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Wednesday 7 May 2014

Day Two.

I haven't started talking to myself yet, and Macy the cat hasn't started answering me yet! I bought four books for £4-98 on Tuesday and started reading one of them after lunch. I continued reading it until finished at 0030. That meant that I was in no hurry to surface this morning. As the sun was shining when I did get up  I went out on the fore deck and started rubbing down the rusty spots I had noticed when painting the deck. I then went round and touched up each spot with some rust converter. Whilst that was drying I got out the black paint and touched up the port side as we will now be in double locks for a good while so hopefully less chance of us scrapping the paint on the bow.

A guy with his dog stopped for a chat as he was a canal boat owner too. He had left his boat somewhere over near Burscough on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and was just home for a few days to do a bit of work and sort out the mail etc. He was usually a single hander and is set to go over the Ribble Link to get onto the Lancaster Canal. He had been up the Severn Estuary and Thames etc all on his own so we had a good chat about this and that. I was put off my stroke as I then forgot lots of little spots and had to go back to sort them out! We then had a few light showers so the painting was out for the day and I settled down with book No.2. I'm not sure whether I will get this one read though.

Over in West Retford there is Bridgegate where the road crosses the River Idle. On almost all the buildings have a little embossed sign on them. It is a T and H and stands for Trinity Hospital. This is not a hospital hospital but a house of hospitality. It dates from 1655 when a local Doctor, Doc. John Darrel. He had been to Oxford University and had interests in Lincoln and Gainsborough. His father had died when we was young. In 1660's he was part of the plague that hit England at that time. He was taken ill but survived. When he eventually died in 1665 he was the sole heir of the West Retford Estate an d left enough property to carry out his fathers and his own wishes to create an hospital for 16 Christian gentlemen. The actual will is held in an oak case in the Trinity Hospital. Originally West Retford House was sufficient but later two wings were added. By 1832 the house was no further fit for purpose and with the rise in property prices there was sufficient to engage a London architect to design a new building. This was Edwin Blore who designed Lambeth Palace. The central hall or Audit Room was remodeled in 1872. and it was here where feasts were held.

The 1872 Edwine Blore Trinity Hospital

The current fellows must be; male and bachelors or widowers, 50 plus, of good character, of poor or modest means, be able to look after themselves, have a connection to Retford or the local area and preference will be given to John Darrel's descendants. 

The original rules called for the inhabitants to take the sacraments at least three times a year and go to church when ever there was a service. They would get 10 shillings a week and a gown of broad cloth every two years and £4 worth of coal every year. They had to attend the Trinity Feast in the Common room every year and a drunk and blasphemer, or a inmate who refuses to attend church will be evicted.

THE INTERIOR OF AUDIT OR DINING HALL.
The Audit Room

THE OLD AUDIT ROOM. NOW CONVERTED INTO CHAPEL FOR DAILY SERVICE.
The Audit Room converted to a chapel.

On Bridgegate is a row of Victorian houses that is called Scholarship Yard  as the rents from these properties are used as a scholarship for the maintenance of a pupil at Oxford University which was another part of Dr. John Darrel's legacy.

There are other Almshouse in Retford also for men and bequeathed about the same time on Churchgate. These are the Sloswicke Almshouses of 1657.The present building dates from 1806.
Sloswicke Almshouses, Retford.

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