King’s Parade. However, there are interesting buildings with their own lengthy histories to be found across the city and even on main roads and busy roundabouts.
If you have ever walked down Chesterton Road or driven around the roundabout on Elizabeth Way, you might have spotted Chesterton Hall. Hundreds of people walk or drive past the hall while getting around the city, but might not know about its past.
The house dates back to the early 17th century and was built by the Hobson family. The family name might sound familiar from Hobson’s Conduit, a watercourse that runs through central Cambridge, or from Hobson’s choice, an expression used when multiple choices are offered but only one is desirable.
Thomas Hobson lived at the hall in 1627 and worked as a postal carrier who was responsible for getting the post between London and Cambridge. He worked from the stables near St Catherine’s College, which was also home to horses rented out by members of the University of Cambridge.
Hobson owned a large amount of land across Cambridgeshire, such as Anglesey Priory, which is now better known as Anglesey Abbey, and in Chesterton, which he assigned to his son Charles in 1608. The building was built out of red brick and had two storeys and three bays.
The building was remodelled in the 19th century to provide a more decorative front to the west and included a new porch and another stair tower north of the back wing. The building was further enlarged after 1900.
Chesterton Hall was sold to William Wragg in 1799, who then passed it down through several generations after his death in 1804. In 1922, the house was left to St John’s College after the death of Mrs Wragg Gurney, alongside some land in Chesterton.
A lot of the land was sold in the 1930s for homes to be built, while Chesterton Hall was acquired by Cambridge City Council in 1945 and turned into flats. The house was given Grade II listed status in 1950, but none of its original features remains inside, according to Historic England.
If you are ever walking down Chesterton Road or are stuck at a red light by the pedestrian crossing, you might want to take a closer look at the historic building hidden in plain sight.