Historic Pictures of Sowerby Bridge

Historic pictures of Sowerby Bridge is a set of 3 YouTube videos I have done featuring images taken in various areas of the town of Sowerby Bridge taken in the last 150 years. The images are part of a collection I recently acquired and I am advised are all public domain, copyright free images with some being part of a Lilywhites postcards collection of over 100 years plus in age. If I am not informed correctly regarding the copyright then I will happily credit or remove the picture at request.

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Kincardine Bridge, Scotland.

Kincardine Bridge is a new video I have uploaded to YouTube showing a crossing of the bridge in both directions in November 2019.

The bridge crossers the River Forth approx. 25 miles north west of Edinburgh, and was the nearest road crossing to Scotland's Capital until the Forth Road Bridge opened in 1964. Kincardine Bridge is still the alternative crossing to the Forth Road Bridge and Queensferry Crossing when they are closed or restricted due to accidents or severe weather. The bridge connects the boroughs of Falkirk and Fife.

Built between 1932 and 1936 by designers Sir Alexander Gibb and Architect Donald Watson, the opening having been delayed due to a steam ship crashing into the construction in February 1935. The decision to build the bridge having been made when traffic levels at Stirling Bridge, which then was the nearest point of crossing the Forth other than by ferry had risen from approx. 150 per hour in 1922 to over 400 per hour by 1932. Built with a central section a of 364ft that acted as a swing bridge to allow ships to pass through to the Port of Alloa, this section remaining in use until 1988 and being locked shut in 1989. The mechanics are still there to operate the swing bridge but it is unlikely ever to be used again. The bridge has a total length of 2697ft and cost £327000 to build. Whilst still in use it was replaced as the main bridge crossing in 2008 by the Clackmannanshire Bridge which cost £120 million to complete.

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Road Views of Britain, A Drive from Ross on Wye to Monmouth.

A drive from Ross on Wye to Monmouth is a new video I have uploaded to YouTube. The stretch of road driven along is probably one of the most scenic in Britain and the video takes in approx. 12 miles from the end of the M50 motorway, along the A449 and A40 and completes just after I emerged from the Gibraltar tunnel at Monmouth. It was filmed on a dash cam from a higher up vantage point than normal as I was driving a long in my DAF XF truck.

The video was filmed on Wednesday January 29th 2020.

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Vintage War Posters

A few years ago I bought a collection of copyright free posters and images off a collector and if I'm honest I was stuck for an idea of what to do with them, so they just sat on a hard drive waiting. I recently remembered I had them and came up with tidying them up a little and using them as slideshows for my YouTube channel.

The first set of pictures I used were selected from an album of wartime posters featuring propaganda for women to work, men to be recruited to various forces, rationing, promoting peace and nationalism. They are taken from many conflicts and various countries involved. I have done this slideshows more as a historical propaganda show reel rather than promoting conflict and they are to show how propaganda was used to help with wartime efforts.

I will be working on more over the next few weeks to upload to my YouTube channel from travel posters to vintage pin ups to more wartime posters as well as continuing to upload my own collection of images. Click here and take a moment to subscribe to my YouTube channel. The vintage pin ups will not be posted here but will be available to view on YouTube. Below is a selection of the posters featured in the videos

 

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Ravensthorpe Railway Station

Ravensthorpe Railway Station is a small suburban stop on the Huddersfield Line between Mirfield and Dewsbury. West Yorkshire. A little used station with only 35342 passengers using it in 2018 - 19, approx. 680 people per week, you can't help but think it would be a much busier with station if platforms were added to the lines towards Wakefield which branch off just before arriving at Ravensthorpe. 

Opened in 1890 this was the 2nd station to serve the area with the first station opening in 1869 on the Ravensthorpe branch of the Spen Valley Line. This station was closed in 1962. This station was built with a good shed to attract freight traffic, some 42 years after the line was opened and quite grand station buildings which were listed prior to a fire which led to them being demolished and replaced by basic shelters. The station has a unique character which is hard to explain, it's location in an industrial suburb of Dewsbury means it should have the feel of a busy commuter but when your stood on the platforms you get the feel of rural countryside stop.

