Hursley House
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hursley House is an 18th century Queen Anne style mansion in Hursley in the English county of Hampshire.
It was built by William Heathcote between 1721 and 1724, during the reign of George I. Since its construction, the house has undergone numerous changes, most notably in 1902, when Sir Thomas Heathcote, the grandson of William Heathcote, commissioned extensive development and redecoration work creating the House that can be seen today.
During the First World War the second floor of the House became a nursing hospital for officers. During the Second World War, the House was again used as a military hospital as well as being used to rehouse Vickers Aviation Limited, who had been bombed out of its original premises in Woolston, Hampshire. During their time in the House, Vickers worked on the development of many aircraft, of which the most famous is the Spitfire.
In 1958 IBM started using the House and its grounds as development laboratories. In 1963 IBM purchased the 100 acres (405,000 m²) of land surrounding the house and have since erected a large modern office complex employing over 1500 people. The original house is still used, mostly as conference rooms; the original oak-panelled library - restocked with technical books and journals - retains its former use.
