Redlands, Station Road, Lonstanton

History of Redlands

1901

Edwin Sidney Thoday

The house was built for E S Thoday, a seed merchant.

1911

William Stanley Spark

The property was sold in 1910 to W S Spark a stockbroker. In 1913 Spark shot himself while travelling on the Kings Cross to Cambridge train.

Circa 1929:

The property was sold to Abram Samoilovitch Besicoivitch, Fellow of Trinity College, originally from Ukraine. Died 1970.

After WWII:

Purchased by F L Dawson, a banker.

1956

A fire destroyed much of the interior and the roof. Two more fires followed, the worst in 1996.

1923

The site was sold by Cheffins who commented:

Now with only the remains of what was once one of the grandest properties in the local area still standing, the brick-built property sits in 1.12 acres of overgrown gardens with a number of outbuildings and is in need of fully clearing. The outer walls of red brick with stone flashings which remain, hint to the grandeur of the property when it was first built, scaling to an enormous height and with a number of large chimneys and the vast reception spaces which are still visible. … The property is accessed via a private bridge over a dyke, with the main access having been temporarily blocked. Redlands was removed from the rating list in 1996, following the extensive fire damage, and mains electricity, gas and water connections have been capped off.