and originally came out onto the nearest road at the time - the Bath Road or Colnbrook High Street (now Mill street), next to the George Inn. The drive runs past St Thomas's Church and the Vicarage (built on land purchased from Mr Sullivan in 1847) and past two schools. Opposite was Tan House Farm. There is still one of the old gate lodges there named The Lodge. This is much older and in a totally different style of architecture from the three later lodges. The coming of the Colnbrook by-pass in 1929 meant that new gates and another gate lodge were erected north of the by-pass. When the first Richings Mansion was built, the south drive to Colnbrook was the main drive for access, with the others being 'service roads' to connect the house with its laundry and Home farm. North Park as such did not exist at this time although there was a long established old route to Sutton, Parlaunt, Langley and Colnbrook.

The site of the old St. Leonard's Chapel was in the Park and according

to Lady Hertford, in letters written between 1739 and 1748, it used to be "where the greenhouse now stands". It is thought that the conservatory for the new house was built on the same site in 1786. The site of such a chapel was marked on an OS map and was about 44 yards almost due north of the western end of the ha-ha, but all that remains there now is a low mound.

Chapels to St Leonard were usually daughter hermitages to a mother-house in the not too distant neighbourhood but that for this chapel is not known. It may have possibly been Ankerwycke Priory, the remains of which are near the Thames in Wraysbury. Interestingly, Leonard seems to have been a popular Christian name in the Parish in the 17th century.

The boundaries of the estate were marked with stones. Older residents recall these located at Little Sutton, Colnbrook and Iver (Shredding Green Farm).

The Meekings bought Richings Lodge in 1855. Mr Meekings owned Wallace's, a department store near Gamages in High Holborn. Such a country seat was seen as an asset in providing the food for the shop girls that lived in. Richings Lodge was enlarged by the Meekings who added a set of 2 storey bays on the east end.

The Sykes brothers moved out in 1930 and Richings Lodge was left empty with a caretaker, Tom Goddard, employed by the receiver until it was commandeered as an RAF Bomber Command headquarters during the second world war and named North Side. In around 1941/2 it sustained heavy damage from a land mine dropped by a passing German aircraft and it became unsafe. Although the mine fell and exploded in the ha-ha which absorbed much of the blast, the house was badly shaken and it was eventually pulled down. By this time the Command HQ had largely transferred to High Wycombe. All that now remains are the old foundations