Robert Norman Hall

AIKEN, SC - Mr. Robert Norman Hall, 88, died Saturday, September 13, 2014. Funeral services will be held Wednesday, September 17, 12:00 PM at Aiken First Baptist Church with the Rev. Dr. Fred Andrea, III officiating. The family will receive friends in the church parlor one hour prior to the service. Born in Hilton, North Yorkshire England, Mr. Hall was the son of the late Frederick "the Banana King" Hall, a well known fruit merchant in Yorkshire and surrounding regions. Frederick and his wife Olive Gwendolyn Hall forced Robert on horseback at a young age, but after a series of gorgeous but horribly behaved ponies, Robert hated to ride. However, the young boy kept with it as he grew up and a passion emerged from the fear. He began to manage a horse trade with his father at their farm; buying, training, and selling English Thoroughbreds. After a short time and quick success, it was clear he had a natural ability to work with the horses. So obvious was his skill, that it was noticed by the head of the legendary Spanish Riding School in Vienna, Austria where Mr. Hall learned the history and art of classical equitation. Upon completion of his training at the Spanish School, Mr. Hall returned to Fulmer, England where he had previously purchased a riding school. Mr. Hall became a member of the British Horse Society and established the Fulmer School of Equitation where he taught his "Fulmer Way", bringing the classical style of riding to current equestrians in more than fifteen countries across the world. One of Mr. Hall's most notable roles was as the dressage coach for the British Equestrian Olympic teams in the 1956 through 1968 games. At this same time, Mr. Hall started a family, the first two of eventually three sons were born. Mr. Hall ran his riding school in Fulmer, England solely for a time but eventually expanded to multiple locations in Britain and the United States, changing the school from the Fulmer School of Equitation to Fulmer, International Inc. The harsh weather of the British Isles and the Northeast United States finally forced him south. He settled on a sixty-five acre farm on the Hitchcock Woods in Aiken, SC in 1980, down-sizing to the one location. Mr. Hall married Laura Hatch at this time and his third son was born shortly after establishing their life in Aiken. Mr. and Mrs. Hall have been teaching the Fulmer Way together ever since. Mr. Hall had many hobbies outside his equestrian lifestyle, including greyhound racing and coursing and showing pigeons. Ultimately, Mr. Hall will be remembered for his wit and his wisdom, which applied to life, not just to horses. In addition to his wife, Mr. Hall is survived by his sons, Henry Norman Hall, Portugal; Roland William Frederick (Michelle Lynn) Hall, Aiken; and Graham Pierson (Breigh Anne) Hall, Aiken; and his grandsons Jonathan Fountain, Rafferty Hall, and Pierson Hall. Mr. Hall was pre-deceased by his first wife Johanna Sybille Carp and sister Joyce Doherty. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the National Greyhound Adoption Program, 10901 Dutton Rd., Philadelphia, PA 19154, WWW.NGAP.ORG, or the AIKEN SPCA Albrecht Center for Animal Welfare, 199 Willow Run Rd., Aiken, SC 29801. SHELLHOUSE FUNERAL HOME, INC., 924 HAYNE AVE., AIKEN, SC Mr. Hall's online guest book may be signed at www.shellhousefuneralhome.com To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Robert Norman Hall, please visit our flower store.