Barham House
Napoleon’s Death Mask, made in 1821 by Barham House resident, Francis Burton M.D., the uncle of explorer Richard Francis Burton
Credit: User unknown/public domain
Barham (Boreham) House was once one of the most prominent properties in Elstree.

There had been a house on the site since circa 1600 which had changed occupants many times and was renamed over the years.

Francis Burton M.D. (died 1828), uncle of Richard Francis Burton, military surgeon who made Napoleon’s Death Mask, lived at Barham House, and is buried in Elstree parish church.

The final owner, the famous publisher Andrew Chatto, was there by 1897. His son sold the property to a local estate agency which demolished it.

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