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HONRESFELD (pictured right)

THE LAW FAMILY

William Law (Senior)  was a Fulling Miller who married Sarah around 1822 and they had 6 children, including Alfred (born 1825), John (b 1830), Ellin (b 1830), Mary (b 1833), and William (born  1835).

Alfred with his brother developed a business together which was highly profitable meaning they could leave Bent House and move in 1873 to a large house William built for Alfred and himself. It cost £5,000 and was located directly across the main road and William named it "Honresfeld", a variation on Hundersfield, an old name for the area.

After the deaths of William & Alfred their nephew, Alfred Joseph Law (pictured opposite) inherited Honresfeld and A & W Law in 1913.

For more information on the Law family see Law’s Mills

THE HONRESFELD LIBRARY

Whist Alfred was the businessman, William was much more interested in art and literature and employed the services of leading London book dealers to acquire a collection of books and manuscripts which was to become one of the most outstanding Libraries in the country including works by Shakespeare, letters written by Sir Walter Scott, a collection of Burns manuscripts, and an important collection of Brontë memorabilia, including original pencil and water colour drawings by Charlotte and Emily.

Alfred Joseph Law (pictured opposite) was not an avid collector like his uncle but he did make a number of donations over the years including to the Red cross during WW1. After Sir Alfred’s death in 1939 his estate was largely inherited by his niece, Mrs Emma Dixon but there is no mention of the book collection in Sir Alfred's will or that of Mrs Dixon's twelve years later. After that little was heard about the library and where it was kept until 2021 when it was offered for sale by Sotheby’s.

Following sterling efforts by the Friends of National Libraries (FNL), funds to purchase the library were raised from many benefactors including £4 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund. FNL and its consortium of libraries and writers houses, and the FNL is profoundly grateful to the lead donor, Sir Leonard Blavatnik, who has, with exceptional munificence, match-funded the sum raised by FNL and the consortium institutions. He has donated half the purchase price. In recognition of his great generosity, the collection will henceforth be known as the Blavatnik Honresfield Library. This name was determined by Sotheby’s based on a letterhead received by them albeit Honresfeld was the name of the house when built so far as the Society’s records show.

Thanks are due to Richard Fletcher, a member of the Society who instigated research into the missing Honresfeld Library in 2011 and the new owner/developer for granting access to view the internal works and the grounds.

LEONARD CHESHIRE HOME

In  1959 the vacant Honresfeld House was acquired by Leonard Cheshire Homes who undertook many alterations and added various additional structures to assist with the care of their patients. After nearly  60 years caring  for its residents the home closed in March 2017

Below - Photograph of a large model of Honresfeld viewed from the main entrance (which faces the Hillside). The model was presented to the Society when the Leonard Cheshire Home closed. The model is fairly accurate but the roof detail is incorrect. When the extension was built (the 2 bay 2 storey section on the right) the roofline wasn’t connected with the gable end of the original roof still visible and can be seen in the picture above

 Above left  is a splendid, copiously illustrated book on the Library. Being sponsored it is excellent value at £5:00 and is available from the History Centre or via lborohist2@gmail .com

2 books have been published on the Law family and the Library. Below right, is the Society’s book on the Law Family and the library first published in 2022 being part of a series on local Industries and their families. It is priced £3:00 and available from Kelsall’s book shop, the coach House and the History Centre.

NEW FUTURE FOR HONRESFELD

After its closure as a care home, there was concern about the future of the building and the important features contained within. However, following agreement with the local council Planning Permission was given for the restoration of the main house (including sensitive conservation etc of important interior fittings in the main house, wood panelling, plasterwork, fireplaces, tiled flooring etc being retained).and to help fund the restoration, a number of new properties would be constructed which ultimately will form a gated community..

Work commenced during 2022 building works commenced on the main house with the later Leonard Cheshire extensions demolished. This required extensive work to be undertaken by the new owner and it is pleasing to report that an excellent standard or refurbishment and conservation has been achieved  and and has been accompanied by sympathetic restoration of removed or damaged features. The new houses appeared in (2023 - 2026)

Below- picture of restored south front of Honresfeld - photograph taken courtesy of the new owner. Note: construction work still in progress.

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