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Sunday, June 21, 2015

A patchwork of history

What do writers do all day?

When they're not writing, they're imagining, and sometimes they go on outings to fascinating places, which is what a group of Exeter Writers did yesterday.



A group of writers prepares to boldly go...

We went to Poltimore, which some of you might remember from the BBC's Restoration series. Alas, Poltimore didn't win, so it's still waiting for a zillionaire with a stack of cash to happen along.


Do we need hard hats?
No, we're writers - we're hard enough!

As a nation, we're practically buried under the layers of our history. Devon is particularly rich in history, featuring the Jurassic Coast charting the birthdays of the world from aeons before human beings came along to, more recently, some astonishing buildings in various states of magnificence or - sadly - decay.

Poltimore House near Exeter is in a state of decay and needs millions spent on it. Well, if it's to be restored to anything like its former glory it does. When it was sold by the Bampfylde family in the early years of the 20th century, its decline had already begun, and its subsequent tenants did little to preserve its beauty. It became a girls' school, then a boys' school, then a private hospital, then an NHS hospital, and finally a private nursing home. But, as costs mounted, its resources diminished and  finally it was abandoned. The vandals moved in, stealing, stripping, looting, scavenging and burning. It's now home to a very vocal flock of jackdaws, lots of pigeons and a few bats. Some of its former magnificence still remains, however, and there are many features worth preserving.


The Tudor Tower and Courtyard


The Georgian Plasterwork


The Entrance Hall

Nowadays, several teams of volunteers, who are determined the place should be magnificent once again, are working on its restoration. We salute their efforts and can assure you Poltimore is well worth a visit. Anyone who is interested in volunteering to get involved in the restoration project can get in touch via Poltimore's website -  http://www.poltimore.org/

3 comments:

  1. Poor old Poltimore, I used to ride around there when I was young! So many places like this, but they can be rescued.. we visited Acorn Bank in Cumbria which the NT are gradually restoring and it's fascinating to see places being built back up from the bare bones of history!
    Lovely pics, Margaret, let's hope you can look back on them in years to come as 'what it used to look like before it was restored;'.

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  2. what a shame! These lovely buildings are part of our heritage!

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  3. Thank you, ladies! There are several options being explored, so one day, one day...

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