The details range from the Grade II* listing of the Church of St Luke to islands, reed-lined banks and overhanging trees around the pool, which covers about one acre. If you are choosing a place based on a particular interest, it helps to consider whether architectural history or a body of water with distinctive features along its banks is the stronger draw.
Listed buildings and their different forms
The Church of St Luke in Lower Whitley is listed at Grade II*. The wall around the Friends' Burial Ground on Village Lane and the Chetwode Arms Inn in Lower Whitley are each listed at Grade II. The range therefore extends from a church to a wall to an inn. The wall is listed as a structure in its own right, not merely as a detail of one of the buildings mentioned. Those interested in architecture will find different building forms in these examples, along with two different grades, each applying to its specific structure.
At The Thatched Cottage, the focus is on how the building developed: it probably originated in the 18th century as two cottages, now combined into one building. This probable date of origin and the former division give the cottage a different architectural focus from the listings described above. Here, the subject is the change in the building’s form, not an additional listing.
A local history account links Chetwode Cottage with original low door openings and very thick walls. These features draw attention to specific details of its construction. Together with the history of The Thatched Cottage, they offer a comparison of different architectural questions: the form of openings and walls on the one hand, and a building’s former division on the other.
Stone details and the waterside setting
The Boundary Stone on the north side of Whitleybrook Bridge is a rectangular block of pink sandstone dating from the early 19th century. The sundial in Lower Whitley probably dates from the mid-18th century and is made of buff-coloured stone. It stands on a square stone base; its vase-shaped baluster has an octagonal base. Here, a baluster is the vase-shaped part of the sundial. The two stone features can be distinguished by their shape, material and date: a rectangular boundary stone from the early 19th century and a probably older sundial with several geometric forms.
Grimsditch Mill Pool offers a different focus. It covers about one acre; its features include islands, reed-lined banks and overhanging trees. The waterside setting thus encompasses both the islands and various features along and above the banks. Those who associate Lower Whitley with an interest in landscape rather than primarily in building forms will find a clear alternative focus here. The architecture can be compared through its listings, materials and design; at the pool, the focus is on its size and features along the banks.
Discover more destinations: Barthomley, Tarvin, Tilston, Pickmere, Little Sutton, Pulford, Egerton, Kelsall.
For the main travel guide: Cheshire.
