Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich
Grade II listed building in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, UK

The Wilbraham's Almshouses, also known as the Wilbraham Almshouses, are six former almshouses in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, located on the north side of Welsh Row at numbers 112–116 (at SJ6444252448). Founded by Sir Roger Wilbraham in 1613, they were the town's earliest almshouses. They remained in use as almshouses until 1870, when they were replaced by the adjacent Tollemache Almshouses. The timber-framed building, which is listed at grade II, was subsequently used as a malthouse and as cottages, and was later considerably altered to form a single house. The Hospital of St Lawrence, a medieval house for lepers, might have been situated nearby.
Nikolaus Pevsner considers Welsh Row "the best street of Nantwich". The street has many listed buildings and is known for its mixture of architectural styles, including other black-and-white cottages such as the Widows' Almshouses founded by Sir Roger's descendant, Georgian town houses such as Townwell House and number 83, and Victorian buildings such as the former Grammar School, Primitive Methodist Chapel and Savings Bank.
History
Sir Roger Wilbraham (1553–1616) was a prominent lawyer who served as Solicitor-General for Ireland under Elizabeth I and held several positions at court under James I. Born in Nantwich, he purchased the Dorfold estate in the adjacent parish of Acton in 1602.
In 1613, Sir Roger founded almshouses for six poor men at what was then the end of Welsh Row; they were the town's earliest almshouses. The Hospital of St Lawrence, a medieval house for lepers, is believed to have been situated near the almshouse site.
“Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich” enters the record as grade II listed building in Nantwich, Cheshire, England, UK. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Wilbraham's, Almshouses and Nantwich can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Wilbraham's, Almshouses and Nantwich provides the most credible route into that argument.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Nov 11, 2023. The linked authority identifier is Q8000129. Authority coordinates are 53.068, -2.532. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1613, 1870, 1553 and 1616.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich primary sources, Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich archive and Wilbraham's research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Wilbraham's Almshouses, Nantwich” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.