The station has basic facilities with limited shelters on both platforms, no toilets or ticket purchase machines. There are information boards and timetables, the station is unstaffed. Access to platform 2 is via the bridge and steps.

The pictures below were taken on December 30 2019, there are a total of which can also be seen on my ClickASnap account where they are full size, resolution and un-watermarked.

The lines to the left of the picture, there has never been a station serving
those line at this location, this may change as there are plans to demolish
and re-site the station just beyond the bridge in the picture, as part of plans to
put 4 tracks along this route.

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All the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.

From Hull, Hell & Halifax, Good Lord Deliver Us. The Halifax Gibbet

The Halifax Gibbet was a guillotine used for public execution, first used locally in the 13th century, some 500 years before it became more popularly associated with the French Revolution. The first man executed on the gibbet was John of Dalton in 1286, with the last thought to have been John Wilkinson and Anthony Mitchell of Sowerby who met their fate on the 30th April 1650. Between them dates their were 52 confirmed executions although it is widely believed that over 100 took place. 

The gibbet was built centrally upon a platform 4ft high and 13ft square. The gibbet stood approx. 15ft high with the blade fastened to a block of wood between 2 lengths of wood. The blade was fixed in to place by a pin which was withdrawn by a cord at the moment of executions. The blade was approx. 10 inch x 8 inch in size and was not sharp, relying on speed and weight part the criminals body with head. The criminals were charged under Gibbet Law.

The Gibbet law required that any thief who was caught stealing or who confessed to stealing cloth, goods, or animals within the boundaries of Sowerbyshire or the Forest of Hardwick, of which Halifax was part to the value of 13 1/2d, with the value assed by 4 constables, would be arrested. The criminal would then be tried by a jury and if convicted, they would then be places in the town stocks for 6 days and then executed on the 7th day on the gibbet. Gibbet Law made no allowances for man or women and it is known that at least 5 women were executed by this method. They were as follows,

July 13th 1588 Wife of Thomas Roberts, Halifax

February 22nd 1603 Wife of Peter Harrison, Bradford

November 23rd 1623 George Fairbank & his illegitimate daughter Anna

July 5th 1627 Wife of John Wilson, Northowram

December 8th 1627 Sarah Lum, Halifax

The Gibbet Law allowed for an accused to escape the blade, it said that if the accused was able to with draw his head after the pin was released, and escape across the Hebble Brook, the then boundary approx. 500 yards from the gibbet, then they would be free. 2 men are said to have escaped the blades justice, a Mr Dinnis, and more well known John Lacey also known as the Running Man. In 1617 he escaped the gibbet by running beyond the boundary defined as the Forest of Hardwick or Sowerbyshire after the blades release. Unfortunately for him whilst Gibbet Law allowed for you to escape the punishment, provided you never returned to the boundaries prescribed in the law. He returned to Halifax a few years later, was captured and executed on the 29th January 1623.

The gibbet was outlawed by Oliver Cromwell in 1650, the last 2 victims of it's harsh justice,  Mr Anthony Mitchell who was convicted of stealing 16 yards of cloth, valued at 9 shillings, and a Mr Abraham Wilkinson who was convicted of stealing 2 horses, one valued at 9 shillings and the other 48 shillings. They were executed on the same day April 30th 1650.

The site was lost to time, hidden beneath rubbish and soil until a Mr Bates bought the land in 1839 to build a warehouse. In June that year workmen discovered the bodies and heads of 2 people, thought to be Mitchell and Wilkinson and further excavation revealed the gibbet platform. This was eventually restored and in August 1974 a 15ft high replica of the gibbet was constructed upon the platform to highlight it's grisly past. The original gibbet blade is still in existence, having thought to have been lost it was discovered in 1970 at a solicitor's office in Wakefield, it can now be seen at the Bankfield Museum, Halifax.

The pictures shown here today were taken on the 23rd August 2014 using a Polaroid is2132 bridge camera, they can be seen here and on Clickasnap.

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All the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.

Crow Wood Park, Sowerby Bridge

Crow Wood Park, Sowerby Bridge is a public park built on the site of the former Crow Wood Mansion. Situated at Upper Bolton Brow the park is approx. 5.49 hectares in size and features a skate board area in the former bandstand, bowling green, gardens, tennis courts and children's play area. The park was renamed on the 4th August 2014 to Crow Wood Centenary Park to mark 100 years since the start of the first World War.

