The earliest properties on the Eaton Estate date back to the early 17th century, one of the more interesting examples being the thatched cottage in Aldford which is pictured here. It features an oak frame and a means of construction called brick nogging where brick infilling was used to replace the original mud, lime, dung and so on.

Properties such as these would have been lived in by estate workers for many years but, keen to raise living standards on his estate, the 1st Duke commissioned Chester architect John Douglas to start rebuilding the estate around 1870.

Another interesting example of an early Eaton property is the Manor House in Eccleston which dates back to 1632 although the village itself was not purchased by the Grosvenors until 1758.