Yesterday we visited Shugborough Hall near Stafford to see what changes had been made over the winter. Although Shugborough Mansion House, Gardens and estate was mostly in the hands of the National Trust, the Park Farm. County Museum and Car park were administered by the Staffordshire County Council. Last year the National Trust took over the whole estate and quite a few changes have already been made. The trust are only five months into their ten year conservation and redevelopment plan so there are many more changes to come.
The car park seems more easily accessible and it is now free, I think it used to cost about £3 to park there, even for NT members. The original reception is now a plant centre and access to the property is through the Park Farm, Mill and Farmhouse which are now free to wander around for NT members, as are the servants' quarters which always had an entry charge as they were accessed through the Museum. There are new pathways around the Park Farm and access is now on the opposite side of the mill pond. There are new little buggies to take you up to the Mansion House where the house, gardens, walks and island arboretum are exactly as they were. In the courtyard the original tea room is closed for refurbishment and it re-opens on 8th April as a restaurant where food is delivered to the table rather than collected from the counter. The nearby shop has been refurbished.
One of the volunteers was talking in the shop and explained that the County Museum would have new a new home and that they had three years to organised the move. I have read elsewhere that the museum's collections will eventually become part of a new Staffordshire History Centre which will be based on the site of Staffordshire Record Office which is in Stafford. The volunteer also mentioned the fact that there had been quite a bit more repair and conservation work to be done than had originally been thought necessary.
We didn't go inside the Mansion House this time but wandered around the gardens and went into the Mill and Farmhouse at the Park Farm and around the Servants' Quarters.
Below are a few more random photos taken of things which caught my eye.
The mill pond through the mill window.
Inside the mill.
The Farmhouse
I loved this cheese dish which I spotted in the farmhouse, you could get a huge piece of cheese in there.
The main hallway in the farmhouse
The dining room in the farmhouse
One of the place settings in the servants' dining room in the servants' quarters.
In the laundry
Just one of the many kitchen sinks
A lovely jelly mould on the kitchen table
I must admit I always enjoy mooching around kitchens and other areas which were the hub of the working estate than the grand mansions themselves. Of course I haven't even mentioned the Anson family or Patrick Lichfield whose home this was as I've covered this before in previous posts but here is a - link - to the website to find out more.
I always enjoy the back part of estates too, much easier to identify with.
ReplyDeleteThey seem more homely and manageable don't they?:)
DeleteSuch an interesting post Rosie with great photos. I too like the jelly mould!!! We are keen to visit Shugborough too having read about the NT taking over the whole area so it was fascinating to see part of the estate on your blog. I once went years ago on a trip with my daughter's school which involved a canal boat ride and then a walk round the estate but we didn't see much of the buildings at all.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the tip as to the best place to see water voles at Cromford - I have made a note :)
Yes, the canal comes right up to the estate at Great Haywood and you can walk over the Essex Bridge to the Mansion House and Gardens. It's a wonderful part of the county. The island arboretum created by Lord Lichfield is lovely and it's great that the farmhouse and servants' quarters are free to members. Hope you get to see the voles one day, we only saw one but it was wonderful to watch it for awhile:)
DeleteSounds like it's going to be a fabulous place to visit. One for my list. Love the laundry photo. Must have been very difficult keeping all their white clothes sparkling. Am I right in thinking they used urine to bleach them? B x
ReplyDeleteIt is going to be interesting to see what they do over the next few years. Yes, I had read that urine was used for bleaching in the 19th century, I must look it up to find out more. I have some more photos of the laundry for another post:)
DeleteExciting times. It's in a brilliant place for rests on long car journeys. I was surprised how vast it was. Great to hear of the new plans although I'm glad I don't have to pack up the museum ready for the move. The rooms look like someone has just popped out. 😊
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking that the old house the records office is sited in at Stafford won't be big enough for everything that was on display at Shugbrough, I wonder if they will build extensions or show less of the collection? We'll have to wait and see:)
DeleteWhat a great day out! I've only ever been to Shugborough once and it was just on a school trip (when I was at school, aged 11 or something like) so we just had a bit of a Victorian school experience and I didn't see much of the place then. It's been on my visit list for a long time but is one of those places I never get around to seeing! I always prefer the working areas to the grander rooms too.
ReplyDeleteIt's not too far from Wolesley if you ever go there, we sometimes go from one to the other, and it has changed quite a lot since I last visited. I love the simpler rooms and houses:)
DeleteIt sounds as though it is going to be much easier to visit and in a more seamless way too which will be better for visitors I imagine. Hope you get to go back and see how it progresses through the restoration etc.
ReplyDeleteIt did seem a lot more accessible the way it had been organised and will I hope get even better as they go along. It will be interesting to see what happens next:)
DeleteIt will be really interesting to see how the NT tackle the next few years. In the past they would have used the 'closed season' to sort everything out. It's much more interesting for members to see everything developing in the public eye. We live close to Croome Park, which has gone through massive changes over a similar time scale. Jx
ReplyDeleteI think it is interesting to see how they are altering things as they go along. I love Croome Park, we visited a couple of years ago when the scaffolding was still on the hall, the grounds are wonderful and the little air museum too:)
DeleteI really enjoyed our visit to Shugborough and it has been featured on ABAB, but it's impossible to do it justice in a single article, or even see everything in a single day. Loved your shots - we didn't get to the farmhouse. It will be interesting to see how the NT gets on with it.
ReplyDeleteI like to do sections at a time, too which you can do if you don't live too far away. We do the same at Keddleston Hall. Sometimes we just walk in the grounds and arboretum, others we go in buildings to have a look. I love the farmhouse at Shugborough and I prefer it to the mansion house, I hope they open more rooms there:)
DeleteIt looks like a really interesting place to visit. I like the Under Butler's plate! x
ReplyDeleteThe table seting showed all the different servants and the hierarchy of where they sat at the table, quite fascinating:)
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