Here, families from the local estates sitdown to their lunch on a frozen pondduring the Great Freeze of the early 20thcentury. The butler stands at the backready to serve the skaters from hamperson tables set with linen and glass.A life in service was tough, with longhours of hard work, but it at leastguaranteed a roof over your head andfood to eat. For some, particularlywomen, domestic service was a meansto advancement. Aged 12, FlorenceColes went into service as a kitchenmaid, but rose through the hierarchy tobecome a respected lady's maid to thewife of Admiral Ommaney. Her kinsman,William Cardy (1858-1889), on the otherhand, was a gamekeeper on a differentestate. He died of pneumonia and whenhis wife and five children returned fromhis funeral they found an eviction noticepinned to the door of their estate cottage. Until the end of the 19th century, whatunited estate owners was the desire toinvest wealth in land for its 'safety' andstatus. At a local and national level, estatesand their owners were part of a complexweb of family ties, connections andrelationships. William Cornwallis-West(1835-1917) and his family, of NewlandsManor in Milford-on-Sea and RuthinCastle in County Denbigh, were at theapogee of late Victorian and Edwardiansocial life, entertaining Edward VII andthe Kaiser on a number of occasions.Well connected, beautiful and popular,The monument erected to Burrard-Nealeby public subscription still standsoverlooking the town and remains alegacy to the impact that countryestates have had on their locality. Parlourmaid to Peer: Life on theCountry Estates; 26 Nov 2011 to 21 Jan 2012 Contact: 01590 676969 www.stbarbe-museum.org.uk Above: Thewedding party forDorothy Morrisonof Walhampton,1912 Right: DorisForman of SetleyHouse paddlingon the beachwith a friend atMilford in 1912Below:Haymaking atNewtown Parkc1900his children made impressivemarriages;Constance (Shelagh) married the richestman in Britain, the Duke of Westminster,and Daisy married the richest man inEurope, the Prince of Pless, whileGeorge married Lady RandolphChurchill. However, it was not enough tosave the family's fortunes. After the saleof Ruthin, George's plans to turn Milfordinto the next Eastbourne failed and hewas declared bankrupt and had to selloff Newlands to the highest bidder.Dorothy Morrison had no concernsabout lack of resources as thegranddaughter of James Morrison, whowas the son of an innkeeper butbecame a fabulously wealthy self-madetextile multi-millionaire. Dorothy boughtWalhampton Park in 1910 and set aboutrebuilding and extending the house toinclude 30 bedrooms and remodelledgardens. In a classic case of old moneymarrying new, she is shown here in1912 at her fashionable wedding to LordSt Cyres, son of the Earl of Iddesleigh.Dorothy was an influential figure inlocal society though not as contentiousas the Burrards who had built the housecenturies before and been highly activein political life, jockeying for power andpositions. Though largely forgotten, theirmost famous scion was Admiral SirHarry Burrard-Neale (1765-1840) whobecame a national hero and friend ofKing George III when he rescuedCharlotte, Princess Royal from a mutiny.NADFAS REVIEW / WINTER 201143Left: Dining onSowley Pondduring theGreat FreezePhotos: St. Barbe Museum Collection; Private collection

44NADFAS REVIEW / WINTER 2011www.nadfas.org.ukPerfectlyformedAlready hailed as one of Europe's finestcontemporary artmuseums, the HepworthWakefield is building onits predecessor'spioneering reputation.Frances Guy, Head of Collections andExhibitions, reveals whyThe Hepworth Wakefield is Britain'smajor new art gallery. Measuring5,000 square metres it is the UK'slargest purpose-built gallery for over 40years (since The Hayward in Londonopened in 1968). With 650 squaremetres of temporary exhibition space,The Hepworth Wakefield offers one ofthe largest contemporary art spacesoutside London.Taking its name from the city's worldfamous daughter, sculptor BarbaraHepworth, who was born in Wakefield in1903, a highlight is the Hepworth FamilyGift, a collection of Hepworth's survivingworking models for her bronzesculptures, the majority of which weremade in plaster. This generous gift wasmade by the Hepworth family throughthe Art Fund and was one of the keyreasons for building a new gallery inWakefield, connecting Hepworth's namewith the city in which she was born andraised. Sir Alan Bowness CBE, Trusteeof the Hepworth Estate, explains: "Wesee Wakefield as the most appropriatepermanent home for the plasters to beseen - among the work of hercontemporaries and in the city whereshe was born and grew up."HEPWORTH WAKEFIELDPhotos: © Bowness, Hepworth Estate; Val Wilmer © Bowness, Hepworth Estate