Spade House was the home of the science fiction writer H. G. Wells

H. G. Wells

Herbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...

 from 1901 to 1909. It is a large mansion overlooking Sandgate

Sandgate, Kent

Sandgate is a village in the Folkestone and Hythe Urban Area in the Shepway district of Kent, England. In 2004, the village re-acquired civil parish status....

, near Folkestone

Folkestone

Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...

 in southeast England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

.

History

It was designed by C.F.A. Voysey. Voysey had a signature heart shape on the door of every home, but Wells did not want a heart shape, so a heart shape was replaced by a spade shape. Wells and his wife's two sons were born here. While living at Spade House he wrote books such as Kipps

Kipps

Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul is a novel by H. G. Wells, first published in 1905. Humorous yet sympathetic, this perceptive social novel is generally regarded as a masterpiece, and was the author's own favourite work.-Plot:...

, Tono-Bungay

Tono-Bungay

Tono-Bungay , by H. G. Wells, is a realist semi-autobiographical novel. It is narrated by George Ponderevo, a science student who is drafted in to help with the promotion of Tono-Bungay, a harmful stimulant disguised as a miraculous cure-all, the creation of his ambitious uncle Edward...

 and Ann Veronica

Ann Veronica

Ann Veronica is a novel by H.G. Wells first published in 1909. The book deals with contemporary political issues, concentrating specifically on feminist issues...

.

The house was Grade 2* listed on 11 March 1975 as part of a group of houses (including Endcliffe House, St Paul's Vicarage, Sea Lady House, East Cliff House and Vicarage Cottage, all on Radnor Cliff Crescent). and is now occupied by the "Wells House" nursing home. Although the address is given as 8 Vicarage Road, the entrance is on Radnor Cliff Crescent.
At the entrance is an ornate nameplate and a blue plaque from the Sandgate Society, commemorating the link to Wells.

External links

• Spade House on the Sandgate website
• Complete H. G. Wells texts at Gutenberg
• Boerst, William J, World Writers; Time Machine, The Story of H.G. Wells, 2000