The Kilns: Where C. S. Lewis Lived and Wrote

Below are a few pictures from the scores I took during our 2019 visit to the “The Kilns,” the adult home of scholar and author C. S. Lewis, located on the outskirts of Headington Quarry, Oxford, England. The place is named for a brick-making operation that had two large kilns on site. The house today is a study center, so reservations for tour times are required. Our guide was a doctoral student from the United States, and we had about 20 minutes before the tour began to talk about the research he was doing for his dissertation. The best tour guides are those who share the stories we don’t read about in books, and our guide had plenty of those woven into his presentation. In the end, it was great to finally see where so many of Lewis’ treasured thoughts were put to paper.

Departing for “The Kilns” on a double-decker bus like this, which are common in Oxford (and throughout England).
Walking the lane to get to the Lewis home.
Coming around the corner to the front of the house.
A left front view of the Kilns.
Plaque posted at the main entrance.
Desk in the downstairs study.
A bookcase in the downstairs study.
The upstairs study, where Lewis did much of his reading and writing.
The writing desk in the upstairs study. All evidence suggests that the Narnia tales were written here.
Lewis at his writing desk in the upstairs study.

“Jack” as Lewis was better known, slept in the upstairs bedroom, the smallest and most inconvenient room to access. When his college roommate Paddy Moore was killed in World War I, Jack befriended Paddy’s mother, Mrs. Janie King Moore, and her adolescent daughter Maureen. In 1920, after completing his first degree, Lewis decided to share lodgings with them (in fulfillment of a vow he had made to Paddy during the war) so he could more carefully look after their needs.

Lewis gave Mrs. Moore the larger bedroom, which he had to pass through to get to his own. That would have been inappropriate, so Leiws had an external staircase built off his room so he could access it another way. If he needed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, he would use this staircase, putting himself out for the sake of his friend’s mother, who could be quite demanding. Lewis patiently lived what he wrote in The Four Loves.

Lewis’ modest bedroom. The small size of the room made it hard to get an unobstructed shot.
The ladder stairs built so Lewis could access he bedroom without having to go through Mrs. Moore’s bedroom.
The kitchen table, where Jack and his wife, Joy Davidman, often played Scrabble. They allowed themselves to play words in any language, including Elvish languages, as long as the word could be found in any book in the house.
The typewriter of Warnie Lewis, Jack’s brother, who also lived at the Kilns. (Jack wrote all his manuscripts by hand.)
The downstairs library and gathering room.
Around the side of the house.
Gathering area in the front yard.
Bidding farewell to the Kilns, and the other people we met on the tour.

The simplicity of the Kilns was quite a contrast to the ornate houses, palaces, and castles we visited during our time in England. It just goes to show that we don’t need to be wealthy or live in luxury to have a great impact. We just need to have an openness to the beauty, truth, and goodness of God as revealed in Christ—a willingness to be enchanted by wonder.

One thought on “The Kilns: Where C. S. Lewis Lived and Wrote

  1. bjboydell

    Thanks much for sharing these pictures and comments. Joan and I are big Lewis fans. Joan, my daughter and son-in-law are all Wheaton grads, where Lewis is a huge presence. We visited the brew house where he did his debates and discussions with friends when we visited Oxford years ago during a business trip and vacation. Have a Happening New Year. I understand you are not teaching the next round of ICL courses, but am so glad I took last seasons courses. My wife and I are slowly reading a book by John Dodson – “Unbelievable Gospel” which was on the reading list of the Evangelism and Discipleship course.

    Fondly, Bruce

    Bruce J. Boydell Lifespan Coaching & Consulting, L.L.C. http://www.lifespan.center bjboydell@icloud.com 610-368-7112

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