A hall with a history

Committee rallies support for o'er
the firth hall

AUCKENGILL has a hall with a history.
Its previous hall committee didn’t follow the traditional on-site build
in planning a social hub for its brave service personnel returning from
World War One, and opted instead for a ready-made one.
The members got wind that the YMCA hall in Lyness was surplus to
requirements and duly acquired it. How did it reach the Caithness
coastal community?...it was towed across the Pentland Firth and
re-erected exactly where it stands today.
The pride and determination that was displayed back in 1921 –the
building was blown down during a gale but was put back in place- was
inherited by the current committee and trustees, who have strived to
keep the hall up to scratch.
The building is not just a combination of bricks and mortar, however.
It’s heart lies in regular use and, recently, the present office
bearers launched a campaign, at the weekend, to boost the number of
activities held under its roof. Essential to that is a bigger car park
and the hall committee signalled the start of work on an extension at
the weekend, at an open day which attracted both junior and senior
support.
Committee president, Allan Richard said: “The problem with the existing
parking was that it could only accommodate 14 vehicles without creating
difficulties for turning. The extension will increase the figure to
30 and hopefully result in a greater use of the hall. We would
welcome any ideas from the public.”
He said he was delighted with the turnout and expressed the hope that
it would have a knock-on effect at the hall committee’s AGM next month.
Mr Richard acknowledged the spontaneous support they had received
form
Wick Newton Hill plant hirer contractor, Alan Ross who volunteered a
digger, and an operator, and his John O’ Groats counterpart, A. & W.
Sinclair which provided the hard core for the extended car park.
How did the hall get its intriguing title of the St Clare Hall? Well,
it’s origin lies in France and you’ll have the opportunity of finding
out more about that out, along with the challenge of the cross-ferry
transportation of the building from Hoy, and some local stories and
memories, in a book being published by Kate Fraser from London. She
pays regular visits to her holiday home at Nybster and is donating the
proceeds from the first hundred copies to hall funds.