This article by Stephen Gilburt was first published by The Enfield Society in Newsletter 230, Summer 2023.
A late 17th century map shows a brick house, built in the style of Inigo Jones, on the site of the present Southgate House. There were several small buildings nearby and Southgate village to the south had developed around The Green, the Cherry Tree Inn, the Weld chapel and Arnolds (replaced by Arnos Grove in 1719). (See newsletter 219, Autumn 2020.)
In 1749 the estate passed to the Pole family. In 1776 Charles Pole died and Samuel Pole inherited the house and surrounding land. Between 1780 and 1800 he built a double-fronted symmetrical neo-classical stock brick house. It was two storeys high topped with a parapet and intermittent balustrading. The slated mansard roof had dormer windows. The architect is not known but appears to have been acquainted with the work of Robert Adam.
Illustration 1: North-west entrance front of Grade II* listed Southgate House, seen here in 1987
The north-west front had three bays with, in the centre, a curved flight of six stone steps flanked by ornamental lamp standards. The entrance was in a convex stone wall with four slender Tuscan columns and an entablature surmounted by a wrought iron balustrade. (The entrance has similarities to Millfield House—see newsletter 181, Spring 2011.)
The front door opened on to a spacious oval hall which in turn led to the curving main staircase extending up to the first floor and which was lit from a lantern above.
Illustration 2: Doorway and alcove in Entrance Hall. (The crest of Minchenden School, with the Minchenden Oak quartered with the crown and three scimitars of Middlesex County Council, is above the door.)
Illustration 3: Plan of the ground floor of Southgate House showing the original house marked A and later extensions marked B, C, D and E
To the left of the Entrance Hall was the Master’s Room or Smoking Room which led through to the Sitting Room or Library on the south-east side of the house. To the right of the Entrance Hall was the Ladies Boudoir, which had a fine fireplace and adjoined the Conservatory or Orangerie.
Illustration 4: Detail of moulded plaster decoration showing a cupid and foliage in the Ladies Boudoir.
Doors led from the Boudoir through to the Drawing Room which had rustic scenes over the doorways. The walls were divided into panels by plaster mouldings which may have been covered with silk brocade or may have had scenes painted on them similar to those in the Birdcage Room at Grovelands (see newsletter 217, Spring 2020). China cabinets were placed in the alcoves. Between the Drawing Room and the Sitting Room was a fine oval Dining Room featuring a pair of fine carved oak dumb waiters.
Illustration 5: South-west and south-east fronts of Southgate House as seen from the ha-ha. This sunken wall separated the lawns and gardens from the park and home farm and prevented animals from encroaching on to the lawns and gardens, without interrupting the view from the house.
In the centre of the south-east front was the curved bay of the oval Dining Room. It had full-height sash windows with glazing bars. The windows originally opened on to a narrow terrace. To the left and right the Drawing Room and the Sitting Room had fine stone fronted Venetian windows set in round arched recesses. The windows originally opened on to steps which led down to the lawns and gardens. The stone area wall in front of the basement had cast iron railings at intervals.
The first floor housed the family bedrooms, dressing rooms and nursery, with the female servants bedrooms being in the attic. The basement rooms included the servants hall, kitchen, house-keeper’s room, cellar, larders and storerooms.
Soon after the house was completed it was extended on the north-east side. On the ground floor were a morning room with a Venetian window facing south-east, a billiard room, pantries and storerooms. Before indoor water closets were installed, water was brought into the house from a well in cans, and commodes and outdoor earth closets were used. Additional bedrooms and a bathroom were provided on the first floor with more female servants bedrooms in the attic. A scullery, butler’s pantry, storerooms, a coal storage area and, later, water closets were added in the basement.
Illustration: 6 The Dairy
In the 1790s an octagonal Dairy, with a rectangular louvered ventilation turret, was added to the north-east end of the house and an underground ice-house was constructed.
According to the General Enclosure Act of 1801 the estate also included an orchard, a paddock, lodges, walled fruit and vegetable gardens, a granary, a copse, shrubberies, the Woolpack Inn and a row of cottages. The octagonal timber granary was constructed on staddle stones to keep out the rats. This interesting listed building unfortunately burned down. A similar granary can, however, still be seen at nearby Grovelands (see newsletter 217).
