The Wilderness (formerly known as The Beeches)

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The Wilderness (formerly known as The Beeches) - The Butts

This attractive Victorian house, originally known as ‘The Beeches’, was built by Thomas Reeves (1837-1904) in the mid-19th Century. He and his wife, Caroline, had six children. Two of them, Oswald (1872-1923) and Nelson (1878-1918), followed him in to the family Ironworks business.

Oswald inherited ‘The Beeches’ when his father died in 1904 and Nelson built 'Lyndhurst' (now named 'Tynings House') around the same time.

The map below shows how close the house was to the Ironworks, with a clear path from the garden leading down to the site of Reeves Top (or Upper) Yard on the Westbury Road.

Although the house still has a large garden, much of its original land was parcelled off for new houses in the mid-20th Century. Its name was changed to ‘The Wilderness’, around the same time, and a new cast-iron house plaque (made at the Ironworks), was affixed to the handsome gate posts at the entrance on The Butts.

The site of Top Yard was sold to Doug Reed in 1957 who set up ‘Castle Garage’ in the sheds. In 1996 he sold it to a developer who built three new houses, which were named ‘The Beeches’ after several specimens of copper beech from the original garden.

Further up The Butts, at ‘Maple Tree House’, you can spot the tops of the gate posts which were salvaged from the entrance to the Ironworks when it was demolished in 1973.

Tynings House

Reeves Ironworks

Castle Garage

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The Bratton History Association aims to provide all those curious about local history with an opportunity to meet, exchange ideas, and discover more about the history of Bratton and Wiltshire. Activities include monthly meetings, talks by professional historians, visits to places of interest to historians, and our own local history project.

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