Hodgemoor – Water Gardens

At the Southern extreme of Hodgemoor Wood lies Rawlings Farm,  one-time home to, amongst others, the U.S. ambassador to Great Britain from 1941-46 (America’s involvement in WWII and aftermath).

Slightly earlier, in 1935, a borehole was sunk here in Rawlings Dell, to draw water from the chalk aquifer, and the structure you see in front of you was the pump house – the mechanism is still largely in place. This water was pumped to a tank, but why? Most likely to feed the elaborate but now overgrown and unused ornamental gardens to the north of the house.

These sorts of gardens were all the rage in this period, and artificial cascades and pools would be created not only to accommodate vibrant garden plants but also to create an enchanting soundscape of babbling brooks and waterfalls. Where local stone was unsuitable, large boulders would be brought in from elsewhere – those used here appear to be limestone but further south in the Chilterns, at Danesfield House, they were made from a wholly artificial stone called Pulhamite.

Pulhamite stones at the Danesfield House water garden

The garden no longer flows, so we must rely on the artists imagination  as to what it might have looked like. Rawlings Dell is private land, but you can see images and read more from the research of Routes to the Past volunteer Nigel Rothwell here.