NHER 38135 (Building record) - Icehouse

In garden of The Glebe (NHER 23003) halfway between the porch in angle of house and garden wall to west.
On site of domed flowerbed that subsided; found with excavator when searching for water pipe.
Barrel vaulted brick chamber 4.06m east to west by 2.46m north to south. Bricks with horizontal skintlings identical to those in house of 1772; floor with remains of later 19th century engineering bricks. No trace of any entrance in the walls, but centre of barrel vault has smooth edges suggesting trapdoor (vault now broken through around this). This apperture is directly above a shaft set 800mm from N wall and almost flush against south; 1.40m from west wall and 1m from east. Opening of shaft 1.66m diameter. Of very great depth to water level at least 15m and perhaps more. Water at bottom appears to be flowing in. Sides appear to be brick, but are very dirty. Iron ladder, now inaccessible, down south side; lead pipe broken off on west side; similar pipe leaves the vault on the east. Other iron supports in chamber walls. This looks very much like an unrecorded type of ice well, from which ice would be removed by staging and crane, see (S1), examples from Endcombe,Dorset and Burroch Park, Cumbria combined.
But why would a rectory need such a huge icewell?
See also (S3).
E. Rose (NLA), 18 March 2003.

Photographs in file, see (S2).

In 1973 in Wimbledon beneath the floor of the Well House in Arthur Road a 12 foot square room, entered only by a narrow shaft in the ceiling. In the floor of the room was a well, 563 feet in depth, known to have been dug in 1798 but closed within 12 years because of silting. The Science Museum was unable to suggest any function or reason for the room.
This report bears some similarities to features at this site but as a whole would seem to have had a different function or origin. Compare also with NHER 21614.
E. Rose (NLA), April 2008.
E. Rose (NLA), April 2008.