Boyd's photo diary. |
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Wed 31 Jan 2018
Newlands Church and the old school attached. The exact date of
the origin of Newlands Church is unknown, but is believed to be
some time in the middle 16th century. Christopher Saxton’s map
of 1576 shows a church on the site marked "Newlande Chap."
The school was built on the west side of the church and opened
in 1841. A modern plaque outside the school says it was built in
1877 but records confirm its construction in 1841.
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Newlands Church, Cumbria |
The old School building |
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The poet William Wordsworth and his daughter Dora visited
Newlands Church in May 1826 while on a walking tour of the fells
from Rydal Mount. In the summer of 1901, children's author and
illustrator Beatrix Potter was staying at nearby Lingholm and
often had the Vicar of Newlands Church and his family to tea. |
Newlands Church interior |
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Mon 29 Jan 2018
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I was walking along the banks of the River Eden near Armathwaite,
Cumbria looking for some stone carvings. The river level was too
high to get to them but as I walked back through Coombs Wood I
came across a stone sculpture called 'Vista' by Graeme Mitcheson.
It is one of ten Eden Benchmarks sculptures along the river.
This photo is a small part of it. |
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Sun 28 Jan 2018
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Thanks to the Canal and River Trust plus their employees and
volunteers I enjoyed a very informative visit to the Johnson’s
Hillock locks open day. The occasion was the replacement of two
sets of lock gates and visitors were able to descent into the
depths of the lock while the canal was drained. Temporary steps
and staging was provided so people could inspect the new oak
gates close up.
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The new gates were
individually made at Stanley Ferry workshop, Wakefield, West
Yorkshire. They are made from British Oak and weigh on average
3.6 tonnes each with a working life of between 25 and 30 years.
The larger and heavier tailgates (at the lower side of the lock)
cost around £38,000 a set.
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I was delighted to see
several sets of mason’s marks on some of the stones. The marks
would normally be underwater and only visible when the canal is
drained for maintenance. |
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Each mason had his own mark
and these were used to show supervisors who did which piece of
work thereby providing quality control and assessment for
payment. They can also be seen on many of the canal bridges. |
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Mason's mark |
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Sat 27 Jan 2018
Afternoon bike ride via Abbey Village and Belmont. Dean head
Lane Rivington has been closed to cars near Alance Bridge while
new water main and electricity duct laid for Barn conversion to
a house. |
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This afternoon I called
at The Farmhouse building by Astley Hall and Ambio’s Café to see
the new exhibition “Chorley’s Past Coal Mining Industry” which
is hosted by Heritage Centre Group. The centre is open on
Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon –
3.30 p.m. & admission is free. The exhibition is on through Jan
and Feb 2018.
A large map shows the location of many mine
shafts in the surrounding areas and also several very close to
the town centre.
The group has on display some of their
archive of Chorley Guardian newspapers going back to the late
1800s. They are packed with news and information and I enjoyed
reading a 10th Jan 1931 article about fog. An extract reads:
Lost in the Plutonian Mists.
Road Transport Gropes its way
through Stygian Darkness.
Chorley lay fogbound during the
earlier part of this week, and to add to the troubles of
inhabitants "Jack Frost" gripped it with an icy clutch. |
A more recent article was rather disturbing.
A Chorley
Guardian extract from December 1949 may still have effects
today.
Disused Mine Becomes 'Atom' Dump 'No Danger' says
Ministry.
Birkacre Colliery has been taken over by The
Ministry of Supply and is to be used as underground "Tip" for
waste from the Atomic Research Station at Salwick.
It is
rumoured that the shaft is to be utilised to dispose of "Spent"
Uranium waste and that the chute will ensure that the "Waste"
will be well and truly buried. |
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Stygian Darkness |
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Fri 26 Jan 2018
Fri 26 Jan 2018 |
Sat 26 Jan 2013 |
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Five years ago on Sat 26 Jan
2013 Whittle-le-Woods was covered in snow. While on this
morning’s walk I took a photo of the Millstones Monument,
Chorley Old Road to compare with the same view exactly 5 years
ago. |
Out for a sunny bike ride. Photos taken are below. |
Legacy House on Preston Road
The old Reservoir Pumping
Station
A new extension on the left |
Erskin Rd / Harpers Ln bowling green |
New lock gates being filxed
Leeds & Liverpool Canal
Town
Ln whittle-le-Woods |
One of the new lock gates |
A temporary access road has been constructed for the replacement
of the lock gates by the Canal & River Trust. The new gates were
made at the Stanley Ferry workshop in west Yorkshire out of
British oak and lowered into place today. |
The site on my evening walk |
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Thu 25 Jan 2018
As a young lad in the 1950s I
pestered my parents to let me see the 1954 film ‘20,000 Leagues
under the Sea’. They wouldn’t let me see it so I had to wait for
the DVD to view it at home. But a TV screen is no match for the
real thing. Today (Thu 25 Jan 2018) I managed to see it on the
big screen. Prior to being Chorley Little Theatre the building
was the Empire Cinema dating back to 1910.
Ironically ‘20,000
Leagues under the Sea’ was the last film it showed in 1958 when
it was still the Empire.
The film starred Kirk Douglas, James
Mason, Paul Lukas & Peter Lorre, produced by Walt Disney and
adapted from Jules Verne's 19th-century novel Twenty Thousand
Leagues Under the Sea. It won 1954 Academy Awards for Best Art
Direction – Colour, Best Special Effects & Best Film Editing.
