Description
St Joseph's Foreign Missionary Society was founded in 1866 by Cardinal Herbert Vaughan, who built St Joseph's College here in 1869-71. It was officially opened on the feast of St Joseph in 1873, a statue of the saint erected to mark completion of the building. In the grounds was a circular burial ground on an elevated terrace, approached by a long walk and surrounded by tall pines. The College moved to Maidenhead in 2006 and the buildings and surrounding gardens were sold to the Matterhorn group with the expressed intention of converting it into a care home for the elderly.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | St Joseph's Roman Catholic College |
|---|---|
| Site location | Lawrence Street, Mill Hill |
| Postcode | NW7 4JX |
| What3Words | ///ships.until.hands |
| Type of Site | Institutional Grounds |
| Borough | Barnet |
| Open to Public | No |
| Opening Times | private |
| Public Transport | Rail: Mill Hill Broadway then bus. Bus: 251. |
| Research Updated | 1 May 2007 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The St Joseph's Foreign Missionary Society (later popularly known as the Mill Hill Missionaries) was founded in 1866 by Cardinal Herbert Vaughan (1832-1903), who had initially bought Holcombe House at Mill Hill for himself and one student. He successfully approached the Cardinal of Westminster with his plan to found a missionary college, the first Catholic missionary training college to be founded in England. By 1869 Holcombe House was too small and Vaughan progressed plans for the new St Joseph's College to be built. The foundation stone was laid on 29 June 1869; the college buildings were designed by Messrs. Goldie and Child and were substantially completed by 1871 when the first occupants moved in. The foundation stone of the church was laid in 1871 and the college was officially opened on the feast of St Joseph in 1873, a statue of the saint erected to mark the completion of the building. In the grounds was a circular burial ground on an elevated terrace, approached by a long walk and surrounded by tall pines, with a devotional statue. When Cardinal Vaughan died in 1903 he was buried here. Holcombe House (open part of August and September) was passed to a congregation of Franciscan nuns in 1881 and was renamed St Mary's Abbey.
In November 1941 St Joseph's College was evacuated to Lochwinnoch in Scotland and part of the buildings at Mill Hill were requisitioned by the War Office for the use of the civil service. Although discussions began in the late 1990s regarding the future of the College at Mill Hill, St Joseph's continued here until 2006 when it moved to Maidenhead. In November the college buildings and surrounding gardens were sold to the Matterhorn group of development companies with the expressed intention of converting it into a care home for the elderly. The fields surrounding the college were kept by St Joseph's who continue to maintain them as well as the cemetery.
In November 1941 St Joseph's College was evacuated to Lochwinnoch in Scotland and part of the buildings at Mill Hill were requisitioned by the War Office for the use of the civil service. Although discussions began in the late 1990s regarding the future of the College at Mill Hill, St Joseph's continued here until 2006 when it moved to Maidenhead. In November the college buildings and surrounding gardens were sold to the Matterhorn group of development companies with the expressed intention of converting it into a care home for the elderly. The fields surrounding the college were kept by St Joseph's who continue to maintain them as well as the cemetery.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ218927 |
|---|---|
| Site Ownership | Matterhorn Capital |
| Site Management | Matterhorn Capital |
| Dates | 1869-71 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: St Joseph's Roman Catholic College |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | Barnet |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Mill Hill |
| Tree Preservation Order | Not known |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | Yes |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | No |
| Other LA Designation | Article 4 Direction |
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
The Mill Field may be the site of the windmill that gave the area its name, documented in 1321 within a survey of the Manor of Hendon. In 1353 Stephen Nicholls is recorded as the Miller and owner of a farm on 'Le Ridgeway' and on the edge of the park is an C18th listed building, The Old Mill House. However, by the mid C18th the windmill was disused and it had disappeared by 1754. The mill field is now a public park on sloping ground with fine views to the west from the top, where seats are provided. Some fine mature trees and hedgerows remain of the older landscape including oak.
Belmont Mill Hill Preparatory School is on the site of Belmont House, built in 1772. When the estate was sold in 1911 it comprised over 14 ha. of land, including c.4.05 ha. of pleasure grounds. Belmont School opened here in 1912 and its grounds contain remnants of the earlier planting and an early C19th gothic folly, although changes have been made over the years to accommodate new buildings including the chapel of 1925, sports and other educational facilities. Today the school grounds comprise the original house, school buildings, quadrangle, sunken garden, Master's Lawn, open areas and extensive playing fields, as well as wooded areas, a pond used by a local angling club, a smaller pond and wild life area. There are numerous fine mature trees and also a number of younger trees with plaques commemorating particular pupils or events. The grounds around the main buildings are particularly well planted.
St Michaels and All Angels was built when the Mill Hill Broadway area was being developed around the new station. The east part was completed by 1922 and extended in 1932 and 1938 with the west end and Lady Chapel by Alban Caroe not completed until 1956. The church hall to the north, Hartley Hall, was built in 1910. It has pleasant gardens in front of the church, also an area of lawn to the side.
