WOODLAND WALK | THE OLD HALL

Hoar Cross was part of Needwood Forest, the 11th-century lands of Henry de Ferrers. The land was passed down to Henry’s son and subsequent various people over the course of 500 years ending with the Webb family, around the 1730s, who bought the land and house known as the Manor of the Cross.

In 1782 Hugo married Elizabeth Ingram Shepheard, daughter and co-heiress of Charles Ingram, 9thViscount Irwin and Lord Ingram. Temple Newsam, in Yorkshire was their family seat and through the marriage, the Meynell family inherited the Ingram estates in Lincolnshire. When the Hall was built in 1871 it was modelled on a wing of the Temple Newsam house, which is why they look so similar. In 1793, after buying the Hoar Cross estate from the Talbots, Hugo built a house which he used as an occasional hunting lodge. He called it ‘Old Hall’ and this was built around a small courtyard about half a mile away from where Hoar Cross Hall would later be built. Hugo and Elizabeth had six children and eventually, their grandson, also called Hugo, married the Hon. Emily Charlotte in 1863 and together they built the present Hoar Cross Hall to be their family home.

The Hall took nearly 10 years to build and was completed in 1871, although Hugo and Emily had already moved in before that. The house was south facing and built-in extensive grounds covering many acres. Various cottages were also built on the estate for the workers to live in along with kitchen gardens and a stable block.

But tragedy was to strike; Hugo had a horse-riding accident some fourteen months previously which had left him bed ridden. However, they still moved into the house, but he sadly died in May of 1871. As they had no children, the Meynell line (of Hoar Cross) couldn’t continue. Emily inherited the Temple Newsam estate along with many other estates around the Midlands and became a very wealthy woman – they say she was a millionairess twice over.