Speltham Hill

Street by Street

Rising from the junction of High Street, East Street and West Street, this road is wide initially but then narrows to a single vehicle width as it turns sharp left to ascend the steep slope of the down. One of the most picturesque lanes in the village, it needs our imagination to grasp its original layout: In the late 1700s the old Market Hall was still standing where the People’s Market is today though in such a dilapidated state that it collapsed in 1818 and all of its rubble removed by 1819. We can speculate that the beginnings of Speltham Hill at the village centre might have been a lot wider, mirroring the much broader High Street opposite. It’s frustrating that we have not yet uncovered an image or street view of the old Market Hall.

Speltham Hill c1910: view looking south towards what is now Mornington House. This photo was taken a few steps away from what is now The Malthouse: the wall to the left is the boundary of Hambledon House.

Speltham Hill c1910: view looking north towards what is now The Malthouse with the church in the distance. The view here is a few steps south from the spot used for the previous photo. It features a pristine flint wall and two donkeys. A flagpole rises in the garden of a neighbouring house.

A Shady Lane Hambledon: Speltham Hill c1910 view looking north from a point near the entrance to Hill House. A cowman and his small herd make their way to evening pasture or barn. It’s also possible he is taking them to the small watering hole that is just behind the white paling gate left of photo.

Panoramic view north from the down near Hill House, seen here in the foreground c1910. An atmospheric vista across the village centre to the Church and as far as Windmill Down to the distant right.

Speltham Hill - view looking west showing the timbered gable of High Bank c1915 — Speltham Hill – view looking west showing the timbered gable of High Bank c1915

Speltham Hll view northwest c1910. The elegant stone mullioned gable of a cottage that was demolished after it became unstable some decades ago. The site is now occupied by Oldfield House and White Cottage. To the right is Jubilee Cottage. Near to the peak of Speltham Hill it’s clear why Hambledon’s leafy lanes increasingly appealed to tourist visitors as travel from nearby towns and cities became easier, particularly in the 19th century. What is less clear from these two photos is the stunning views over the village and downland from the heights of Speltham.

Aerial view of Oolite in 1969. It was built on the side of White Cottage which was cut in half for the new addition. It was made out of bits of limestone, wood and packing cases. The wooden joists rotted so it was condemned and had to be pulled down.

Speltham Hill junction with Back Lane c1930. Jubilee Cottage left and Rose Cottage right. Near to the peak of Speltham Hill it’s clear why Hambledon’s leafy lanes increasingly appealed to tourist visitors as travel from nearby towns and cities became easier, particularly in the 19th century. What is less clear from these photos is the stunning views over the village and downland from the heights of Speltham. But there is no shortage of photographs and postcards of varying quality from the early 20th century.

Hambledon Mill at the top of Speltham Hill in a delapidated state c1900. A tower mill, built around 1780, it was gutted by fire around 1870 leaving the brick ruin to be overgrown with ivy – a picturesque landmark visible for some distance. It was finally demolished in the 1970s. The glorious views from Speltham were not its only gift to the village: the winds that provided steady power to the corn mill, also known as Byerley’s Mill and Town Mill ensured regular traffic of grain to its position on the summit. The ruins were finally taken down in the 1970s to make way for Old Mill House.

Mill House, Speltham Hill c1915. A pretty but primitive-looking cottage in the grounds of Hambledon Mill; we are investigating whether it was demolished at the same time as the ruined Mill to make way for the building and grounds of Old Mill House.

Speltham Hill continues past Jubilee Cottage with its panoramic view over Hambledon at the junction with Back Lane that rises from East Street. Rose Cottage opposite sits on the same junction and next to it Old Mill House further along, Pithill Lane branches left and Speltham Hill ends at the junction with Rushmere Lane and Bury Lodge Lane in the hamlet of Rushmere with its eponymous organic farm and its rambling buildings, also Old Rushmere (which is in fact a much modernised and architecturally enhanced home). Rushmere Farm also is host to a Market Garden which produces and retails organic vegetables and other food produce.

The Jun-Jul 2026 Hambledonian has a feature on Speltham Hill. The article is available to read HERE.

Speltham Hill

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