It's a Long Way to Stalybridge

An interesting public sculpture outside the former Market Hall in Stalybridge, entitled "Jack Judge accompanied by a WW1 soldier".

The plaque reads:
"Inspired to compose the famous marching song 'It's a Long Way to Tipperary'. He was the first to sing it publicly in 1912 at the Grand Theatre in Stalybridge, the town of its conception. Unveiled 16th December 2005 by Councillor Frank Robinson."

The plaque is carefully worded to avoid controversy by saying that the song was conceived in Stalybridge, rather than composed there, as is widely believed. This is because there is a rival claim from Oldbury, Staffordshire, which is where Jack Judge lived.

However, there is a story that while Judge was staying in Stalybridge, performing at the Grand Theatre, someone bet him that he couldn't write a song and perform it that night. He went off and wrote it and won the bet. [Read more]

Another story about the song is that it was originally going to be "It's a Long Way to Connemara" but Judge changed this to Tipperary just before the performance, because he thought more people would have heard of Tipperary!

Stalybridge Saturday: Waterloo Road

Think of Waterloo Road School these days and many people will think of the BBC drama series about a fictional school in Rochdale where the most unlikely series of events constantly occur. (But then, a programme that accurately depicted life in a real school would be too dull!)

However, this rather grand building in Stalybridge was once Waterloo Road Girls' Secondary School, until it was replaced by Copley High School.

The building has seen constant use since the schoolgirls moved out. For many years it housed Tameside's Teachers' Centre as well as council offices. More recently part of it has become Stalybridge Police Station.

Microsoft's bird's-eye views have only just been extended to include Stalybridge so, if you click the link below, you may be tempted to use it to explore Stalybridge a bit more!

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

Victoria Market Hall

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"V" is for "Victoria Market Hall" and today's photo shows the building of that name in Stalybridge, two miles east of Ashton under Lyne.

It is a little while since any photos of Stalybridge appeared on this blog so I thought it would be a good opportunity to see this fine building. A close-up of the clock tower appeared here almost two years ago.

The hall was opened in 1868, superseding the 1831 market, and was named after Queen Victoria, the monarch at that time. The market hall was a focus for shoppers from around the town. However, in recent years, as shoppers could easily transport themselves to nearby Ashton or to out-of-town shopping facilities, Stalybridge has become less busy as a shopping centre.

The building was re-furbished around ten years ago but unfortunately is no longer used as a market hall. It is now referred to as Stalybridge Civic Hall. There are offices and meeting rooms in the rear part of the building while the main part is used occasionally for exhibitions, functions, large meetings, etc.

See Birds Eye View of this location. See Google Street View of this location.

"Victoria Market Hall" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "V" posts from around the world please follow this link.
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"X" Marks The Flower Bed

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"X" is for, er... well, an "x"-shaped cross formed by miniature hedges! This design appears in the flower beds in Armentieres Square in Stalybridge, two miles east of Ashton.

Interesting though this botanical feature might be, also of interest is the iron beam in the background. It bears the words "Stalybridge Armentieres, 1955 - 2005, 50 Years of Friendship" and celebrates the twinning of the two towns. The beam was salvaged from the demolition of part of nearby Longlands Mill. It is an inverted T-shaped fish-backed beam which, at 8.8 metres long, was pushing the boundary for the maximum span for this type of material in the mid 19th century.

Stalybridge and Armentieres both have wartime musical associations. Armentieres features in the song "Mademoiselle from Armentieres", which was popular in the First World War. Stalybridge was where Jack Judge wrote the music hall song "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" which was also popular in the First World War.

See Birds Eye View of this location.

"X Marks The Flower Bed" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "X" posts from around the world please follow this link.

Stalybridge Saturday: Ivy Cottage

At first glance this pair of cottages could be from a pretty village somewhere. However, a closer look shows you that they are in the centre of Stalybridge. They are on Waterloo Road and are so central that they face the bus station.

The cottages appeared here previously in March. The date stone on the left hand cottage says AD1920.

To the left of the photograph is Stalybridge's old Fire Station which also seen in March.

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

Update (21st Oct):
Would you believe it? I went past here today and all the ivy has been taken down! That's what happens when you don't post a photo immediately! I'll post a photo of the bald house soon!

Stalybridge Saturday: Town Hall

Today's photo is of Stalybridge Town Hall - or, at least, what's left of it!

The building, which dates from 1831, was demolished after it was found to require major repairs, but the portico surrounding the main entrance was left standing, looking like some sort of folly or monument.

