The Villas
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The Villas is an estate of twenty-four houses, most dating from 1851-55, designed by prominent local Stoke-On-Trent architect, Charles Lynam, who was only 21 at the time of commission. They are built in an Italianate style which recalls other Staffordshire buildings such as Trentham Hall or Alton Railway Station.
In June 1850 a number of prominent inhabitants of Stoke formed themselves into an association which they called "The Stokeville Building Society". The purpose of the building society was to provide the means and the financial capability for its members to erect, and ultimately own, houses on copyhold land outside the town of Stoke-upon-Trent. The land belonged to the Rev. Thomas Minton, brother of Herbert Minton and son of the founder of Thomas Minton and Sons (later Mintons Ltd), pottery manufacturer of Stoke.
The Villas estate is located along the north side of London Road below Penkhull village on the outskirts of Stoke Upon Trent, and within the City Ward of Stoke and Trent Vale. Originally a distinct settlement set in green fields, it now merges with the late nineteenth-early twentieth century suburban sprawl of Stoke.
[edit] Conservation
Originally built in three distinct classes, all providing accommodation for servants to “live in”, changing times meant that many were subdivided by the 1940's and today provide housing for many more families. The estate had the distinction of being the first designated conservation area in Stoke-On-Trent. Initially, only a couple of the houses were listed, but now The Villas contains the highest concentration of Grade II listed buildings in the city.
