Spring Hall

Article summary

Spring Hall, also known as Spring Hall Mansions, is a mansion situated off the Huddersfield Road, Halifax, West Yorkshire. A house had been built on the site by 1614, but it was demolished in 1870 leaving only the cellars. It was rebuilt in Gothic Revival style and completed in 1871 to a larger ground plan by architects James Mallinson and William Swinden Barber for Tom Holdsworth. In World War I, the house served as a hospital. It remained in the family's ownership until the death of Holdsworth's nephew in 1920. Subsequently, it became a boarding house, and passed through several hands until it was presented to Halifax Corporation in 1948. After most of the grounds had been sold off, the remainder was used for sports and recreation, the building was later used as a ballet studio. The building fell into disrepair but was renovated in 2009. As of 2014, Calderdale Register Office has officiated at wedding ceremonies in the Hall's ground floor suite since 2011, and the upper floors are now rented out as office space. Although many of Barber's buildings are now listed, Spring Hall remains unlisted, although it retains its 17th-century cellars and many original 1871 features including the painted and galleried Arts and Crafts grand staircase.

Key claims

1. date of birth: 1826-02-12 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
2. date of death: 1881-05-01 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of birth is "1826-02-12". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. The record states that the date of death is "1881-05-01". What evidence would count against this claim?
4. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
5. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

No sources recorded.