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Memories of ElvedenThe purchase of Elveden Estate by the First Earl of Iveagh in 1894, began a new era in the history of this fascinating village, it is steeped in memories and we are fortunate to have folk living here who still remember, vividly, the stories told to them by their forbears of the village in it's hey-day. By the turn of the century Lord Iveagh had greatly enlarged Elveden Hall and it soon abounded with distinguished guests, including royalty and their entourage, especially during the shooting season. An army of household staff was engaged to work in the Hall, this included the butler, housekeeper, lady's maid, valets, and later the children's nanny, and nurserymaid, all of whom had their rooms in the Hall. The chef, footmen, parlour maids, kitchenmaids, housemaids, the odd man, and scullery maid, lived in the vast servants' quarters connected to the Hall. The laundry maids dwelt nearby in a house adjoining one end of the laundry, the dairy was situated at the other end, the laundry-boilerman lived in a wooden bungalow close by; the night watchman had his cottage a short distance from the Hall. Some of the staff would only be engaged during the shooting season. There were grooms, coachmen, and later the chauffeur, living at the Stables. In the Park, gardeners tended the flower gardens, grounds-men looked after the lawns and hedges and a keeper cared for the birds in the large aviary, there was a park keeper and lodge gate keepers; more gardeners were employed in the walled vegetable gardens and orchards not far from the Estate Office. Lord Iveagh's agent and the office staff worked in the Estate office and tradesmen were employed to work on the Estate - i.e. carpenters, bricklayers, electricians, gasmen, wheelwrights, blacksmiths and painters. Gamekeepers, warreners, woodsmen, farms' managers, farm workers, which included the horsemen, shepherds, stock-men and others, were all part of the large work force. Each was highly skilled in his own field and ensured that this magnificent estate ran on oiled wheels. Many employees and their families were housed in the brand new dwellings Lord Iveagh had built for them, he also built a new post office and school. The red bricks from the Elveden brick works which had been established in 1895, were used in all the new constructions, other buildings including the Stables, water tower and Cottage Homes (c.1912) were also of red brick. By 1906 the church had been extended to accommodate the influx of the new village inhabitants and their families, they, as well as the hall staff, were required to attend church each Sunday. His Lordship, his family and guests would also attend. First-hand memories of the early times, of course, are no longer available to us, but we are grateful to the following people who kindly shared their memories with us; some were born or employed in Elveden towards the end of the First Earl's amazing era and others were born, raised and worked here in later years. All have an interesting tale to tell of their association with this unique Estate, which is constantly evolving with each successive Earl. Their recollections reflect on the changes in society, working conditions, and on the good and bad times:
Pictured here with his wife
Gillian Turner ©2000
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A Forest Heath District Council (Suffolk) Project supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund as part of the Millennium Festival ©2000 Designed by ArtAtac |