Simon James French

A photo walk through Richmond, along the Thames and to Ham House

Ham House is a huge stately home south-west of London. I took a camera and we walked the peaceful journey from Richmond to this beautiful and atmospheric stately home.

The house was originally completed in 1610 but it wasn’t until 1672 that it became as significant as it is now. The new owners who took over — the Duchess of Lauderdale and her husband, the Duke — transformed Ham into one of the grandest Stuart houses in all of England. During their time there they nearly doubled the size of this place and filled it with gorgeous paintings, tapestries, and furniture. But what I fell in love most with was the creepy atmosphere inside. A feeling that hits you immediately upon entering, especially on a grey Autumn day like today. There’s a lot of stories of ghosts within these walls! From the linked article:

According to the National Trust, who now own and look after Ham House, "cold spots, the sound of footsteps, inexplicable scents of roses and glimpses of mysterious characters" are typical surprises in England's most complete and original 17th-century manor house. Overnight ghost watchers, the Trust reports, think at least 15 different ghosts float around the place — even the ghost of a dog.

Creepy! Can you find anything standing behind me in the mirror photo below?

Here are a few photos I took from the journey:

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Thank you for being here and please do share this letter with anyone you think might enjoy it. If you'd like to support my writing please consider purchasing some of my music over on Bandcamp.

SJF 🍃


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