A four-year search for a suitable stonemason to restore a unique historical pet memorial in Woodthorpe Grange Hall is over after a Calverton firm stepped up to the challenge.
The original gravestone of Faithful Old Tim—the beloved family pet of the third owners of the Grange and the Woodthorpe Estate before the land became a public park in 1922—was vandalised, efforts began to find a stonemason capable of replacing it.
Following a four‑year search for someone who could both replicate and inscribe a new gravestone, a suitable stonemason was finally found. On Thursday, 9 July 2026, a newly crafted gravestone faithfully replicating the original was installed.
This replacement was made possible thanks to a generous donation from Jason Barret of Natural Cut Stone Ltd, Calverton, who supplied an off‑cut of York Stone, and from James Whitbread of Whitbread Restoration, who donated his time and expertise to shape and inscribe the new memorial to Faithful Old Tim.
A spokesman for the Friends of Woodthorpe Grange Park said: “On behalf of the Friends of Woodthorpe Grange Park, we extend our sincere thanks to Jason Barret of Natural Cut Stone Ltd and to James Whitbread and his colleagues at Whitbread Restoration for their generosity, craftsmanship, and for installing the new gravestone.”
