THIS week's article concludes the history of the Dingle Lane Drill Hall.

It is a sign of the times when someone won, in just one game of bingo, more than 10 times what the original building cost to build and furnish.

I described the Drill Hall last week but it was officially opened on Wednesday, June 26, 1901 by Lord Dundonald of Gwyrch Castle in Wales.

Lord Dundonald was in the Nile Expedition some 16 years previously and was in command of the Camel Corps for the relief of Khartoum where General Gordon died. He was also remembered as the first to enter Ladysmith early in the Boer War after the town had been under siege from November 2, 1899 to February 28, 1900. At the time the Guardian noted the "heroism displayed by the relief force was not to be forgotten".

The eagerly awaited opening ceremony started with the arrival of the Earl of Dundonald by special train at Winsford Station at 1.20pm. He was met by Mr J E Reiss, Mayor of Over and John Rigby, chairman of WVDC, and of course John Henry Cooke. They drove via Crook Lane, Weaver Street passing the Drill Hall to the Technical Schools for luncheon.

At 4pm, the procession started from the schools. It included the Winsford Rifle Volunteers and band, trades reps, students, Over Silver Band, a troop of the 22 Company of the Cheshire Regiment, with private carriages for W H Verdin and wife, the Earl, Sir J Verdin and the mayor.

The entourage went along High Street to Over Cross returning to Town Bridge along Market Place, Station Road, Crook Lane, School Road, Wharton Road, Weaver Street to the hall, where admission was by ticket.

Huge crowds gathered along the route and after the Earl Dundonald declared the hall open, tea was held there with tickets costing one shilling each and there was "great demand".

The evening saw a dance at the hall with a double ticket costing 2/6 and a single two shillings.

The Earl attended and presented medals by the town of Winsford to the Yeoman Volunteers and ambulance brigade who were recently back home from the front. Arthur Finney's orchestral string band played until 3am, with refreshment in the gallery served by a Miss Bell.

By 1935, the hall had become the Palace Cinema, where the only drilling I knew was when we were drilled out by some large usherette for throwing cigarette ends over the balcony in 1963.

In the early 70s the cinema closed and it became a bingo hall, and was owned by Les Birch, of Strand fame.

A permanent reminder of the Boer War can now be seen on the town's shopping centre, but prior to that, it stood between the Guildhall and the Technical Schools.

It was moved to the town centre after it had been vandalised. In fact, it had a spell where it was headless.

I believe five soldiers from Winsford died during the campaign (maybe Alan Ravenscroft will know?) and the monument cost £125. The 80 plus Winsford contingent, I have read, had clothing, food and tobacco sent out by townsfolk to the Veldt.

I covered the ceremony a few years ago where the memorial was opened by Brigadier General Ridley who performed the ceremony on November 24, 1906, where after the day's festivities, a bonfire on the Flash bank was lit consisting of eight tons of wood, a barrel of tar and 12 gallons of paraffin. On Platts Field there was also a large firework display.

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.