Ickenham Hall
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~ Compass Theatre

Table of Chronology

compiled by Maurice Ray

For more on the history of Ickenham Hall see our history section

1066 Land in and around Ickenham awarded to Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury.
1086 Three estates and 31 people are listed as being in'Ticheham'
1094 Land held by Roger de Belleme - probably a sub-tenant.
1102 The land was forfeit to Henry, Duke of the Normans.
1140 Geoffrey de Mandeville became first known Lord of the Manor of Ickenham.
1154 The land was granted to ... unknown! all of these were sub-tenants of the de Mandevilles - themselves sub-tenants of Roger de Montgomery.
1196 The land passed to Ralph de Harpenden.
1290 The land passed on again ... to unknown!
13?? Land held by a man known as Brok/Brook - now Lord of the Manor of Ickenham. He was a direct descendant of Geoffrey de Mandeville.
1334 Land held by William del Brok.
13?? Juette de Brok, the daughter of John de Brok, the then owner of Ickenham Manor (and therefore the Lord of the Manor) married Nicholas Shorediche.
1348 John de Brok conveyed his land in two parts. The first part to his daughter Juette and her husband, Nicholas Shorediche; the second part to John de Charleton.
1348 John de Brok conveyed his land in two parts. The first part to his daughter Juette and her husband, Nicholas Shorediche; the second part to John de Charleton.

The Shorediche family is recorded as holding the Manorial rights to the Manor of Ickenham.
13?? The property had several cottages and outbuildings on the land.
1416 John Cherwyn is listed on the court roll as changing the name of his'messuage' from'Cherwyns' to'Sherwyns'. (This was the site where Ickenham Hall now stands.)
1500 A 'Home Farm' is recorded as being near to the present site of'The Coach and Horses' public house and perhaps incorporating the present pond.
1547 The population of what was now being called'Ickenham' had reached 80.
1554 A Mr. Edmund Shoredyche and his Wyfe Helyn together with Robert Shorediche were recorded as being'at a wedding'.
1561 The Crosier family - local land lowners - is recorded as being'Yeomen'.
1576 Alexander Crosier and his daughters Alice and Elizabeth are recorded as owners of land on which Ickenham Hall now stands.
1592 Michael Shorediche is recorded as being Lord of Ickenham Manor.
1624 Robert Crosier is listed as owning a property known as'Sherwyns'. He had a tenant called'Stone'.
William Crosier, Yeoman, is listed as owning:
Long Croft - 4 acres
Short Croft - 1 acre
Ley Grove - 2.5 acres
plus 40 acres of open fields
1627 'Sherwyns' is listed as including one close pasture or meadow of about three acres known as 'Reynolds Close' together with stables, barns and other outbuildings.

In the same year one John Nicholas and his wife Agnes 'surrendered' to Michael Crosier 26 'selions' of land, a one acre meadow and a'parcel' of meadow called 'a hook'. This land adjoined 'Sherwyns'.
1627 'Sherwyns' is listed as including one close pasture or meadow of about three acres known as 'Reynolds Close' together with stables, barns and other outbuildings.
1628 Michael Crosier built on Reynolds Close a house and a barn. This became the 'Home Farm' attached to 'Sherwyns'.
1654 William Crosier married Mary Cheney of Stoke Poges.
1664 There were 37 households assessed for 'Hearth Tax' in Ickenham.
1685 William Crosier bought 'Rayners' and a house on Long Lane called Milton Farm.
1695 William's son William married Elizabeth Lanchester and 'Rayners' was given to them as part of the marriage 'settlement'.
1699 Michael Crosier and his son John owned one acre of meadow/pasture near Ducks Hill, Ruislip.
17?? The Crosiers were now regarded and described as'Gentlemen'.
1723 The population had dropped again - to 30 families.
1740 The present house was built and became known as Ickenham Hall
1751 Robert Shorediche, Lord of Ickenham Manor, held:
Further Field
Bleak Hill
Home Field
1779 Elizabeth Crosier, then occupier of Ickenham Hall, married Mr. George Hilliard.
1781 Home Farm now called 'Stone's Homestead'.
1785 Edward Hilliard was described as 'Lord of the Manor of Cowley House'.
1790 The present Ickenham Hall site is plots number 65 & 66 on the Ickenham Enclosure Award Plan. This plan shows several properties held by the Crosiers and two smaller fields held by 'Mr. Hillyard'!
1801 John Crosier died and left his freehold properties to Edward Hilliard his nephew and second son of George and Elizabeth This included Ickenham Hall and the other 'Crosier' properties. The rest of the property was left to Edward's brother George.

