Weather disruptions and Exhibitions
Like most of the country, the Estate was in the path of the ‘Beast from the East’ and we were well and truly snowed in during the first week of March. Staff were asked to work from home, but the renovation work on the Hall and the Rectory had to grind to a temporary halt as there was a real concern that the workers would get stuck somewhere if they attempted to reach South Ormsby. Some of the locals did make it into work and even ended up rescuing others! Our Estate photographer, Damian Furlong, managed to hitch a ride with a friend with a four-wheel drive car to allow him to capture some beautiful snowy images around the Estate, and he even managed to snap the guys at Gordon’s Autos clearing the snow too!
The late arrival of the seasonal weather had an impact on the Bastion in the Air Exhibition that was being held at the Old School. We managed to get the Old School cleaned ready for the exhibition by local cleaning company, Easy Cleans, before the snow arrived. Unfortunately, though, the snow meant that the exhibition had to be postponed and the run was shortened. The important thing was that the Exhibition was able to go ahead once the exhibition displays and uniforms made it through the snow. The Exhibition told the story of Lincolnshire’s role in the development in aviation and defence during World War One through factories such as Robey’s, Ruston & Proctor and Marshalls. Aviation manufacturing, which was predominately carried out by women as the men were fighting on the Western Front, increased during WWI. This was a response to the threat from German Zeppelins to have an airborne combat force. This led to the formation of the Royal Air Force on 1st April 1918. We were very pleased that the exhibition was still able to run for the three days and it was very well received by the public who came to see the exhibition and share their memories.
After the strong winds earlier in the year, we had several fallen trees and branches which we had started to tackle prior to the bad weather. We are now waiting for further lumber jacking sessions to chop up the main trunks of the trees.
This week has also seen a visit from the bat surveyors at the Hall. We have thought we have been hearing bats in the Hall and we thought it was best to get checked. Currently, the surveyors make regular checks in the wine cellar and the stables for any activity. This time, however, it was Mrs Mundy’s room(the Squire’s mother)at the Hall and they have found bats residing in the walls. The surveyors were unsure if it was a maternity roost or just a few young bats. It is important to us as it could impact on the building work at the Hall, but conserving wildlife is also very important.
