Our Heritage and Architecture

Pownall Hall is the main example in the country of the Arts and Crafts movement and of Century Guilds Architecture whose chief exponent was Arthur Mackmurdo. The style adopted by the Guild is easily seen because it incorporates swirls within the features, which are present in the woodwork, the plasterwork, the brass and glasswork.

Richard de Pounale, a farmer, whose daughter, Margery, married Hugh Fytton of Gawsworth in 1328, originally built the Hall in 1297. Successive owners of Pownall Hall have tended to be either farmers or brewers. In 1830 James Pownall bought the property and rased it to the ground. He then built the hall that stands here today. The previous hall was not exactly in the same place however.

Pownall Hall has served not only as the "head office" of the family business but has also been a family home throughout the centuries. The last owner to have used it as his home was the brewer Henry Boddington, who bought the property in 1885, after seeing it advertised in the Times Newspaper. Henry then embarked on a serious renovation of Pownall Hall and spent his fortune on it. The frontal facade of local sandstone was placed there by Henry as was the front porch. At the back, he has also placed a facade, but this time has limited it to the bay which extends the full height of the building. Between the floors engraved in the sandstone is a tablet which describes Henry as Henricus Boddington. When Henry died in 1925 the estate passed to his son, Henry. It is believed he was not as frugal with his money and within 9 years, he had to sell his property to pay off his debts.
 
In 1934, the estate was split up and sold. The 150 acres largely made way for the houses that are built upon which is now called Pownall Park. Just over eight acres were left surrounding the hall, which was bought by Wilmslow Grammar School, which then changed its name to Pownall Hall School and moved in under the headmaster/owner C.P Clarke in 1936.