The population of Ickenham village was 213.
1810 Michael Shorediche, Lord of the Manor of Ickenham, mortgaged most of his property to pay off heavy debts. A Mr. George Robinson foreclosed on the mortgage and took control of the properties.
1813 Michael Shorediche married a wealthy West Indian Princess from Antigua - and went to live there.
1815 Ickenham Manor was for sale to include the Manorial rights and 114 acres of land. It was bought by George Robinson.
1816 Edward Hilliard died and left his property to his brother George. The Hilliards start to sell off their properties in a piecemeal fashion.
1818 The Shorediche family forced by circumstances to relinquish the Manorial rights to the Manor of Ickenham - having held them for 470 years.
1841 The population of Ickenham had risen to 396. All that remainded of the Manorial Demesne was a narrow strip of land near the'Manor House'.
1851 The population of Ickenham had fallen again - to 351.
1855 George Hilliard died. His son Edward David Crosier Hilliard was already dead but the remaining properties were kept in the Hilliard family until 1927.
1857 George Robinson died. His will was disputed and his property sold to Thomas Truesdale Clarke and merged with the Manor of Swakeleys.
1859 Edward Ricout Shorediche, the grandson of Michael and his Princess, came to London in a bid to rescue his Manorial Rights. He was two years too late.
1871 The population of Ickenham had risen again - to 386.
1890 The Saich family occupied Home Farm (Reynolds Close).
18?? Two thirds of Ickenham Manor House was pulled down.
1901 The population of Ickenham had fallen yet again - to 329.
1902 The land is sold to the Uxbridge and Harrow Railway Company.
1904 Some of the land is sold on to Charles de Winton Kitkat.
19?? Ickenham Hall is bought by Dame Agnes Maud Lawrence. Her father had been Viceroy of India and she was honoured for her work on behalf of women.
19?? Ickenham Hall is bought by Dame Agnes Maud Lawrence. Her father had been Viceroy of India and she was honoured for her work on behalf of women.
1916 Hill Farm is absorbed by Northolt Aerodrome.
1918 Dame Maud Agnes Lawrence owned and occupied Ickenham Hall.
1921 The population of Ickenham was rising again - it stood at 443.
1927 The Saich family, tenants of Home Farm since the 1890s, now bought it from the Hilliards.
1932 Captain Paul Rycaut Shorediche-Churchward went to Brazil in search of Colonel Fawcett - he did not find him!
1933 Dame Maud died and the property was put up to auction by Harrods. It is described as:
"nicely timbered house, paved terrace, tennis court, lawns, grass orchard, kitchen garden, herbaceous borders, paddock, about 5 acres".

The property was bought by the Reverend Ralph Guy Potts.
1937 The village of Ickenham is absorbed into Uxbridge.
1947 The Reverend Potts died and the property was sold to the Middlesex County Council. Ickenham Hall had been a private residence for 207 years.
1948 Ickenham Hall used as a Community Centre.
1950 Ickenham Manor House was purchased by Captain Shorediche-Churchward and thus returned to the Shorediche family after 140 years.
1950s A wood yard occupied part of the site where the The Compass Theatre now stands.

Ickenham Hall used as a school for pupils waiting for places at Glebe School.
1959 Ickenham Hall named 'Middlesex Youth House'.
1965 Middlesex County Council became part of the Greater London Council.

Agreement reached to build a theatre on the site.
1968 'Ickenham Youth Theatre' opened by Jennie Lee.
1974 'Middlesex Youth House' and the 'Ickenham Youth Theatre' were merged. The new complex was named 'The Ickenham Centre'. This was quickly changed to'The Compass Community Arts Centre'.
1974 'Middlesex Youth House' and the 'Ickenham Youth Theatre' were merged.
1976 The name of the complex was changed again - to 'The Compass'.
1981 Death of Captain Paul Rycaut Shorediche-Churchward.
1982 The communicating building between the house and the theatre became 'The Bistro'.
1985 The Theatre was renamed yet again - as 'The Compass Arts Theatre'.
1986 Theatre closed for re-construction.
1987-9 Major work carried out; Theatre - virtually rebuilt and re-equipped. Performance of plays, concerts and cabarets in Ickenham Hall during repairs/reconstruction of the theatre auditorium. Small plays were performed also in the Bistro. A marquee seating 200 was erected in the grounds to accommodate larger productions.
1990 'The Compass Arts Theatre' re-opened by Prince Edward. Ickenham Hall used as Council offices for Music, and Youth services and for theatre rehearsal rooms.
19?? 'The Compass Arts Theatre' was again re-named - as'The Compass Theatre and Arts Centre', a name which slopped back by the early 2000s to simply 'Compass Theatre' once again.
2009 'Friends of Ickenham Hall' established to raise funds for and oversee the conservation, repairs and, where possible, the restoration of Ickenham Hall.
2009 The Oak Room fireplace is refurbished by the Friends.
2010 The gardens are replanted in a Georgian style and the front door refurbished and repainted.
2011-12 Work on repairing the sash windows goes on to improve the exterior appearance of the hall.
2012 Rooms previously used for storage (Crosier, Hilliard and Lawrence Rooms) are cleared and the fireplaces uncovered for the first time in years.