The Steed family can trace their heritage literally back many centuries to early England and found within every generation are builders of properties and perhaps, even one medieval castle-fort. But what stands out as a testament to this unique truth is a large country mansion and estate named Steed Manor (pictured).
The Enduring Legacy of Sir William Steed and Cecilia
Sir William Steed, Knight, and his wife Cecilia, the 13th Great Grandparents of Will, completed Steed Manor in 1587. They now rest in the crypt beneath St. John The Baptist Chapel, also known as Steed Chapel, in the village of Harrietsham in Kent County, England, southeast of London, near the estate. The Steed family likely built this chapel, which predates the mansion. The church, still active today, uses the silver plate and chalice that Sir William and Cecilia donated for communion.
Steed Manor forms a part of the Steed Hill and Steed Court estate. Although the property departed from the family’s ownership in 1726, it retains the name in honor of the Steed/Steede/Stede family, whose presence in Kent dates back to the reign of King Canute in the late 900s. Over the centuries, the family name has appeared in various spellings, and all three versions remain in use today.
A Legacy of Architectural Elegance and Family Heritage
Steed Manor is a Georgian home with Victorian accents and has walls that are two and three feet thick in some parts of the house. It has eight bedrooms and even an indoor swimming pool. The house was renovated in the 1930’s by a man named Robert H. Goodsall who chronicled the renovation in his book entitled “Stede Hill- The Annals of a Kentish Home”. In the same book, he also gives a lengthy detail of the Steed Family property and even includes the family tree from the brother’s 14th Great Grandfather down to the 9th, Edwyn Steed, who, along with his son John, immigrated to America and settled in Brunswick County, Virginia where they built a plantation.
Today, Steed Manor still stands proudly overlooking the English countryside as a true testament of the Steed Family heritage of “building for the generations”. Each custom home project by the Steed family proudly incorporates a piece of their heritage.