Lost amidst the grand structures of Mill Hill School stands the forgotten site of Ridgeway House. Ridgeway House wasn’t always lost. It played a pivotal role in the school’s very existence. Originally built around 1525, Ridgeway House witnessed centuries of history before becoming part of Mill Hill School. It was home to the Nicoll family, prominent Quakers, and later other Quaker families like the Harmans and Michael Russell. Russell’s daughter married the renowned botanist Peter Collinson, transforming the grounds into a botanical wonderland filled with rare and exotic trees. These very grounds became the foundation of Mill Hill School in 1807. The Protestant Dissenters Grammar School, which would later become Mill Hill School, found its first home within the walls of Ridgeway House. The old stables were even converted into the school’s first chapel. Sadly, the original Ridgeway House was demolished shortly after the completion of a new school building in 1826. Yet its legacy lives on. The trees planted by Collinson, though diminished, still stand as silent witnesses to the history of Ridgeway House and its contribution to Mill Hill School. They whisper tales of a time when the house stood proud, a haven for intellectual curiosity and botanical passion, the very seed from which the prestigious school grew.
Центральный дом работников искусств
Step through the grand wooden doors of the Central House of the Workers of Art, and you’ll be transported to