Wardside Gazette No 44
May 2014 · Editor: Resident Margery Neill and Resident Andrew Hodge
New Residents:
Professor David and Mrs Dorothy Flint who were resident for a trial period a few months ago have decided to return on a permanent basis. Unfortunately, David is in hospital at present but we have welcomed Dorothy who arrived last month. Additionally, we welcomed Mrs Moira Browne from Crieff and Mrs Flora Kirkland for periods of respite and we are pleased to report that Moira has decided to stay permanently and Flora, who has now gone home, is seriously considering to come back soon and do likewise.
Birthday Wishes are sent to Mrs Margaret Lorimer who celebrated a birthday last month, and wish her many happy returns of the day.
Good Wishes:
We send our good wishes to Professor David Flint whilst in hospital and hope that he will be able to join his wife again soon and be welcomed back to Wardside House.
Death:
We were extremely sorry to learn of the death of Edith Barnes who was in her 95th year and we express our sincere sympathies to her son in Crieff and her daughter in France.
Staff News:
Last month all members of staff attended a training session on fire awareness and had the ‘hands on’ experience of using fire extinguishers.
Quiz Nights:
The Wednesday Quiz nights continue to be very popular and are looked forward to by those who attend regularly. If they are able to remember all the answers to all of the questions, they are bound to be the ‘brainiest lot’ in all of Perthshire.
Craft Class:
The members are still making a length of bunting for the Crieff project which aims to decorate the town with a continual length of bunting that will beat the present entry in the Guinness Book of Records. Our ‘little portion’ of about 100 feet will contain the words WARDSIDE HOUSE MUTHILL.
Easter:
On behalf of all Residents and members of Staff we express our thanks and appreciation for the very appropriate presents we all received. An Easter Card and Chocolate Egg from Marjorie and David Burt and a Chocolate Bunny from Andy Baillie – Frank Baillie’s son.
A Musical Afternoon on Wednesday 16th was enjoyed by a number of residents when Asta Alexander made available a DVD featuring Val Dounagan. The songs were all well known and made a pleasant and enjoyable afternoon. Thank you Asta!
Church Services
Rev A Barton of the Episcopal Church on Friday 20th May at 11am in the small lounge.
Rev K Buwert of the Church of Scotland on Tuesday 27th May at 2.30pm in the large lounge.
A Resident’s Meeting will be held in the Large Lounge on Friday 9th May at 2.30pm when Management will explain any changes that have been made or are contemplated and residents, as always, are free to comment or make suggestions.
A Musical Afternoon:
Arrangements have been made for a visit by Music In Hospitals on Wednesday 14th May at 2.30pm. The performers are Alex Baer, soloist and Matthew Brown, pianist. Both have been here before and are very good entertainers.
Residents contributions:
In the January Gazette, a suggestion was made that residents might wish to share an interesting story or incident that they had experienced and as a result three were received, two of which were published last month. Here is the third one by Phoebe Coull.
The Night that Muthill was Bombed.
Just along from Muthill Station, near where I once lived, there was a large dark wood at a Tjunction. In 1939 I had wondered why tarmac roads were being constructed to run into the centre of this forest. I found out a very large pile of ammunition had been dumped in the middle. Posters saying “Careless Talk Costs Lives” were everywhere, so the dump was never discussed. When the war broke out, soldiers were billeted there to guard the ammunition, and members of the Highland Light Infantry from Glasgow were among them. They hated this big dark forest and, being unused to country noises, admitted to being afraid if the leaves rustled, or a sheep over the fence had a coughing fit. They called the area ‘HellFire Corner’ and the name stuck.
On the night of 13th March, 1942, Clydebank was heavily bombed, and on the way over, the Germans dropped a bomb which landed at the edge of a wood to the south of Queensferry Road. I was asleep two miles away, but the most awful bang and crash wakened me and my sister. We knew it was a bomb and lay in fear and trembling that Muthill had been blown away. In the morning we cycled to the village and found it still there. There was a huge crater and shrapnel scattered everywhere – I took a piece home, but later threw it away thinking it could be unlucky. Fortunately there were no casualties, but a number of ceilings came down in Queensferry Road, and others were badly cracked. We were never sure if the Germans had obtained information about the dump, but as the crow flies, it was not far away.
Thank you Phoebe for that very interesting snippet of local history
Wardside House, Muthill, Crieff, Perthshire PH5 2AS.Tele. No: 01764 681 275www.wardsidehouse.com