Collection: The Dartington Hall Trust
Level: Series
RefNo: T/EST
Extent: 33 boxes
Title: T Estate
Dates: c1910-2003

History: The Dartington Hall Estate Department was started in 1932. Originally, the work of the estate was managed by John Bowden of the firm, Ellis, Son and Bowden, of Exeter. In 1934 James C Luard, a chartered surveyor, became the first resident land agent. Luard was succeeded in 1939 by D H Martin who was given the ancient title of estate steward. W G Foot succeeded Martin as steward in 1945. Foot retired in 1962 and was succeeded by Charles E White who retained the position until his own retirement in 1985. The position was re-introduced in the 1990s.

The Estate Department performed the traditional function of managing and maintaining the land and buildings of the Dartington Hall estate, including properties and lands owned by the Trust which were not officially part of the estate. The Trust owned land and properties throughout Devon. While it was not directly concerned with farming, the Estate Department, and especially the steward, controlled hunting and fishing access over farms and woodlands and was charged with fish and wildlife conservation. The department was also responsible for collecting rents, supervising building maintenance, and managing services such as water and electricity. The Estate Department also worked closely with architects employed by the Trust. The estate steward reported quarterly to the Estate Management Committee.

By 1935, the Dartington estate was powered by its own hydroelectric plant at Staverton Town Mill which provided electricity to the estate until the 1960s. Estate water service was drawn from its own aquifers and from hydraulic rams tapping the Bidwell Brook.

Description: Records of the Dartington Hall Estate and the Estate Department. Includes early correspondence with land agent John Bowden of Ellis, Son and Bowden of Exeter, Surveyors. Also: later manorial records; estate stewards' letters and reports to the Trustees; architects' records including those of Rex Gardner; Robert Hening; Walter Gropius; Ides van der Gracht of Delano and Aldrich; Louis de Soissons; Henry Wright; Oswald P Milne; and William Lescaze. Also includes design and construction records for the Lescaze building, Warren House. In addition there are company records of Redworth Estates Ltd (1934 to 1951); insurance inventories and property valuations; lists of real property; records of properties owned by The Dartington Hall Trust; records of the Dartington Post War Housing Competition, 1944-1945; Dartington Hall estate ecology and conservation records; and records of early rural electrification and water utility services established to serve the Dartington estate; and meteorological observations for Rattery, Dartington, and Torquay dating between 1930 and 1977. Includes local planning and development records, including those of Dame Elizabeth Chesterton.

Access: Archives held by The Dartington Hall Trust are subject to Trust policies which generally follow normal document closure periods for public records. Records that are not governed by the Data Protection Act of 1998 and that are more than 30 years old are open for research. In addition, it is Trust policy that records of people still living are closed.