The house was built by Alexander Gordon before 1850 and probably dates from the 1820s or 1830s. The south facing front had a Georgian type porch with pillars as late as the 1950s. Originally named Straits Hall, it was set in its own grounds and approached from The Straits past a lodge then along a gravel drive.
Gordon came to the Black Country from Belhelvie, a small village a few miles north of Aberdeen. His wealth accrued from trading wines and spirits in Queen Street Dudley. As a Reformer he was an active public figure, [a man of the same name was Mayor of Dudley 1811/12 as well as being listed as a member of Dudley Book Society]. He was converted to Methodism, became a Wesleyan preacher and prime mover in the group that built the first Zoar Chapel [1836] in Lower Gornal.
He married Marie Loxton in 1802. Their son, John, was the minister of the Old Meeting House in Coseley from 1837 to 1840. Their grandson, Alexander, eventually became Principal of the Unitarian College at Manchester. Marie died in 1833 aged fifty two and Alexander in 1848 aged seventy seven.
A succession of owners and tenants followed including Sir Alfred Hickman the Bilston ironworks magnate, Solomon and Eliza Crew with their four children, Edward Wones a coal master and the Bent family.
Mr E. J. Bent was named as the tenant on the sale of the property at a public auction in The Station Hotel, Dudley.
The Himley Estates Second Sale of land & properties was held on Wednesday 9th July 1947. Lot 18 included The Straits House, Lodge, pair of cottages, outbuildings & land - a total area of 27.6 acres. The sale catalogue gave full details and there was a photograph. The lodge was described as ‘brick and slated’, the house as having ‘brick/painted plaster front and side elevations’. The description also mentioned the fine oak staircase, two fitted wine cellars, barn & a two stall stables, plus garages for 5 cars!
In 1960 it opened as a public house and became the focal point of the new Conqueror's Farm estate and a favourite 'local' for over four decades.
The photographs were taken in February 2005 when the building's future was threatened with rumours of demolition or conversion into flats. The Straits House is important since only a handful of the Manor's 'big houses' remain - a potent reminder of the wealth accumulated by a few in the days when poverty was the norm.