Samuel Pole died in 1802, but the estate was controlled by trustees until Isaac Walker bought it in 1840. Isaac Walker died at Southgate House in 1853, shortly after inheriting Arnos Grove. (Arnos Grove is covered in newsletter 177, Spring 2010.)
As the members of the Walker family lived at Arnos Grove, Southgate House was rented to tenants. Sir John Lawrence (Lawrence of the Punjab) took up residence with his family, his sister and his niece in 1862. The estate had 60 acres and he kept cows, sheep, pigs, poultry and horses. Croquet was played on the lawn and on Saturdays and Sundays he would drive around the neighbourhood and his estate. On Sunday evenings he held a service at home and told tales of life in India. Sir John left in 1864, when he was appointed Viceroy of India, and was followed by his wife and older children in 1865. The younger children were looked after by his widowed sister Letitia Hayes until her death in 1866. He erected a stained glass window in her memory at Christ Church, Southgate (see newsletter 179, Autumn 2010). The remaining members of the family later moved to South Kensington where they were joined by Sir John on his return to England in 1869.
Later tenants included Mr Armitage, from 1876, who travelled by steam train from Palmers Green station to work in the City, J.N. Mappin (of Mappin & Webb) and C.H.Feiling, a member of the Stock Exchange Council.
In 1918 the 75 year old Russell D. Walker sold the Arnos Grove estate to the shipping magnate Lord Inverforth. Following Russell Walker’s death in 1922, the Southgate House estate was sold off by his heirs. Land between Southgate High Street and The Bourne was bought by J. Edmondson and Son, who constructed The Meadway estate in the 1920s and 1930s (see newsletter 196, Winter 2014). Southgate House, with its entrance lodge, stable buildings, glass houses and 20.5 acres of park and gardens, was sold to Middlesex County Council for £16,000.
Southgate House became Minchenden School in 1924, with places for 200 boys and girls. The grounds became playing fields for the school. The school had been founded as Tottenhall Secondary School in 1919. The new name was taken from the 800 year old Minchenden Oak in the grounds of Arnos Grove. The word is thought to derive from mychen, meaning nun, because there was a nunnery on the site of Broomfield House and the surrounding area in medieval times (see newsletter 211, Autumn 2018).
The existing buildings were adapted for use by the school. The stables were converted into a chemistry and physics laboratory, with the art room in the loft above. The conservatory was demolished and replaced by a hall, which later became the gymnasium. In 1932 a new building was opened, providing 12 classrooms, a domestic science room, a woodwork room, two new laboratories, staff common rooms, a medical room and a new large hall with a stage. During the Second World War air raid shelters were constructed, staff operated a fire watching rota and the paddocks were used as allotments. Further extensions were made to the school in 1956–7.
In 1960, after Southgate County School moved to Sussex Way, Cockfosters, its former building in Fox Lane became the lower school for Minchenden. Following the reorganisation of local government in London in 1965, the London Borough of Enfield took responsibility for education locally. Secondary education was reorganised and Minchenden became a comprehensive school in 1967. In 1984 it merged with Arnos School. The new school was renamed Broomfield and the old Minchenden building in Southgate House was closed.
Illustration 7: Stables and Coach house with Dormitory for the the grooms and other male servants above. Photographed in 1970
After 1987 Southgate House became part of Southgate College and was known as the Minchenden building. Enfield Council sold the former Minchenden Upper School’s playing fields to Fairview New Homes plc, who built 258 houses and flats between 1993–5. The 1930s Minchenden School buildings are now occupied by Durants Special School. There were plans to convert Southgate House into residential accommodation, but it has now been sold to the Southgate Mosque and Community Association.
Illustrations 1, 5 and 7 are courtesy of Enfield Local Studies & Library. The remaining have been reproduced from Minchenden School Golden Anniversary 1919–69.
The following publications were used for the preparation of this article:
- The buildings of England 4: North by Bridget Cherry and Nikalaus Pevsner 1998.
- Enfield’s Architecture Heritage, Enfield Presevation Society 1977
- Treasures of Enfield, Discovering the buildings of a London Borough, edited by Valerie Carter, Enfield Preservation Society, 2000
- Southgate and Edmonton Past, Graham Dalling, 1996
- Southgate, a glimpse into the past, Alan Dumayne, 1987
- Minchenden School Golden Anniversary 1919–1969 by Marjorie Seward, K.E.Nolan and Sixth Form Group and architectural members of Southgate Civic Trust.