As with many cities across the country, property in Nottingham is a patchwork of eras with a broad spectrum of styles along the way. Nottingham is a historic city dating back to Norman times, and the oldest surviving building claims to date back to the late 1100’s. Nottingham has claim to three of the oldest pubs in the country, but the debate continues as to whether the oldest was actually a pub or rather a series of caves the served as a brewery at the foot of the castle.

Watson Fothergill 1841 to 1928
When it comes to residential property, the earliest surviving buildings are Georgian, and then there are an enormous amount of Victorian properties as the city rapidly grew in the 1800’s. Nottingham was home to several prominent architects and there work is evident across the city. The most famous is probably Watson Fothergill. His gothic revival Victorian properties were built from around 1870 until the turn of the century and encompassed residential buildings, churches, offices, factories, and probably his most well known building The Black Boy hotel which was demolished to make way for one of the cities many carbuncles in the 1960’s. Many Watson Fothergill buildings still stand proud today, and there are websites and books devoted to his work.

TC Hine 1813 to 1899
Thomas Chambers Hine was a contemporary of Fothergill, and if anything was more commercially successful. TC Hine designed a huge amount of churches across the county, but most notably perhaps, he built County Hall on Burton Street, the fabulous Park Tunnel, The Adams Building that now houses Nottingham College, and he was responsible for the restoration of Nottingham Castle. In the 1850’s he designed the Coppice Hospital in Mapperley. The hospital closed in the 1980’s and was converted into apartments and is now called Hine Hall.

William Beedham Starr 1865 to 1953
William Starr is much less well-known, but his buildings are probably the most frequented by the local population as he was responsible for building a huge number of public houses! Starr was also greatly influential in the development of Mapperley Park when the land was sold off to create the popular tree-lined area that we know today. His home at the foot of Mapperley Hall Drive has just been converted back into a substantial family property after years operating as a retirement home. Buildings that people may be familiar with include The Turf Tavern opposite the Royal Concert Hall, The Crown at Raleigh Island, The Old Dog & Partridge on Parliament Street, and the former Nat West Bank building right next door to our office in Carrington.

Cecil Howitt 1889 to 1963
Thomas Cecil Howitt is quite probably Nottingham’s most prolific architect, and the man behind Nottingham’s Council House building in the Market Square. Howitt also constructed the head office for Raleigh Bicycles on Lenton Boulevard, the Home Brewery head office in Daybrook, the Newton Building at what is now Nottingham Trent University, and Baskerville House in Birmingham. Howitts work in Nottingham is however more widely recognised in over 6000 council owned houses built across the city on new estates designed by Howitt between the wars. At the time, these estates were regarded as the forefront of municipal planning.