Abney Hall was built in 1847 for a local alderman. In 1851 it was purchased by James Watts, later Mayor of Manchester, who commissioned A. W. N. Pugin to redesign the interiors with his team of craftsman from the Great Exhibition. A selection of furniture remains in the collections of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, with some items still in situ in the Hall. There are two notable paintings which remain in the Hall, these being 'Cromwell Dictating to Milton' by Frederick Newenham and the 'Birth of Cain' by Vauchelet.