Explore:
access to Nocton hall can be a bit varied, although it is not very overlooked in most parts and there doesnt really seem to be any security, the fences are well maintained and any holes are normally patched.
after a bit of walking around we managed to find easy access (albeit through a few nettles) and spent quite a long time walking around the huge hospital buildings, surrounding sheds and also Nocton hall.
the hall is in a very sorry state after a fire destroyed the majority of the building. Walking around the site is quite hazardous, with lots of holes in the floors and debris scattering the areas.
the hospital rooms are pretty much empty with only some signage and painting on the wall to indicate its origin but we didn't try them all as the buildings stretch over a 3rd of a mile!
overall a very enjoyable explore (especially when the sun had come out!) could have spent all day here but tired feet, hunger and thirst resulted in us skimming though a lot of the hospital.
History:
Nocton Hall is situated in the village of Nocton, Lincolnshire, and is a Grade II listed building. There is a plaque on the north facing wall of the hall that shows that the original building dates back to 1530, during the reign of Henry VIII, but has since been reconstructed twice with several prominent people being owners and residents of the house with the most noticeable being Frederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of Ripon who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for a short while.
Before the house itself was built, the historic grounds contained a priory that was built a few hundred years earlier in the 12th century. Once the house of Nocton Hall was built in the 16h century it coexisted with the priory for some time. The remains of the priory do still exist but only as earthworks.
Originally the house was the property of Thomas Wimbishe who named the house Nocton Manor and was subsequently owned by the Towneley Family before being reconstructed by Sir William Ellis in the latter part of the 17th century. Ellis extended part of the existing manor and called the original Nocton Old Hall.
In 1834 Nocton Old Hall was burned down and the building that stands today was built in it’s place in 1841 by Frederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of Ripon. Before the most recent fire, around 1996, the house was examined revealing evidence that showed that the 1841 rebuild of the house still contained some parts of Nocton Old Hall.
RAF Hospital Nocton Hall was a 740-bed hospital that served RAF personnel based at a number of RAF stations in the area. The hospital opened it’s doors in 1947 and was used by RAF forces personnel and their families until it eventually closed it’s doors in 1983.
The hospital was situated partly on the same grounds as Nocton Hall with the hall itself being used as an officer’s mess. The hospital itself was a slightly unstable building being built from mostly wooden huts and sat on a slope making the corridors uneven.
In 1984 it was leased to the United States Air Force for use as a wartime contingency hospital. Over 1,300 US medical staff worked at Nocton Hall and the hospital during the Gulf War. Thankfully only a small number of 35 casualties needed to be treated at the hospital.
RAF Nocton Hall Hospital was handed back to Her Majesty’s Government by the USAF in September 1995 and has never been used as a hospital since; it currently stands abandoned and decaying.
access to Nocton hall can be a bit varied, although it is not very overlooked in most parts and there doesnt really seem to be any security, the fences are well maintained and any holes are normally patched.
after a bit of walking around we managed to find easy access (albeit through a few nettles) and spent quite a long time walking around the huge hospital buildings, surrounding sheds and also Nocton hall.
the hall is in a very sorry state after a fire destroyed the majority of the building. Walking around the site is quite hazardous, with lots of holes in the floors and debris scattering the areas.
the hospital rooms are pretty much empty with only some signage and painting on the wall to indicate its origin but we didn't try them all as the buildings stretch over a 3rd of a mile!
overall a very enjoyable explore (especially when the sun had come out!) could have spent all day here but tired feet, hunger and thirst resulted in us skimming though a lot of the hospital.
History:
Nocton Hall is situated in the village of Nocton, Lincolnshire, and is a Grade II listed building. There is a plaque on the north facing wall of the hall that shows that the original building dates back to 1530, during the reign of Henry VIII, but has since been reconstructed twice with several prominent people being owners and residents of the house with the most noticeable being Frederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of Ripon who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for a short while.
Before the house itself was built, the historic grounds contained a priory that was built a few hundred years earlier in the 12th century. Once the house of Nocton Hall was built in the 16h century it coexisted with the priory for some time. The remains of the priory do still exist but only as earthworks.
Originally the house was the property of Thomas Wimbishe who named the house Nocton Manor and was subsequently owned by the Towneley Family before being reconstructed by Sir William Ellis in the latter part of the 17th century. Ellis extended part of the existing manor and called the original Nocton Old Hall.
In 1834 Nocton Old Hall was burned down and the building that stands today was built in it’s place in 1841 by Frederick John Robinson, 1st Earl of Ripon. Before the most recent fire, around 1996, the house was examined revealing evidence that showed that the 1841 rebuild of the house still contained some parts of Nocton Old Hall.
RAF Hospital Nocton Hall was a 740-bed hospital that served RAF personnel based at a number of RAF stations in the area. The hospital opened it’s doors in 1947 and was used by RAF forces personnel and their families until it eventually closed it’s doors in 1983.
The hospital was situated partly on the same grounds as Nocton Hall with the hall itself being used as an officer’s mess. The hospital itself was a slightly unstable building being built from mostly wooden huts and sat on a slope making the corridors uneven.
In 1984 it was leased to the United States Air Force for use as a wartime contingency hospital. Over 1,300 US medical staff worked at Nocton Hall and the hospital during the Gulf War. Thankfully only a small number of 35 casualties needed to be treated at the hospital.
RAF Nocton Hall Hospital was handed back to Her Majesty’s Government by the USAF in September 1995 and has never been used as a hospital since; it currently stands abandoned and decaying.