For its time the scenes and effects were astonishing. |
Chorley Little Theatre in the rain |
Interior with new seats and floor |
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Tue 23 Jan 2018
Afternoon caught bus then train to Manchester to the Home centre
to see the film ‘The Mountain’. The new complex is centred on
Tony Wilson Place where there is a statue of
Friedrich Engels (1820 – 1895) the German philosopher,
social scientist, journalist and businessman. There was no
information board to say who the statue was. |
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Friedrich Engels (1820 – 1895) |
Engels came to Manchester in 1842 and went on to chronicle the
depths of poverty in the city, in his work ‘The Condition of the
Working Class in England’, which was published in 1845.
Engels co-wrote The Communist Manifesto, with friend, Karl Marx.
In 1845 pair spent the whole Summer studying at the
same desk, in Chetham’s
Library.
The desk is still there today. |
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Old film projector |
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Thu 18 Jan 2018
Lint Mill at Invervar |
Deep snow & snow shoes |
I reached the valley bottom and visited the ruined Carnbane
Castle, Invervar.
The following information is from the
Scottish Castles Association website.
Carnbane Castle,
Invervar is described in 'The Lairds and lands of Glenlyon',
published in 1886, by Duncan Campbell, a native of Glenlyon. |
Carnbane Castle |
He describes it as "...a
square, or rather oblong, tower, vaulted and loopholed, with a
wide hospitable looking chimney in the west gable, and a round
tower with cork-screw stair butting out from the adjacent side".
The date of Carnbane's construction is unknown. It is believed
to have been built by Duncan Campbell of Glenlyon, otherwise
known as "Donnachadh Ruadh na Feileachd" or Red Duncan of the
Hospitality (a rather unusual style for a Campbell). His date of
birth is also unknown, although it is recorded that he died in
1580. |
Carnbane Castle |
Each wall has a gunloop |
Nearer to Invervar I crossed a field to visit a walled graveyard
called Cladh Chunna on the map. It means (St.Cunna's cemetery) |
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Wed 17 Jan 2018
Driving to Scotland to do some walking. There was a lot of snow
on the M74 yesterday and many motorists were stranded overnight
near Abington Services. |
The car park at Abington off the M74 |
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Tue 16 Jan 2018
Afternoon walked to Shaw Hill Club to donate blood.
I
know some people aren’t able to donate but many are and
nationally less than 3% donate. To explode a myth they don’t
take a pint but around 0.47lt. A pint is 0.56lt.
After you’ve
donate a nice person gives you a drink of tea, coffee or juice.
There is also a table full of a huge variety of chocolate
biscuits and snacks and they don’t care how many you have! |
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Mon 15 Jan 2018
A rainy morning walk along Factory Lane, Whittle-le-Woods. |
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Sat 13 Jan 2018
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??, Barbara, Bill, Eric and Peter |
This
morning Whittle-le-Woods
Councillor Eric Bell officially opened the third village ‘Book
Swap’ kiosk at the junction of Hillside Crescent and Chorley Old
Road. It has been converted from the old Telephone Box. As well
as an excellent selection of books there is also an emergency
defibrillator. Books are available for villagers to swap or
borrow so please make use of this excellent free facility. The
other Book Swaps are on Waterhouse Green and Town Lane/Halls
Square (near the canal bridge). |
Cllr Eric Bell
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Enjoyed an evening walk with my camera, tripod and head torch to
provide illumination. |
Carwood Lane footpath |
Hillfoot Cottage |
Lower Copthurst |
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Wed 10 Jan 2018
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I enjoyed a morning walk above the west side of Thirlmere,
Cumbria to visit the bothy also known as Countess Ossalinsky's
Summer House. |
Countess Ossalinsky's Summer House |
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Countess Ossalinsky's Summer House interior |
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Tue 09 Jan 2018
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Evening at Chorley Historical & Archaeological Society for first
meeting at our new venue at Chorley Trinity Church Hall,
Gillibrand Walks off Devonshire Road. I gave my new presentation
on NE Nepal and Lumba Sumba La. |
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Sun 07 Jan 2018
The old toll building on the Leeds and Liverpool canal at Town
Lane bridge, Whittle-le-Woods. I used my tripod to expose for
20 seconds and used my head torch to illuminate the foreground. |
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St James' Church, brindle seen while out on bike ride |
St James' graveyard |
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Sat 06 Jan 2018
An evening walk along the canal between Town Land and Whittle
Springs |
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Fri 05 Jan 2018
Had an interesting walk around
Hollingworth Lake near Littleborough.
The lake was
originally built as the main water source for the Rochdale Canal
but developed as a tourist resort from the 1860s and became
known as the Weighver's Seaport.
Hotels were built around it
and tourism was helped by the arrival of the railway in 1839
which brought day-trippers and weekend visitors from Manchester,
Bradford and Leeds. |
Hollingworth |
Captn Webb used to train here |
Hollingworth Lake postcard |
Tourist steamer |
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Thu 04 Jan 2018
The Seathwaite Road, Cumbria in the pouring rain.
It is
officially the wettest place in England. |
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Mon 01 Jan 2018
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My first photo of 2018 taken shortly after midnight at a camp on
the west side of Great End, Cumbria near Lambfoot Dub. The 10
second exposure showed moonlight in the cloud and my head torch
to illuminate the tent. |
My tent just after midnight. |
First coffee of the year |
The tent just before packing up camp. |
The stretcher box at Sty Head |
Descending the Corridor route path |
Taylorgill Force |
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