Ten Houses

This week's view of My World shows the remote terrace of cottages known appropriately as Ten Houses. The row is surrounded by fields and is situated 100 yards outside the boundary of Ashton at Park Bridge.

Although it is now a peaceful location, accessed only by a narrow lane, 100 years ago the nearby valley bottom was a thriving industrial location with the Park Bridge Iron Works, a corn mill and a coal mine all a few minutes walk from these cottages. Park Bridge Iron Works are reputed to have been where the rivets for the Eiffel Tower were manufactured.

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See Google Street View of this location.

"Ten Houses" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

ABC Wednesday: Telephone Box

Today's post for ABC Wednesday is T for "Telephone Box". The photo shows a traditional red British telephone kiosk. This particular type is known as the "K6" and there are three of them left in Ashton. One is next to the Market Hall, one in St Michael's Square and this one, on the corner of Dingle Terrace at Park Bridge, a remotely-situated location just within the northern boundary of Ashton.

Most telephone boxes have been replaced with more modern types these days but the iconic red phone box is always a welcome sight and a little bit of history still in use.

The Google Street View car didn't find this location but you can view it in this Bird's Eye View.

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"Telephone Box" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "T" posts from around the world please follow this link.

Old Railway Line

Today's view of the world of Ashton under Lyne shows this bridge that carries Cranbourne Road across an old railway line.

The railway line was the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge Railway which opened in 1861 with stations at Ashton, Oldham Road (where Monk's Garage is) and at Park Bridge, where a 12-arch viaduct carried the line high above the Medlock Valley.

Passenger trains ceased in 1959 but the railway carried freight until 1967, after which it was dismantled. In recent years the trackbed has been given a good surface and is now a cycle way and foot path from Ashton to Park Bridge. The path starts at Turner Lane, not far from the town centre, and is a good and easy route out into the countryside.

Few of the people who drive or walk across the bridge on Cranbourne Road realise that they are crossing such a smart 3-arch brick viaduct.

I showed you a view of this bridge from the other side in 2008.

See Bird's Eye View of this location.

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"Old Railway Line" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

Dingle Terrace

Dingle Terrace is an unusual location. It is a short street comprising two terraces of elegant brick houses. However, rather than being located, as you might expect, in a town setting, Dingle Terrace is in a remote rural setting at Park Bridge, just within the northern boundary of Ashton.

Park Bridge today is a quiet backwater, accessible only along narrow and bumpy roads. However, when these houses were built it was a busy industrial setting with coal mines and the iron works of Hannah Lees and Sons, which supplied rivets for the Eiffel Tower. Most of the buildings of the iron works have now gone and their sites landscaped. The stable block has become a Heritage Centre and Park Bridge these days rings not to the sound of hammers on iron but of to the sound of walking boots on cobbles!

The houses of Dingle Terrace and nearby Dean Terrace were built to accommodate employees of the the iron works but these days are sought-after properties because of their enviable location.

See Bird's Eye View of this location to really appreciate the rural setting.

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"Dingle Terrace" is my contribution to this week's "My World" feature. Please check out the other blogs participating in this week's My World.

Sunday Stroll: Park Bridge

Even a dull day doesn't diminish the attractiveness of the Medlock Valley near Park Bridge.

Up until around fifty years ago this valley would have rung out with the sounds of the Lees family's iron works. The viaduct carrying the Ashton to Oldham railway would have been visible just down the valley. Even this gently rising riverside path was originally the track of a narrow-gauge railway that transported coal and iron down to the Hollinwood Canal at Fairbottom.

These days, however, the loudest sound you will hear at this spot is the rushing of the river beside you. A few of the iron work's buildings survive and are used for other purposes but large areas of the former works have now reverted to part of the landscape.

Behind the camera the path continues along the valley to the remains of the coal mine at Rocher Vale.

See Google Aerial View of this location.
See LiveSearch Birds Eye View of this location.

Sunday Stroll: Park Bridge

Whether or not you got out for a walk over the Christmas or New Year break, you can still enjoy today's view at Park Bridge.

This view, like the one in December, looks down from what was once the railway embankment leading to the long-gone railway viaduct.

We see some of the remains of the cotton mill and iron works that were situated here. The River Medlock flows through the valley and on the right the road climbs towards Alt Hill. In the distance, to the right of centre, the shape of Harridge Pike above Millbrook can just be made out through the haze.

Park Bridge can now be reached easily on foot from Ashton by using the new path which follows the old railway line from Turner Lane and Cranbourne Road.

See Google Aerial View of this location.
See LiveSearch Birds Eye View of this location.

Time for a Winter's Walk to Park Bridge

With the prospect of a few days off around Christmas and New Year, many people go for a winter stroll or even a longer walk, especially if they feel the need to walk off the effects of too much eating!

One of the popular spots for walking locally is Park Bridge. The view here looks down across the remains of the former Lees family's iron works from what was once the railway embankment leading to the long-gone railway viaduct. The Stables building in the centre of the photo houses a heritage centre and café.

If you're too far away to go for a walk there, you could always do a bit of exploring around the area using the "Bird's Eye View" link below.

See Google Aerial View of this location.
See LiveSearch Birds Eye View of this location.

Park Bridge Institute

Park Bridge was once a busy industrial stretch of the Medlock Valley, within Ashton's northern boundary. The Lees family, who ran the thriving ironworks, built several terraces of houses for their workers, plus other facilities such as the Institute, pictured here on a miserable day.

The Institute was opened in 1905 by Maurice Lees. It had a reading room and a billiard room. Monthly church services were held there and it is still a thriving community centre. Each year a Service of Remembrance is held at the Memorial at the front of the building.

See Google Aerial View of this location.

Rocher Vale

Rocher Vale, at the northern extremity of Ashton under Lyne, is a rugged part of the valley of the River Medlock, upstream from Park Bridge.

This was the location of Rocher Vale Colliery and the building in the photo is what is left of the Engine House, which housed a steam engine to pump water out of the mine.