Spixworth Park

Spixworth Hall
The former Spixworth Hall, Norfolk, the seat of the Longe family from 1693 to 1952.
Location within Norfolk
General information
Type	Historic house
Architectural style	Elizabethan
Town or city	Spixworth, Norfolk, England
Coordinates	52°40′47″N 1°18′26″E / 52.6796°N 1.3073°E / 52.6796; 1.3073
Completed	1607
Demolished	1952
Design and construction
Architect	William Peck

Spixworth Hall was an Elizabethan stately home situated in the civil parish of Spixworth, Norfolk, located just north of the city of Norwich on the Buxton Road, until it was demolished in 1950.

The Hall was located in Spixworth, close to the Buxton road and was 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Norwich and some 10 miles (16.1 km) south of North Walsham.

The hall was constructed by William Peck in 1607. The park itself was 200 acres which ran parallel to the present Buxton Road whilst the complete estate was in excess of over 2,000 acres (8.1 km²) situated on the edge of Norwich with land bordering the present Norwich International Airport. Both Longe Road and William Peck Road are named in honour of the former owners of Spixworth Hall.

The Longe family, who were considerable land owners, owning Reymerston Hall, Norfolk, Hingham Hall, Norfolk, Dunston Hall, Norfolk, Abbot's Hall, Stowmarket and Yelverton Hall, Norfolk, bought the estate from the Pecks in 1693. Spixworth Hall and the surrounding parkland remained in the Longe family for 257 years until 1950, when it was demolished. In 1920, the hall was tenanted to Reginald and Maud Gurney of Gurney's Bank, Norwich who had recently moved from Earlham Hall. Many buildings of the former estate still remain including the gate house, dove cote, stable block and the ice house. The Longe family were traditionally clergymen and lawyers.

The hall's library consisted of one of the most extensive collections of first-edition books of any stately home in the UK with works by William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Miquel de Cervantes. As was fashionable with large households, records show that the Longe family kept animals including a large monkey who used to live in the stable block and a bear who lived in the butler's cottage and the wine cellar.