English: The Hermitage -Hanwell W7

This cottage orné was built by the rector George Henry Glasse in 1809 on the site of a previous house called the Elms. Later it became the head quarters for the Selborne Society. Nikolaus Pevsner describes it thus: “a peach of an early c19 Gothic thatched cottage with two pointed windows, a quatrefoil, and an ogee arched door, all on a minute scale. Inside, an octagonal hall and reception room” (Pevsner, London 3: North West). It is a Grade II Listed Building

Behind the cottage lies a spring, which may be the origin behind the 'well' being incorporated into the local place name of Hanwell.