Flitch of bacon custom does not seem to have been claimed very often. Horace Walpole, who visited Whichnoure in 1760, reported that the flitch had not been claimed for thirty years and that a real flitch of bacon was no longer kept ready at the manor. A replacement, carved in wood, was now displayed over the mantle of the fireplace in the main hall, presumably in order to continue to meet the conditions of the original land grant. Walpole is quite taken by this tradition and mentions it in several letters to his friends. In a letter to the Countess of Ailesbury (Lady Caroline
Flitch beam beam), decreases the viability of the system. Flitch beams are currently mainly used in historic renovations, where they can be used to reinforce aged lumber supports, or for aesthetic purposes, where exposed beams with the appearance of wood and the strength of steel are required. An adaptive use project in the UK, changing stables into offices, required cutting the beam supporting a floor down its entire length, and then inserting a similarly-sized steel plate. The resulting flitched beam was then secured with resin and bolts, preserving appearance while providing strength. Flitch beams were used as columns in a two-story new