Visiting the house
The house will be open 10.30am - 4pm during property open days. Normal admission prices apply to visit the house, garden and cafe. (Adult £6, Child £3, Family £15. National Trust members and under 5s free entry)
Staying safe
You’ll find sanitising points in the house, and sinks for hand washing can be found in the toilets in the courtyard. Please refrain from touching whilst in the house as we are unable to sanitise many of the historical surfaces without causing damage.
What you can see
There will be volunteers on hand to welcome you and to help guide you and give you brief stories of the Pennyman family and collections. You will be able to walk into the Entrance Hall and through the Drawing Room and Dining Room and smaller rooms downstairs and into some of the bedrooms upstairs, admiring the paintings and exploring the furnished rooms enjoyed by the family.
Inside Ormesby Hall
Generations of the Pennyman family have been at Ormesby since 1599. James Pennyman bought Ormesby Manor, then a single-story house, and started a series of extensions and modifications that would continue for the next 150 years. The mansion was built by the 3rd Baronet’s son and his wife in around 1740. It was further added to by the 6th Baronet and the two buildings were eventually joined together around 1870 to become what we now know as Ormesby Hall.
In the 17th Century the Pennyman family were loyal Royalists and in 1664 Sir James Pennyman was made 1st Baronet of Ormesby. This hereditary title remained in the family for over 180 years, until, in 1852, the 7th baronet, Sir William Henry Pennyman, died without an heir. The family estate, including Ormesby Hall, was inherited by Sir William’s Aunt’s eldest Grandson, James White Worsley. James changed his name to Pennyman by royal licence.
The Hall has provided a comfortable home for generations of the Pennyman family. The last, Lt. Col. Jim Pennyman, who died in 1961, and his wife Ruth who died in 1983.
Throughout the house, the décor, paintings and furniture tell the stories of the many Pennyman’s who have lived in and enjoyed Ormesby Hall.
Entrance Hall
This room with its grand Palladian style was built for Dorothy Pennyman in the 1740s. It was added to c.1772 when Sir James, 6th Baronet, inherited. Over the fireplace is the Pennyman Coat of Arms denoting the Baronetcy dated 1663/4.