After my scan at the hospital today, my hubby took me to visit Oldway Mansion, which I had surprisingly never visited before, despite living in the area for eight years!
Oldway Mansion in Paignton was built by the sewing machine millionaire Isaac Singer in the 19th century and rebuilt by his son Paris Singer in the style of the Palace of Versailles. The gardens are extensive and are open to the public. The house is in a very poor state of repair at present, and you can’t go in, but there are hopes of its restoration. A few years ago it was being used as a wedding venue and judging by the online images of the interior, it is extremely grand inside. The gardens are being restored by teams of volunteers and it is a beautiful place to visit.
My hubby, the history buff of the family, tells me that Isaac Singer fled from America as he had three wives all at once and was being charged with bigamy – I said to him surely that should be trigamy? He was obviously someone who couldn’t say no! Perhaps his wives all loved sewing and found his sewing machines irresistable. At any rate, he has left a legacy for us all to enjoy, and I do hope the local council will do something to save the magnificent house.
My hubby also gave me another snippet of information. Three of his sons were called Washington, Paris and London. The famous American dancer Isadora Duncan was the mistress of Paris Singer, and she died tragically and dramatically when her long scarf became entangled with the wheel of the car in which she was travelling. The Singer sons were brought up at Oldway.
This extraordinary circular building was used for equestrian events.
I love the detailing in the masonry.
A nice little pad by the seaside, isn’t it. The Singers’ country cottage.
Here is my hubby standing beside one of the many peculiar sphynx-like sculptures in the gardens.
A lady approached us and kindly offered to take a photo of us both.
This mysterious little building with its beautiful spire was hidden amongst the trees.
Another of the sphinxes. We both thought this one was somewhat disturbing.
The formal garden has been restored.
My dad used to come here regularly and play croquet on this lawn. While he was doing so, my mum used to enjoy the wedding parties coming and going – there was quite a production line on summer Saturdays.
A most enjoyable hour or so spent on an unexpected outing.
Very enjoyable – my o/h knew about the long scarf incident (I didn’t) but the remaining history was new to both of us. Thanks for this – looks lovely.
Hugs, Neet xx (back to woyww)
Lovely Shoshi – we held several Holocaust Memorial events at Oldway several years ago. I believe the Redcliffe Hotel in Paignton was built by Singer for one of his daughters, as was the Park Hotel (which has now been razed tot he ground and a new hotel is being built in its place). Lovely to see you photos, thank you for sharing, X