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Our work at East Riddlesden Hall
Discover how staff, volunteers and specialist contractors work together at East Riddlesden Hall to carry out important conservation and cleaning throughout the year. Find out what it takes to keep the house and collection in excellent condition and preserved for future generations to enjoy too.
Celebrating 90 years of the National Trust
2024 marks a big milestone for the estate at East Riddlesden Hall, it has been 90 years since two local brothers stepped in and saved the Hall.
From 1 June you can see the new exhibition exploring the history of the estate and it's strong connections to the community. The Briggs brothers championed the need for green spaces and history, and with help from the local town saved East Riddlesden Hall.
Shifting the dust
Throughout the year, members of the East Riddlesden Hall team squeeze behind furniture, climb up ladders and reach under beds to remove dust from all the nooks and crannies.
Dust builds up quickly in a house like East Riddlesden Hall and it can cause damage by general soiling or by speeding up chemical processes that lead to material breakdown. We always dust with a dry cloth or fine horsehair brush and we never use polish as this leaves a film on the surface of the object.
Every object in the collection gets personal attention and we check its condition against our care plan records to make sure that no damage has been done in the past year.
Caring for the floor
The wooden floors in the house suffer from wear and tear from the 38,000 pairs of shoes that tread the floorboards each year. We try to stop as much gravel and dirt from coming into the house as possible, by using coir mats at the entrance. Research has shown that we need to use 3 metres of this to catch all the dirt.
Every morning we dry mop the floors to remove dust and dirt from the previous day. Doing this in the morning allows for the dust to settle overnight. Each winter we apply traffic wax to the boards to keep them in great condition.
Sharing the history
Throughout 2023 and 2024 we are working to update the history told throughout the hall.
Starting with the Kitchen Chamber, where we hope to tell some of the stories of the last residents who lived here, the Bailey family.
They lived and farmed the estate at East Riddlesden as tenants until 1934.
Our recent work
Discover some of the recent work completed to help care for the collection.
Uncovering the details
The largest item in our collection is the stunning Flemish tapestry in the Great Hall. Dated from around the 1600's, it is believed to show a scene from the life of Alexander the Great. This was a popular subject for Flemish artists at the time. Made with rich wool and vibrant silk, this tapestry need specialist care to keep it in good condition. During 2022 it was removed from the wall and carefully cleaned by a Textile Conservator with a specialist conservation vacuum cleaner. Several undetectable stitches were sewn into places where the thread was weakening. This care brought the beautiful colours and details of the tapestry to life, and will keep it safe for future generations.
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Thank you
With your ongoing support, we're able to continue our vital conservation work. Thank you for helping to protect these special places.
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