History

Hemingford Grey House was built around 310 years ago. A beautiful, red-brick building in the Queen Anne style, it has three storeys and a lower, linked, timber-framed service wing on the north-east side. Erected in 1697 on the site of an earlier house that was virtually destroyed during the Civil War, it was purchased and converted into a dedicated residential conference and training centre by Dr Anthony E Churchill in 1973. Hemingford Grey House continues to serve national and local corporations throughout the year.

Close by, and also overlooking the river Great Ouse, stands the Church of St James. A church has stood on this spot for at least 900 years, and the tower of this one has watched over the village of Hemingford Grey for 600 of them. It has no spire, as this was blown down by a hurricane in 1741.

Close to the main entrance towers a gigantic London Plane tree, which is a cross between an Occidental and an Oriental Plane tree, and is believed to have been planted in 1702. At five feet from the ground, it has a girth of nearly 23 feet - perfect for sitting under during the summer months.