There are two blue plaques on the structure. One commemorates the First General Strike or "Plug Riot" of 1842, which began in this area. The other remembers Joseph Rayner Stephens, a 19th Century philanthropist who lived in Stalybridge and campaigned against the Poor Law and for factory reforms.

See Google Aerial View of this location.
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Stalybridge Saturday: Melbourne Court

For a small town centre, Stalybridge has quite a lot of interesting old buildings. Opposite the Post Office on Trinity Street is this building, now part of Melbourne Court. It stands beside the River Tame next to Victoria Bridge.

The building was originally Stalybridge Congregational Church Hall. The church was situated next door but was demolished after being destroyed by fire. A modern replacement church was built just off Acres Lane. A sheltered housing complex was built on the site of the church and the former church hall was incorporated into this. On the left of the photo you can see that there are enclosed links between the old and new buildings.

The old church opened in 1861 and the hall a little later. A photo of the church and hall before the fire can be seen on this web page.

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Stalybridge Saturday: Railway Station

You would be forgiven if you didn't immediately recognise this location, as this is the brand new face of Stalybridge Station. This is the first in a series of weekly visits to Stalybridge, Ashton's next-door neighbour, just 2 miles to the east.

At a cost of £675,000 a new glass-fronted entrance has been built with seating area and departure information shown on hi-tech screens. This part of a £1.5 million scheme to improve the station which has included improved toilets and shelters.

On the down side, the number of car parking spaces on the immediate forecourt has been reduced from 13 to 6 plus 2 taxi spaces and two disabled spaces. Other spaces are available on the ramp alongside the station building and on a plot opposite, but more parking will need to be provided if more people are to use the station as a "park-and-ride" facility.

See Google Aerial View of this location before the modernisation.

Stalybridge Saturday: Victoria Bridge

Today's photo was taken at Victoria Bridge, where Trinity Street crosses the River Tame, in the middle of Stalybridge (two miles from Ashton).

The splendid details of the Victorian ironwork has been picked out by the careful paintwork. The date 1867 appears in small white lettering above the word "Victoria". A larger plaque below shows the date 1991 - presumably when the bridge was refurbished. (Click the photo to see larger version.)

The building to the right of the bridge is the Post Office. You can just see part of a weir where the river disappears around the bend. In the distance you can see the snow-covered Pennine moors. Although the snow has melted down in Stalybridge, the snow on the hills lasts a lot longer!

See Google Aerial View of this location.

Stalybridge Saturday: Armentieres Square

In busy Armentieres Square in Stalybridge is this quiet corner. Behind the flower bed and the benches is an acknowledgement of Stalybridge's town twinning with Arementieres in France.

This corner is seen looking from the Lock Gates Sundial sculpture seen here a month ago.

In the background is Rose Terrace and to the left is Holy Trinity Church.

Anyone in this area today (3rd October) should pop into the old Market Hall to see the History Fair that will be taking place between 10 am and 4 pm.

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Heading East

The 1607 departure from Ashton to Stalybridge moves out of what was once known as Charlestown Station for the 6 minute journey to Stalybridge, where it will terminate. Alternate trains from Manchester Victoria to Ashton and Stalybridge continue to Huddersfield, stopping at all stations en route.

The train has just passed under Henrietta Street. On the left, through the trees, Tameside Council's offices can be seen. In the distance beyond the bridge lies the blue bulk of IKEA.

This line is now used only by local trains. The Trans-Pennine Express trains bypass Ashton on the track that passes through the site of the former Park Parade Station on their way to Manchester Piccadilly.

See Google Aerial View of this location.

Stalybridge

Melbourne Street in Stalybridge is not exactly heaving with shoppers these days but there is still a steady trickle of people using the shops. In spite of competition from Tesco and Aldi, only one of the shops in this photo is up for sale.

To be fair to Stalybridge, I'm a bit wary of photographing people in a way that makes them too recognisable, so I waited until there weren't any shoppers too close to me before I took the photo! I could have made the street look a lot more crowded if I had taken the photo a little earlier or later!

Stalybridge Saturday: Market Hall

The splendid facade of Stalybridge's Victoria Market Hall masks a shameful secret - the Market Hall no longer houses a market! While Stalybridge's market hall was never as busy as that of its neighbour, Ashton, it was always quietly buzzing and had a friendly, personal feel. However, when the council decided that the hall needed refurbishment, plans to move the stallholders to temporary premises came to nothing and the market simply shut.

The inside of the building is now a very attractive space, but no longer a market. It is used for community events but this means that the hall is empty for most of the time. Luckily the rear of the building has been made into offices and smaller meeting rooms and these are made good use of.

