Nightingales

This elegant house was originally built for a prosperous farmer in the late 17^th Century.

Nightingales stands on Tintells Lane and is one of the oldest houses at the edge of what was once Tintello Green, an area of West Horsley historically used for weaving.

The original part of the house fronting Tintells Lane dates from the 17^th century and was built by John Hillier, a wheelwright, who was married to Susan Stynt in 1657.  Her family also owned Wheelers Farm and were one of the more prosperous families in West Horsley at that time. Wheelers Farm was inherited by John Hillier on his father-in-law’s death and this enabled him to add an elegant frontage to Nightingales.

It is not known why the house is called ‘Nightingales’. In her book ‘The Old Houses in West Horsley’, local historian Pam Bowley speculates that it may refer to a family named ‘Nightingale’ who were also landowners at the time and indeed there are two roads within the two Horsley villages called by this name. Despite being a well-preserved 17^th Century house of some grandeur, Nightingales is not a listed building, although it is identified in the West Horsley Neighbourhood Plan as a heritage building of local significance.

LOCATION: In the middle section of Tintells Lane on its northern side.