Maintenance staff at a popular golf club in Greater Manchester, England, discovered a underground wine cellar that remained hidden for more than a century. The incident occurred after the land subsided, near the 13th hole of the property.
Steve Hopkinsdeputy head greenkeeper at the golf club Davyhulme Parklocated in Trafford, spotted the ground opening while returning to the service facility. Initially, the technical team thought that a drain had collapsed in the area and created a hole in the ground.
«So we think it’s just a drain that needs to be dug, cleaned and repaired, but as we dug deeper and deeper it opened up beneath us,» Hopkins told the outlet. The Guardian.
Removal of earth with a small excavator allowed access to a brick vault with an arched roof. Inside, the staff found dozens of glass bottles blackened glass that once contained wine and port.
«I’m the first person to walk into that room in over 100 years.»quipped Hopkins, who found a door he could duck through. Then he lit his torch and found out what it was really about.
The story behind the hidden winery on a golf course
This underground enclosure would have been part of Davyhulme Hallan old mansion demolished at the end of the 19th century. The original property had its roots in the 12th century and belonged to a medieval knight under the reign of Henry II.
Robert Henry Norreysa keen local sportsman, inherited the land in 1844 and created a private nine-hole golf course. After his death in 1887, the lack of buyers for the estate led to the complete demolition of the manor house before the founding of the current club in 1911.
The curious thing about the discovery is that the hole 13 It is historically referred to as «The Cellars«, which in Spanish translates to «The Cellars.» The name suggests that the location of the structure was known to the founders when they plotted the course of the course.
Through its social networks, the golf club reported that the warehouse is kept sealed for security. The institution’s directors are now analyzing the future use of this space and the historical value of the recovered objects.
«The bottles were removed for safekeeping while we decided on their next chapter,» they noted. Now the club is evaluating the possibility of the historical remains being transformed into an attraction within the route or permanently displayed at the club headquarters.
