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359th Fighter Group, 1943-1945 added a new photo to the album: The Outer Circle: Newsletter of the 359th FG Association.

Flak Home — The History of Stanbridge Earls
Situated northwest of Romsey, Hampshire, England, in 1942 Stanbridge Earls became the first "Flak Shack" or "Flak Home" — a rest and relaxation home for American Air Force Officers during World War II. Roke Manor served a similar function, and together they were known as Station 503. Officers could practice archery, play croquet, tromp in the woods, or simply lounge on the extensive grounds. Many 359th Fighter Group men visited the estate, retreating, albeit briefly, from the stress and pressures of combat missions.

On 24 June 1944, Captain Howard Fogg wrote in his diary that, "Colonel Tacon to Flak Home tomorrow by order of Wing. Good idea, he’s earned it by golly!"
On 25 July 1944, Howard noted, "Tommy Lane is back from Flak Home, seems fine. Hawk went down there this week. Must be quite a place."

The July 1944 report from the Office of Group Historian states that, "The flak home, offering seven days of complete rest and relaxation, was vigorously promoted by Captain Montimore C. Shwayder, the Group Surgeon (his report discusses some aspects of pilot fatigue). Seven-day leaves were ordered more frequently..."

And on 17 August 1944, after ten months in the ETO, Howard Fogg wrote, "Doc Shwayder is turning my name in for Flak Home tomorrow, decided I could use the rest. Okay. I sure don’t feel very eager of late. About nuttin’."

The history of Stanbridge Earls can be traced to the 9th century.
The name Stanbridge Earls is thought to have stemmed from a local stone bridge, Stanbridge, over the River Test, which was used as a route to a Saxon palace near Andover, and the fact that the manor house was once the residence of the 1st Earl of March. The estate's history predates the Earl, however, as the chapel may have been built before the 9th century. In about AD 857 it was the initial burial site of the Saxon King Æthelwulf. Sometime in the 1700s his remains, along with the bones of other Saxon Kings, were exhumed from beneath the stone floor of the chapel and moved to Winchester Cathedral. It is said that King Æthelwulf's ghost haunts the main house even today.
An unnamed manor, thought to be Stanbridge, is described in the Domesday Book, William the Conqueror's 1086 survey of most of England and parts of Wales. Stanbridge was confiscated from Chief Cheping, a Saxon thane, and given to Sir Ralph de Mortimer, one of William the Conqueror's famous generals and the 1st Earl of March. In 1245 the Mortimer family sold the estate in two lots, and the manor was purchased by Richard de Havering.

Thomas Kenne inherited Stanbridge Earls in 1362. By 1450 the original estate had been split into three properties: Stanbridge Earls, Ranvilles, and Ervilles. All three were purchased by John Kirkby. His son, William, bought even more land.

Stanbridge Earls was taken from the Kirkby family in 1652 because they supported King Charles 1 during the Civil War. At that time the estate consisted of 16 houses with outbuildings and land, four cottages, 20 barns, two water mills, and one dove house spread through Stanbridge, Romsey, Roke, Michelmarsh, and Awbridge, as well as fishing in the River Test. The new owner, Roger Gollop, was a Parliamentarian and magistrate of Southampton.

The estate remained in his family until 1703, when it was sold to John Fifield. An eccentric relative, also named John Fifield, inherited it in 1748. He regarded repairs as an extravagance and the house deteriorated. Fifield’s son rebuilt the house and his son-in-law, Charles Hall, took over the property. Sadly, he committed suicide at Stanbridge Earls in 1870.
In 1871 Florence Nightingale’s father bought the estate, and it was inherited by another daughter, Lady Verney, who sold it to Sir Basil Montgomery in 1895. Sir Basil built two three-story wings. The house was sold to Henry Hansard in 1905. He commissioned the stained glass coats-of-arms.
Lord Greenway bought Stanbridge Earls in 1917. A great host, he employed nine house staff, seven gardeners, and a chauffeur.

As mentioned, in 1942 Stanbridge Earls became the first Flak Home. In the same year, the estate was broken into lots and auctioned off. Walter Hutchinson, a publishing magnate, bought the house and about 60 acres.

Upon Hutchinson’s suicide in 1950, a Mr. Beisley bought what was described as "…The particularly desirable and extremely valuable historic residence and agricultural estate of nearly 426 acres with an attractive XVIIth century residence of great charm and character and beautifully situated in timbered grounds with two lodges."

In 1952 Stanbridge Earls became a school founded by a charitable trust, and after decades of respected operation, the school closed in late 2013 amidst controversy. A May 2013 inspection found that, "As a consequence of continuing weaknesses with leadership and governance, children remain unsafe at this residential special school." On September 2, 2013 the school announced that insolvency administrators had been called in. In a letter to parents on behalf of the board of trustees, David Du Croz, the chairman, called the move a "tragic end to a once great school."
The Outer Circle, 359th Fighter Group Association, Vol. 25, No. 2, April 2014.
By Janet Fogg, co-author of Fogg in the Cockpit