Located in a quiet valley of the Ribble immediately NE of the village of Hurst Green near many other gentry houses, the important market centre of Clitheroe, and the Roman road to Ribchester. On the S slope of Longridge Fell.
Approach from the W along a lengthy avenue of trees with 2 handsome canals. The house is set in formal gardens to the S originating in the late 17th c., with wooded parkland to the N and W.
Built on a courtyard plan, with later extensions, the imposing grey sandstone residence at Stonyhurst is the largest of the Ribble Valley gentry homes, a witness to the prosperity of its builder, Sir Richard Shireburn.
Sir Richard Shireburn's rental and account books (1567--76) predate the building of the present house. Although there are no records to prove its use, it is a probable performance venue, given its location in the favoured Ribble Valley route and the prominence of its owner. Players patronized by the Sir Richard's grandson, also Richard, are on record at Dunkenhalgh during Christmas 1628/9.
Now Stonyhurst College, a residential Jesuit school for boys and girls. Open to the public out of term at specified times during the year.
late 14th/early 15th c. Original house built on what is now the NE corner of the quadrangle.
ca. 1523 Additions built by Hugh Shireburn.
1592 Rebuilding begun by Sir Richard Shireburn on the W wing gatehouse and S wing.
1594--1606 Construction continued on the E wing by his son Richard (d 1628) but intended quadrangle not completed.
1690 Construction renewed by Richard's great-grandson Sir Nicholas who also laid out the grounds with the great avenue, formal gardens and summer houses.
1754 Estate passed on the death of Sir Nicholas Shireburn's daughter Maria, to the Welds of Lulworth, descendants of her aunt, Elizabeth Shireburn. House abandoned.
1794 Thomas Weld donated the estate to Jesuit refugees from Liege who converted the house for the college of St Omers. Great hall converted for use as a refectory.
1799 Shirk range built S of the quad S wing.
1800 W front completed.
1832--5 St Peter's Roman Catholic Church built.
1843--56 N end of W front rebuilt, N range of quad built. Exterior courtyard staircase leading into the former great hall removed (VCH Lanc 7.10).
1856--61 In the NE corner of the main quadrangle remnants of medieval buildings that had been turned into offices by the Shireburns in the late 16th c. demolished (Country Life 28.536).
1877--89 S block built with Boys' Chapel behind.
REED Lanc 162--5, 197
| Name | Dates | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| Shireburn, Richard | 1591-1667 |
