Grade I listed buildings in South Somerset Somerset are manor houses, built over long periods by local Lords of the Manor. In 1907, the Tudor Barrington Court became the first country house acquired by the National Trust, on the recommendation of the antiquarian Canon Hardwicke Rawnsley. Newton Surmaville was built between 1608 and 1612 for Robert Harbin, a Yeovil merchant, on the site of an earlier building, but was extensively altered and enhanced in the 1870s. Lytes Cary and its associated chapel and gardens have parts dating to as early as the 14th century. The architectural historian Nikolaus Pevsner praised it, saying "Yet all parts blend to
Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill for previous owner William A. Stokes, a wealthy lawyer and a major in the Civil War, this grand home had once contained the first private library Andrew Carnegie had ever seen, inspiring the public libraries he established in later years. There, they also established a school for boys and in 1883, St. Joseph's Academy for Girls. Within the next year, Saint Joseph Academy was opened. After creating the Saint Joseph Academy for Girls (which operated until 1947), the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill founded what came to be known as the Seton Hill Schools (which included the Seton Hill