Visit a house where the clocks stopped in 1932
FROZEN-IN-TIME NATIONAL TRUST PROPERTY SET TO REOPEN ON MAY 20
ONE of the National Trust’s quirkiest properties is getting ready to reopen to visitors after lockdown.
Mr Straw’s House, in Worksop, has remained unchanged since its namesake occupant departed.
Local grocer and head of the family William Straw senior died suddenly in 1932 and, from then, time has stood still in his fascinating house.
Bought a decade earlier, William’s wife Florence had chosen wallpaper, carpets and furniture of the time, to decorate her family’s home and almost a hundred years later they still remain.
Florence died in 1939, leaving sons William junior and Walter to take ownership of the Edwardian house on Blyth Grove, a mile from Worksop town centre.
Treasured possessions and ordinary domestic items can still be seen exactly where their owners left them at number 7, while number 5 provides space for displaying objects normally hidden inside drawers and cupboards.
Outside, the lovingly tended garden and orchard includes a greenhouse housing Walter Straw’s cacti collection and various fruit trees once used by the family to make preserves and other recipes.
The conservation charity is preparing to once again welcome visitors to step back in time, marvel at the décor and learn about the family’s history through more than 30,000 items from the historic collection.
Few mod-cons made it over the threshold following the deaths of Walter and William junior’s parents.
Both brothers continued to live in the house, making minimal changes to the decoration or display of their family possessions eventually leaving it in the care of the National Trust in 1990.
After being closed for more than a year, the ordinary house with an extraordinary story is ready to be seen again.
Torri Crapper, visitor operations and experience manager, said: “We’re really conscious of the need to provide a safe and enjoyable experience for our visitors. We’ve taken precautions to ensure a trip back in time at Mr Straw’s House can be both fun and Covid secure.”
The property plans to welcome visitors back in groups of four, from the same household, with breaks between visits to ensure thorough cleaning can take place in all public spaces.
Torri added: “It’s been a year none of us could have predicted and we’re aware of the shift in visitor expectations. We’re really excited to finally open our doors again and share the remarkable stories of the Straw family.”
Mr Straw’s House reopens to the public on May 20. Tours are self-guided and limited to one household per booking time, for a maximum of four people. Visits must be booked via the Mr Straw’s House website.