The park was originally the site of Crow Wood Mansion and during the World War 1, it was used as a hospital which was closed on the 5th March 1920. In May 1919 the then Sowerby Bridge Council recommended the purchase of the house and estate for use as a public park, maternity home and child welfare centre. The house stood near what are the modern day tennis courts and gardens and was demolished prior to the opening of Crow Wood Park in April 1923. The Memorial gate was unveiled at the park on the 10th November 1929 to remember those who died during the Great War, and now commemorates all the dead of both world wars who served from the Sowerby Bridge area. The park had a bandstand added in 1930 which gives a good view across all the surrounding park land, this is now a skate board area, not being used for bands as long as I can remember. There was also a paddling pool at the park for some years but this has been removed and is now a car park near the garden area.

The pictures were taken on New Years Day 2020 with a Nikon d3300, clicking any image will open a link in another window to the un-watermarked, higher resolution image on Clickasnap.

The Memorial gate which was unveiled on the 10th November 1929. The towns annual remembrance day parade congregates here.

The parks former band stand now part of a skate park. The bandstand was opened on the 4th May 1930, despite living in the area for over 45 years, I don't recall the bandstand being used regularly or having a roof covering the whole octagon.

The cobbled walkway leads down from the park in the direction of Pye Nest Road.

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All the images remain the copyright of Colin Green.

Green Park Tube Station

Green Park Tube Station is just 2 quick pictures I took whilst leaving the Jubilee Line stop in May 2019. It was my first experience on the tube despite having visited London many times, I had always avoided it as people I spoke to in London never seemingly had a good word to say about it. On this day I had my arm twisted by my daughter and gave it a go, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the frequency, service and the people using the service. Definitely a thumbs up from me.

Green Park Tube Station is a stop on the Jubilee, Piccadilly and Victoria Lines in London, the pictures are of the Jubilee Line stop. The Jubilee Line was opened in stages with stage 1 opened by Prince Charles officially opening the line with a journey from Green Park to Charing Cross on the 30th April 1979. The full line finally completed in 1999 from Stanmore, North-West London to Stratford, East London.

The station sits in the City of Westminster local authority and is in fare zone 1. It is a Grade II listed building with the status granted on the 30th May 1972. In 2017 over 39.24million passengers used the station at an average of approx. 756000 per week, or 108000 per day.

There are 2 pictures which can be seen here and on Clickasnap, the ones there are full resolution, size and un-watermarked.

Thanks for looking and please take a moment to share, all the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.

Low Moor Railway Station, Bradford

Low Moor Railway Station is a new station on the Caldervale line between Bradford and Halifax, West Yorkshire. Opened in April 2017 at a cost of £10.8 million pounds the station serves the villages of Low Moor and Oakenshaw and it's location close to the M62 and M606 motorways see's it promoted as a park and ride station.

The station has limited facilities with a small shelters of both platforms, there are card only ticket machines that mean tickets must be purchased prior to travel. The station is unmanned and has no refreshments, toilets or cash machines available. Access to the platforms is via steps or lift. The station was used by 133600 passengers in 2017 - 18 or approx. 2570 per week, and this figure will only continue to grow as recent timetable changes mean more stops at the station. 

The first station at Low Moor was opened at the same location in July 1848, and it's early years saw the station very busy as it was the terminus for both the line from Halifax and the Spen Valley line which ran through Heckmondwike, Liversedge and Cleckheaton. The line through to Bradford not complete until 1850. The station remained busy until the 1960's when it was marked for closure along with the Spen Valley route by the infamous Dr Beeching, with closure arriving on the 14th June 1965 to passengers with goods traffic withdrawn 2 years later.

The set of pictures were taken on the December 30th 2019 using a Nikon d3300 SLR camera. They can be seen here and on Flickr with selected ones also available to view on Clickasnap.

Clicking any image should open a link in another window to the higher resolution un-watermarked version on Clickasnap.

Here's a video slideshow I put together for YouTube.

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All the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.