Hazelwood Hall

Hazelwood Hall
Location within the City of Lancaster district
General information
Type	Victorian mansion
Location	Silverdale, Lancashire
Country	England
Coordinates	54°10′01″N 2°49′37″W / 54.1670°N 2.8270°W / 54.1670; -2.8270Coordinates: 54°10′01″N 2°49′37″W / 54.1670°N 2.8270°W / 54.1670; -2.8270

Hazelwood Hall is a Victorian mansion set in 18.5 acres of mature woodland and gardens in the village of Silverdale, Lancashire, England, some 8.5 miles (14 km) north of Lancaster. It has recently been converted into luxury apartments.

The history of Hazelwood Hall is typical of many small estates and country houses that developed in southern Lakeland and the Arnside and Silverdale area during the last 200 years. In fact a similar story can be told about the development of houses and land in many areas of the most attractive countryside within easy travelling distance of industrial towns. The historical development and landscape changes associated with Hazelwood Hall reflect the development of this area in response to the major changes that affected the English countryside during this period. These changes were interrelated, starting with the enclosure of the remaining areas of common land and the evolving Industrial Revolution at the end of the 18th century. This was followed by the development of the railways opening up attractive areas of coast and countryside for settlement and investment by wealthy industrialists.

This process continued and entered a mature phase in the early 20th century and then declined after the Second World War. This coincided with a whole range of other changes that had a profound effect on the countryside. These included the rapid increase in motor traffic and building development, which started as ribbon development leading to suburban expansion – rising wages and taxation affecting the upkeep of large country houses and estates. The new Town and Country Planning legislation was brought in to restrict destructive building development in coast and countryside. The spread of industrial methods to the countryside led to intensive farming and the relative neglect of grazing on poorer and more difficult land.

Whilst these were necessary restrictions and welcome developments at the time, providing protection of the countryside and increased food production, it is only in the last twenty or thirty years that the real long-term effect of some of these changes has begun to become apparent. One of the most profound changes is the displacement of the traditional rural population (farming families, trades people and rural workers) by urban wealth. The inflation of property values has helped the more wealthy executives, business and professional people (who previously lived in the towns and suburbs) to move into the countryside. Planning control protecting the amenity of the countryside by severely restricting new development has reinforced the whole process and this is reflected in inflated house prices and lack of affordable homes for young people.