Bishops' House

Norton Lees Lane, Sheffield, Yorkshire S8 9BE

Tel: 0114 278 2600

website: www.sheffieldgalleries.org.uk

Bishops' House is the best preserved timber-framed house in Sheffield. It was built around 1500 and is tucked away at the top of Meersbrook Park. Bishops' House typifies the development of the smaller English domestic house in the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Inside, the house retains many of its original features and looks just as it would have done in the 17^th century, giving a tantalising flavour of Stuart England.

Many different families have lived in the house over the years, but the first owners remain a mystery. There is a story that the house was built for two brothers, John and Geoffrey Blythe who went on to become Bishops, but there is no evidence that Bishops' House was their home. The first known resident of Bishops' House was William Blythe, a Yeoman farmer and scythe manufacturer whose initials, and the date 1627, are carved in the oak panelling in the Hall. He made a number of improvements to the house before the outbreak of Civil War in 1642. These included inserting a floor above the hall, installing fireplaces in the parlour and chamber above and adding new windows. Later the building was extended with two more rooms, a cellar and an improved staircase.

The last Blythe to live in Bishops' House was Samuel. After he died in 1753 his son sold the house to William Shore. The house was then let to a tenant farmer and his labourer and the building was divided into two self-contained dwellings. In 1886 the property passed to the Corporation (now Sheffield City Council) and until 1974 Recreation Department employees lived in the house. In 1976 Bishops' House was restored and opened as a museum.