Sandycombe Lodge

Sandycombe Lodge
Solus Lodge
Sandycombe Lodge in 1814
Location40 Sandycoombe Road, Twickenham TW1 2LR, London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
Built1813
Built forJ. M. W. Turner and his father William Turner
ArchitectJ. M. W. Turner
Architectural style(s)Picturesque-cottage style
Governing bodyTurner's House Trust
Listed Building – Grade II*
Official nameSandycombe Lodge
Designated2 September 1952
Reference no.1262429

Sandycombe Lodge is a Grade II* listed[1] house at 40 Sandycoombe Road, Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.[i] In the picturesque-cottage style, it was designed and built in 1813 by the artist J. M. W. Turner (1775–1851) as his country retreat and as a home for his father William (1745–1829).[2] Turner lived there from 1814 to 1826.[1] Originally known as Solus Lodge,[3] it is the only surviving building designed by Turner, and shows the influence of his friend Sir John Soane.[2] The appearance of the house had been much altered by the addition of second floors to the original side wings.[3]

When it was built, Twickenham was rural, as can be seen in the engraving Sandycombe Lodge, Twickenham, Villa of J. M. W. Turner (1814) that was engraved by W. B. Cooke after William Havell and is now held at Tate Britain.[4]

Since the sale of Sandycombe Lodge in 1826 by Turner, it has had several owners.[5] The house was used as a factory to produce airmen's uniforms during the Second World War.[2] The vibrations from the heavy machinery caused damage to the staircase and ceilings of the house.[2] The house was bought by Professor Harold Livermore and his wife Ann in 1947, and they created the Sandycombe Lodge Trust (now Turner's House Trust) in 2005.[2] After Livermore's death in 2010, the house was left to the Trust to be preserved as a monument to Turner.[2]

Many of the house's original features survived, but it needed major restoration work and redecoration.[2] Turner's House Trust sought to raise funds to restore the house, remove Victorian additions and return it to its appearance in Turner's day.[2][6][7] In January 2015 it was announced that the Trust was to receive a grant of £1.4 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund to enable this work to take place.[8] The year-long renovation, costing £2.4 million, started in March 2016. The restoration of Turner's House is now complete and the house is open to the public; visitors can experience Turner's House as he lived in it, and learn the fascinating stories behind the conservation of this important historic house.

  1. ^ a b Historic England (2 September 1952). "Sandycombe Lodge (1262429)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Sandycombe Lodge". Heritage at Risk. English Heritage. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  3. ^ a b "J M W Turner 1775–1851 painter and poet". People. Twickenham Museum. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  4. ^ "After William Havell Sandycombe Lodge, Twickenham, Villa of J. M. W. Turner, engraved by W. B. Cooke published 1814". Art and artists. Tate Gallery. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  5. ^ "Sandycombe Lodge (Solus Lodge) Sandycombe Road". Houses of Local Interest & their Occupiers. Twickenham Museum. Archived from the original on 17 December 2013. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  6. ^ "Bid to save the suburban home that JMW Turner built". BBC News. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 17 December 2013.
  7. ^ Mason, Jennifer (November 2013). "The House that Turner Built". Residents' Journal (7).
  8. ^ Ambrose, Tom (9 January 2015). "Delight as Turner's house saved by £1.4m lottery grant". Richmond and Twickenham Times. Retrieved 10 January 2015.


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-roman> tags or {{efn-lr}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-roman}} template or {{notelist-lr}} template (see the help page).