Ionic order columns, ballrooms and a winter garden. In 1949 following the death of Robert Shafto, the property was sold to the National Coal Board and the family moved to Bavington Hall. In 1969 the house was acquired by Durham County Council and from then until 1995 it was occupied by a Local Education Authority residential school. After being declared surplus to the council's needs, the Hall stood empty until August 2000. Later in that year it was again sold and was refurbished by new owners and converted into a hotel. Beamish Museum now occupies part of the parkland in which the house stands. The hall is nearing the end of a renovation, which intends to restore the ancestral home to its original splendour. References A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Commoners of Great Britain and Ireland Burke and Burke Vol 1 1835 p47. Google Books. Shafto of Whitworth and Beamish. Durham County Council, briefing notes Beamish Hall Grade II* listed buildings in County Durham Country houses in County Durham History of County Durham