TREASURE DESCRIPTION: Kelmscott House is a Georgian mansion at 26
Upper Mall in Hammersmith, overlooking the River Thames. It was the London home of English textile designer, artist, writer and socialist William Morris from April 1878 until his death in 1896. Originally called ‘The Retreat’, Morris renamed it after the Oxfordshire village Kelmscott, where he lived at Kelmscott Manor from June 1871.It contains original watercolours, textiles, wallpapers and books made by his Kelmscott Press. Grade Listing Number: 119340 William Morris, founder of the Arts & Craft Movement, lived in this house for the last 18 years of his life (1878-1896). Nearby, Morris began his “adventure” in printing with his private press, the Kelmscott Press, which he started at 16 Upper Mall in 1891.
Today the building is private though the basement and coach house entrance serve as headquarters of the William Morris Society. The Society has a collection of Morris & Co wallpapers, watercolour designs and a selection of textiles, ranging from a Hammersmith rug and woven hangings to printed cottons, silks and embroideries. The coach house is where Morris started his ‘Hammersmith’ carpets before moving to Merton Abbey Mills. The carpets made at Merton Abbey were hand-knotted or tufted and continued to be known as ‘Hammersmith Rugs’ from their place of origin. This was to distinguish them from the machine-made carpets made by outside contractors.
These treasures were made as part of The Building Exploratory, Wandle Treasures project. This project was part of the wider Living Wandle Landscape Partnership Scheme, funded by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund.
