Mixed Emotions

What a day, managed to sleep in a little for the first time since we got back. Had lots of good things happen today, nice accupuncture session, collected a new shiny car and had a drive out to Marshalls Yard (see below) and did some shopping. Then we had a called to say the church have found a minister and they cant rent the house to us now. Very upset, especially the thought of having to go back to Manchester and do the hunting again.

Anyway a bit about Marshall Yard which is now a shopping area in Gainsborough.

The Marshall's Yard site was formerly occupied by the Marshall familys Britannia Iron Works which was founded in 1848. The company built steam engines, threshing machines and agricultural machines which were exported all over the world. During the First World War, the workforce grew to 5,000 to cope with the production of munitions.

After the war, traction engines, steam rollers and tractors became the focus once again. During the Second World War, the workshops produced military hardware, including midget submarines. Like many engineering companies, business declined during the 1970s and the factory closed in the 1980s.

The site is steeped in industrial heritage, and many of the original structures were listed. These have been refurbished and retained, with new architecture sensitively designed to blend the old with the new. The heritage is celebrated throughout the site an old steam crane from the engineering works provides a dramatic entrance to Marshalls Yard, and information boards across the centre celebrate the history of this once internationally renowned hub of world class engineering.