Earlier Houses: Beginning in the 14th century, the Lee family, originally named de la Lee and probably of Norman origin, were seated at an earlier house on the site. By the 17th century the Lees owned a sizeable piece of Shropshire (approximately 5,000 acres in the parish of Alveley).

Built / Designed For: Harry Lancelot Lee

House & Family History: The current, somber, gray ashlar classical style house was built soon after 1800 for Harry Lancelot Lee. Coton passed out of the Lee family when Harry Lancelot Lee died in 1821, and the house was sold. Coton is particularly notable today as the ancestral home of the Lee family, who were wealthy merchants, politicians, and landowners in Virginia. Richard Lee I, who immigrated to Virginia from Shropshire in 1639, founded the American Lee dynasty and became one of the largest landowners in 17th century Virginia. In the early 18th century his grandson, Colonel Thomas Lee, built Stratford Hall on the Potomac River in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Considered one of the most important historic houses in America, Stratford Hall was where Col. Lee's sons, Richard Henry Lee and Francis Lightfoot Lee, the only brothers to sign the Declaration of Independence, were born. It was Francis Lightfoot's son, Light Horse Harry Lee (Henry Lee III), a famous soldier of the American War of Independence, who was the father of General Robert E. Lee, the commander of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The Thompson family, who owned Coton Hall in the 20th century, sold it in 1985. In 2003 the house and 6.5 acres went on the market with a guide price of £1.25 million; in 2018 the house sold for £1.625 million.

Chapel & Church: The grounds contain the ruins of a chapel that probably dates from the 13th century (with later alterations). In 1878 the chapel roof collapsed and all the Lee monuments were moved to Alveley church.

House Listed: Grade II

Park Listed: Not Listed

Past Seat / Home of: SEATED AT EARLIER HOUSE: Lee family, originally named de la Lee, 14th-18th century. SEATED AT CURRENT HOUSE: Harry Lancelot Lee, 1800-21; Lee family here from the 14th century until 1821. Gatacre family, 19th century. Capt. H.D. Wakeman-Coleville, mid-20th century. Howard-Thompson family, late 20th century.

Current Ownership Type: Individual / Family Trust

Primary Current Ownership Use: Private Home

House Open to Public: No

Historic Houses Member: No