The House

The following extracts are from:

Broomfield:An Illustrated History of the House and Garden - Steven Brindle, Southgate District Civic Trust, 1994

Enfield Council would like to thank Steven Brindle and the Trust for their co-operation in allowing this material to be used on the Broomfield House website.

Alterations in the 19th Century

Firstly, the north end of the house with the reception rooms was demolished and rebuilt in plain stock brickwork, as it is today. This provided two big, much higher reception rooms on the ground floor. Secondly, much of the roof was taken off and the rows of gables on the east and west fronts were cut down. On the east side, the little courtyard was built over, giving the building a straight profile as it has today. On the west side, Tuscan pillars were put in front of the front door and the first floor was carried out over them, squaring off the line of the house as it is today.

The early 19th century alterations left Broomfield a near rectangular shape, with the picturesque rows of gables shaved off and its roof plan radically simplified. It is not clear whether all these changes happened at the same time but it is fairly certain that they had all taken place by about 1865, when the Ordnance Survey map was made showing the house with its present outline.

Alterations in the 20th Century

In the early part of the 20th century there were numerous small additions and alterations, the most significant being carried out in the late 1920s and early 1930s. In 1928 the Southgate Urban District Council decided to strip off the existing roughcast and repair and strengthen the east front with half timber oak wood work. In 1931 the west front was similiarly treated and external plaster and woodwork were completed on the north and south elevations by 1932. The house had come full circle, with mock Tudor timberwork enclosing a central core of genuine 16th century timber-framing.

The first floor panelled room was completed in 1933; the walls in the south west corner of the ground floor were removed to form the Westlake Room. In the 1950s and 1970s the roof was extensively renovated. In 1950 the house was listed Grade II on the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest.

The house during the 16th, 17th and 18th century