logo
Welcome Guest! To enable all features please Login or Register.

Notification

Icon
Error
The Forgotten Bridge:
Options
Go to last post Go to first unread
Previous Topic Next Topic
R. Stephenson-Smythe  
#1 Posted : 05 April 2010 13:46:20(UTC)
Retweet
R. Stephenson-Smythe
Rank: Advanced Member

Groups: Member
Joined: 19/03/2009(UTC)
Posts: 1,494

Was thanked: 2 time(s) in 2 post(s)

 

 
I thought that I might just repost the old photo that I put on the forum a few months ago showing Wharf Road.
 
This caused lots of discussions and seemed to be of very great interest to Horwich Ender and Rock Banker. In fact there was so much discussion about the circular, stone wall that a competition was introduced and the first person to guess the usage of the structure won a prize; from memory I think it was a vintage car donated by George.
To this day I don’t think we have had a winner but there were some great efforts:
 
Horwich Ender thought it was a prison.
Rock Banker thought it was Whaley’s own wall of death. Did he offer to ride it by the way?
Somebody thought it was something to do with the Roosdyche and the Romans had built it as a sort of mini Colosseum. I don’t know what he was on.
Fedup with great anticipation lovingly thought it could be a whisky distillery.
It certainly wasn’t a smoking shelter for The White Hart.
Surprisingly there were no guesses from the Whaley Eleven.
 
In addition to that structure other things that were talked about were the chimneys in the middle of Whaley, the large gas lamp and various other long gone buildings but one thing on the photo that brought absolutely no comment whatsoever was the forgotten bridge.
 
Take another look: follow the train line up towards Horwich End. First we have Wharf Road Bridge, then we have the forgotten bridge that goes underneath the railway track, then we have the bridge near Stanways and finally we can see the bridge on Old Road that the train drives under.
 
The forgotten bridge is on Wharf Court, off Wharf Road and emerges behind The Memories of India. And it’s a little belter; bigger and better than the Wharf Road bridge.
 
How many people looked at the photo and didn’t notice it? How many people have driven/walked past The Memories of India and not noticed it. It is quite clear to see even when driving past.
Now careful in the morning we don’t want any accidents while driving past Jack Hallam’s do we?
 
Anyway maybe Mr Jackson might retrieve his old and extremely valuable O/S map and come up with a road name for us. It couldn’t possibly be another Station Road could it?
 
 
 
 
R. S-S
 
 

Wanna join the discussion?! Login to your Whaleybridge Forums forum accountor Register a new forum account.
 
umtali  
#2 Posted : 06 April 2010 08:39:07(UTC)
Retweet
Guest
Rank: *Banned*

Groups: Guest
Joined: 22/02/2009(UTC)
Posts: 1,461

 

Missed this posting the first time I might be repeating an earlier opinion but I suspect coal mine related.
 
Disley, New Mills, Whaley Bridge and district were very much involved in the extraction of coal pre 1900. A look at any census return prior to 1901 confirms this.  The arrival of the railway brought this employment to an end by enabling the delivery of cheaper coal from Yorkshire.
 
My g. grandfather and g g grandfather are shown in the 1891 or 1881 (have to look for the copy) census as coal miners residing in Bridge Mont.
To get back to the picture-
 
Mine ventilation
Drainage and pumping
 
The pictures below show old mines in Derbyshire, some resemblance perhaps
umtali attached the following image(s):
coal2.jpg
coal.jpg
buggyite  
#3 Posted : 06 April 2010 10:57:48(UTC)
Retweet
buggyite
Rank: Advanced Member

Groups: Member
Joined: 28/09/2009(UTC)
Posts: 344
Man
Location: Bugsworth

Thanks: 3 times
Was thanked: 3 time(s) in 3 post(s)

Isn't it the river bridge, RSS?

And as for the mystery structure, I still reckon its mine ventilation - it looks like the walls are smoke blackened, so there was probably a fire kept burning at the bottom of the shaft to induce a draught to pull fresh air round the workings.

Buggyite
I am a yellow factioner!
R. Stephenson-Smythe  
#4 Posted : 06 April 2010 11:56:41(UTC)
Retweet
R. Stephenson-Smythe
Rank: Advanced Member

Groups: Member
Joined: 19/03/2009(UTC)
Posts: 1,494

Was thanked: 2 time(s) in 2 post(s)

 

I think that’s a good shout about the stone circle, Buggyite,
 
In the meantime to let you have a better look I’ll put a better picture in the library.
 
R. S-S
G. Jackson  
#5 Posted : 06 April 2010 16:32:06(UTC)
Retweet
G. Jackson
Rank: Advanced Member

Groups: Member
Joined: 17/08/2009(UTC)
Posts: 694
Location: Whaley Bridge at heart

The forgotten bridge should be posted under the Goyt Bridges thread as it is indeed a river Goyt bridge.

Edited by user 06 April 2010 19:23:58(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified
R. Stephenson-Smythe  
#6 Posted : 06 April 2010 18:07:02(UTC)
Retweet
R. Stephenson-Smythe
Rank: Advanced Member

Groups: Member
Joined: 19/03/2009(UTC)
Posts: 1,494

Was thanked: 2 time(s) in 2 post(s)

 

Now listen here Mr Jackson,
 
You do come up with some ‘pearls’ but this time you have surpassed yourself.
 
The railway was extended from Whaley to Buxton in the 1860’s and Z & W Wade arrived in town in the 1920’s so there must have been some sort of Mystic Meg designing the railway if they made a massive bridge just on the off chance that 60 years later a building contactor would take a bit of water from the river and use a turbine to power a mortar pad and slab saw.
What planning and foresight to have thought of such a future event and to convince the railways to spend all that money just on a whim.
 
Ah well I suppose things never change.
 
But to report back to the members of this forum I suggest we somehow contact each other and arrange a field trip to finally put this one to bed.
I trust you are able bodied and have a digital camera.
Maybe Fedup would like to join us or even the Clerk to the Council.
 
R. S-S
Users browsing this topic
Guest
You cannot post new topics in this forum.
You cannot reply to topics in this forum.
You cannot delete your posts in this forum.
You cannot edit your posts in this forum.
You cannot create polls in this forum.
You cannot vote in polls in this forum.