Outside the hall is one of the ornamental fingerposts that Tameside seems to have bought in bulk. The fingers read: North, Mossley, Ashton under Lyne, Droylsden, Audenshaw, Dukinfield, Denton, Hyde, Longdendale. The globe inside the crown lights up at night, and looks very nice, as can been seen in this photo of the one outside Ashton's Market Hall.

See Google Aerial View of this location.

Stalybridge Saturday: Rassbottom Brow

Rassbottom Brow is an old route continuing down from Ridge Hill Lane down to Market Street in Stalybridge. It is just opposite Stalybridge Station and is one of the steep pathways leading northwards from the town centre.

See Google Aerial View of this location.

Stalybridge Saturday: The Millpond

The Millpond is a pub that stands in Armentieres Square in the heart of Stalybridge, just two miles east of Ashton.

However, it is not a Millpond that the pub looks out over but the restored Huddersfield Narrow Canal, which has been made into a feature of the square.

Stalybridge has been twinned with the French town of Armentières since 1955.

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Sky Watch: Stalybridge Wharf

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This week's Sky Watch is a dramatic evening view of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal at Stalybridge Wharf.

This is just two miles from Ashton and makes an interesting contrast with the canal scene at Portland Basin shown earlier this week.

The canal to the west of Stalybridge, re-opened after having been filled in, does not have the character of Portland Basin, being lined now with modern industrial units, but the drama of the fiery clouds, reflected on the water, adds more than enough interest.

See Birds Eye View of this location.

Sky Watch is a regular weekly feature on this photo blog. It links with websites all over the world with the general theme each week of looking upwards. Please take the opportunity to visit some of these other sites. I hope some new visitors have found their way here today, watching the skies!


For more Weekend Reflections, follow this link.

Stalybridge

A view along Market Street in Stalybridge from the site of the old Town Hall. This street has not changed as much as other parts of Stalybridge. Some of the scenes in the film "Yanks" were filmed around here, because it was comparatively easy to make the streets look like a town in the 1940s!

Stalybridge Saturday: Canal Sculpture

In the heart of Stalybridge is Armentieres Square, named after the French town that is twinned with Stalybridge. In the centre of the square is the canal lock that was constructed as part of the restoration of the Huddersfield Narrow Canal.

On the south side of the square is this sculpture, which is a representation of a pair of canal lock gates with their balance beams. It is actually a giant sundial! The shadow of the beam nearest the camera falls onto the stone blocks arranged in a curve to show the time.

It was created by artist Alan Dawes and erected in July 2008. A time capsule was buried close by. A video of the sculpture's opening can be seen here. A soundscape was developed to be performed at the opening. It can be heard here.

See Google Aerial View of this location.
See Birds Eye View of this location. Please note that these aerial images were taken before the sculpture was put in place.

Guide Bridge Station

"G" is for "Guide Bridge Station" and today's photo shows this railway station which is on the western boundary of Ashton.

The train in the photo is on its way from Glossop to Manchester Piccadilly. At one time the line continued through Woodhead Tunnel to Sheffield. The Trans-Pennine Express trains pass through the station without stopping, turning left a quarter of a mile on, towards Stalybridge.

This station was the first railway station to open in Ashton and was originally called Ashton and Hooley Hill. It took its later name from the adjacent bridge over the Ashton Canal (not over the River Tame, as suggested in Wikipedia). The canal runs behind the trees on the left of the photo.

The station is a shadow of its former self, with the remaining platform-side buildings sealed up. Only the trains on the Glossop line stop here now. The regular service between Stalybridge and Stockport has been replaced with a so-called "parliamentary" train, running one journey a week in one direction only, from Stockport to Stalybridge, stopping at the platform on the "wrong" side here at Guide Bridge after emerging from the Stockport line.

A footbridge between the platforms burnt down five years ago and has not been replaced, necessitating a long walk round from one platform to the other.

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"Guide Bridge Station" is a contribution to ABC Wednesday. For more "G" posts from around the world please follow this link.
Please leave a comment below.

Old Bus Garage

The old bus garage on Mossley Road was opened in 1902 as a tram depot when Ashton Corporation took over the lines in the town that had been run by Manchester Carriage and Tramway Company and added new routes of its own. The building was extended over the years and housed the trolleybuses than ran between Stalybridge and Manchester until 1966.

It continued to house Ashton Corporation's buses until they became part of SELNEC in 1969. A few years later, a new depot was opened on Whitelands road to house the buses from the Ashton and Stalybridge garages and the Mossley Road garage was closed. It is now used by a number of commercial businesses.