Following a fire in the 1870s the house was restored and enlarged by Henry Woodyer for William John Evelyn in 1877.

[3] Its architectural features include distinctive terracotta decorations on brickwork, octagonal turrets and stacks, winged gryphons on the porch, and plaster wall panels by Kent painted in Chinese style by Belgian Jean Derraux.

[3] John Evelyn (1620–1706) and his elder brother George created the first Italian garden in England.

John Evelyn, the diarist, landscape designer and collector, was born in a room still in existence there.

[11] In 2003, having been fully refurbished following a period of relative neglect, Wotton House was re-opened as a hotel, wedding venue, training and conference centre.