Category: Uncategorized

All 5 of Hyndburn’s libraries at Accrington, Oswaldtwistle, Rishton, Great Harwood and Clayton-le-Moors are under threat from Lancashire County Council cuts. The same is true regarding the 5 libraries serving Rossendale Borough – Rawtenstall, Crawshawbooth, Haslingden, Whitworth and Bacup. Click HERE to sign the petition against the closures.

As well as a terrible loss to all book-lovers, it will also mean the closing of local history sections and their collections (Accrington’s is excellent, ed.).

Continue reading “SAVE HYNDBURN AND ROSSENDALE LIBRARIES – SIGN PETITION”

The Friends held a successful Open Museum Event on Saturday 21st November with the aim of raising awareness of this Pendle gem.

Frank Janet and Gillian guided over 40 visitors, some from as far away as London, round the museum and were available to answer their many questions.

With Lancashire Day approaching  (27th Nov) the Real Lancashire Society were there to promote the County Palatine whilst the Leeds and Liverpool Society, the Earby History Society and the Burnley and Pendle Branch of the Family History Society were on hand to  highlight  local groups, along with the Burnley and District Branch of the U3A. Continue reading “Open Museum and Lancashire Tea event”

We’ve had such a warm autumn that the recent cold weather has caught us by surprise. The snow stuck at Wycoller and gave the place a cold gloomy romantic feel that the Bronte sisters would have loved!

Wycoller hamlet and country park is Lancashire’s Bronte Country and is one of the places the Friends actively seek to conserve. It never fails to inspire.

 

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Last surviving steam-powered weaving mill in world. Cultural value is ‘incalculable’.

Burnley’s iconic Queen Street Mill Museum looks set for the axe after Lancashire County Council unveiled massive proposed budget cuts this week which aim to close most cultural institutions the Council manages.

Full article about Queen Street Mill here.

 

Friends of Barrowford Park, Pendle Heritage conservation group and the Council Parks Department all pooled their efforts to research, design and erect an information board in the park. It tells the interesting story of Old Barrowford Mill, fragments of which survive in the park. Next time you are in the park, go and have a look.

The closing of much-loved museums and libraries and the end of the countryside service which manages the country parks like Wycoller and Spring Wood,  this is possibly the worst piece of local heritage news one can imagine. Article here.

So much of our heritage is comprised of trees and plants – natural heritage that encompasses and interacts with our cultural heritage. This BBC article is a fascinating insight into how plants might be capable of more than we suspect. Some scientists – controversially – describe plants as “intelligent”.

Read it here

“The subject of our attention is the Foldys Cross which has been in Towneley Park since 1789…”

Article HERE

Preparations are well under way for The Open Museum / Lancashire Tea on Saturday 21st Nov between 11am and 3.30pm.

The Barn windows have been transformed with an autumnal display and the Lancashire flag is proudly ” flying”. Continue reading “Preparations for autumn event”

The repair of the Wycoller Hall dividing wall has been successful. The ancient wall was damaged many years ago and its coping stones have sat in an unsightly pile in front of the hall for a very long time. The lime-mortar based repair and resetting of the coping stones were undertaken by the Countryside Service of Lancashire County Council. The Friends suggested the project and gave specialist advice on lime mortars etc. We have since been keeping an eye on it to ensure the mortar has set correctly for the winter, which it now has. We are so pleased to see the wall repaired so ‘well done’ to the County Council and all involved.

The iconic former weavers’ cottages championed by Prince Charles are the base for 200 new jobs.

Fifty staff from employment specialists Spacious Place will initially move into Slater’s Terrace this week, in the latest phase of On The Banks regeneration initiative….

FULL STORY

As the Old Grammar School building in Earby is readied for a new lease of life this weekend, the Barnoldswick and Earby Times has taken a peek into its past with the help of the Earby and District Local History Society…

FULL REPORT HERE

Heritage photographer, Andy Marshall, is on a mission to collect 100 dates over 100 years, and display them in a very special print. CLICK HERE

You are invited to to the opening event…

Date: Tuesday 8th December 2015, 7pm – 9pm

Venue: Rosylee, 11 Stevenson Sq. Northern Quarter, Manchester M1 1DB

Register For A Free Ticket

Follow the Project Continue reading “Frozen in Time”

A new book Memories of Darwen with pictures of the town old and new will be launched this month.

The 120-page publication includes 260 images from a century of history and 10,000 words explaining how the areas featured have changed.

It is the work of the ‘Darwen Days’ community history project and digital photographic website.

Lancashire Telegraph Article HERE

Thousands of pieces of correspondence, many still unopened, were stored away by Dutch postmaster and are now being examined by academics.

An appeal for help from a desperate woman has been opened and read more than 300 years after the man it was sent to refused to accept delivery – not surprisingly, since the wealthy merchant in The Hague must have suspected it contained the unwelcome news that he was about to become a father.

The seventeenth century was responsible for so much of the Pendleside heritage of farms and clothiers houses, is still not well understood. These letters bring to life the people of the time.

Full story HERE

A LIST of 24 “historic and interesting” buildings in Blackburn and Darwen has been drawn up for special protection by the borough council.

They include the Wesleyan Methodist Church in Clayton Street, Blackburn, the town’s Soho Foundry in Cicely Lane, Little Harwood War Memorial, Darwen Vale Schools and Astley Bank in Darwen.

Lancashire Telegraph Report HERE

 

 

The Pendle Heritage and Barrowford Park Friends gardeners combined their efforts on Wednesday (4th November) and made a good start clearing the raised bed between the park and the centre. A large number of bulbs were planted and it certainly looked much better without the brambles. We’ll tackle the weeds on the car park cobbles next time.

The Parlour Shop is stocking up on crafts, books, cards and other items for Christmas presents. It is open every day 10am to 4pm.

The upstairs gallery at the Pendle Heritage Centre. Exhibition on until Saturday 14th November. Continue reading “Pendle Artists Exhibition at the Heritage Centre”

TWO of Blackburn’s most iconic heritage buildings will be in the spotlight with a dramatic display of colour and light for the town’s Christmas extravaganza.

The Victoria Building at Blackburn College and Holy Trinity Church will come to life with a multi-colour flood light effect as part of the annual Festival of Light celebrations, which aims to illuminate Blackburn for the festive season.

Lancashire Telegraph Report HERE