1. Dartington Village Hall – Dartington Parish Council

A flimsy piece of paper recorded that in 1924 a public meeting unanimously agreed a parish hall was needed in Dartington to remember those lost in the First World War:

H. Barter
C. Budd MM
R.A.C. Cox MC
C. Edmonds
W.D. Hill
H. Hodge
P. Kellock
H.G. Kerley
Lock
M. Swears
J. Wakeham
Western

A management committee was elected and on the same day met here, in Mr. Maynard’s orchard, to measure and stake out the ground. By March 1925 the plans had been drawn up and a price of £25 agreed for the quarter of an acre needed to build the hall, which must have been very quickly built as four months later furnishings, crockery and lamps were needed.

Two of the photos show the start of the building process for the hall, the third is the very first Dartington Village Hall committee, consisting of (standing) E. Clarke, H. Morgan, S. Harris, Mr. Benson, Mr. Sercombe, H. Wright, L. Bovey, Ken Savage, (sitting) Mrs. Kellock, P. Newman, J. S. Guy, Mrs. Curry, Mrs. Holder.

Funnily enough some of the problems faced one hundred years ago at the hall were the same as they are now, namely how to heat and light the hall. With one big exception. The spring cleaning in 1927 included having the chimney swept. Where was the chimney? Nobody knows. But if you have any ideas? And in 1954 the cost of gas was such that hirers were asked to pay extra if they needed to use the heaters.

Nowadays the village hall remains a large part of the local community offering all sorts of activities, though not so much whist and bingo as in previous years. But we do have yoga, painting, youth club, violin sessions, theatre performances, jumble sales, vocal workshops and a plethora of other events. And financially we are slightly better off than the £1,276.70 that was held in the village hall bank account the year after decimalisation, i.e. 1982. And with a committee of thirteen representing the village of Dartington the hall looks set to continue for a good few years to come.