Kings Newnham Hall has a rich history. Additional research is needed to give full justice to the story of the Hall, but the Brierly family history is discussed here, along with an interview with John Brierly from the Rugby Advertiser here. There is a separate discussion on the history of St Laurence’s church in the grounds of the Hall.
Liz Parvin in her 2014 Village Newsletter history of Kings Newnham notes that listed amongst the assets of Newnham Hall is ‘King’s Newnham Mill and Cottage adjoining’. This is the same mill that has been there since Anglo-Saxon times and has been mentioned several times before in the historical accounts of the village. The sale catalogue also says ‘With this lot passes such interest as the Vendor may have in the remains of the old church and tower’. The catalogue also gives details of the annual income of the estate and includes £25 per annum from ‘the L.N.W Railway in respect of water taken from the River Avon’.
Newnham Hall was then farmed by Mr. Brierley; John Cummins took over the farm in 1925, with a private sale following the auction below.
The various lots were laid out on the map below.
The stories of the links between Newnham Hall and St Laurence’s church are covered in detail in various parts of this archive, but it is clear that when the Hall changed ownership, after so many years in the Brierly family, it presented the parish with additional challenges, especially in terms of confirming who owned what, and who could do what on the site of the former church. Much discussion on these subjects took place between the Rectors of the day and the diocese between the two wars.
The above map is reproduced with the permission of the National Library of Scotland. It was produced in 1886 and revised in 1903/5. This map and more can be found via this link. There are different ways of navigating the maps there – the “Marker Pin” option is ideal for finding maps that cover a particular area, and the “Side By Side” viewer is excellent for comparing an old map with a current day view.