Roads and artifacts: 12/05/2013

Milestones, Boundary Markers, Historical Artifacts, Street Furniture, lost roads and buildings.

There are many traces of our ancestors scattered around our landscape. Mile Markers and Boundary stones are there too. The Milestone Society believes that there are approximately 9000 left in the United Kingdom. Some are cherished but others are hidden in hedgerows, some have been unwittingly destroyed by crashes, road equipment or even stolen. Roads have been straightened to make them safer. There are old gateposts still left in place, old buildings, and place names that declare an evocative past. The aim is to capture some of this information at least photographically before it disappears.

Although the Fylde Coast does not have ancient history, the Romans apparently struggled to Kirkham. There have been huge changes in the last two centuries from literally a a few fishermans' and agricultural dwellings, to a full blown tourist and light engineering industry.

More historical information can be found here about the Fylde coast.

It also seems that time has marched on and left what appears to be some very respectable buildings... which just should be used, but seem to have no worth.

Links from this Blog

Nearly-Midnight The genealogy website relating to the family. A tangled web of people all related to one another, explore!
Memorials Website dedicated to War Memorials - The majority in the North of England. Visits to churches, but also memorials in out of the way places.
Robert Clark The Father of Henry Martyn-Clark - A missionary out in the North-West Frontier of India. One of the first Europeans to set foot in Afganistan
Affetside Census A small village north of Bury, Lancashire, I can trace many of my immediate ancesters from there. On the Roman Road, Watling Street
Andrew Martyn-Clark My Father and his part in my World. Also my mother and his parents too.
Henry Martyn-Clark My Great Grandfather, his roots and his achievements. Discusses malaria but also his confrontations with Islam.

Friday, 17 May 2013

A Bunker and Loopholed bridge at Devonshire road together with a biscuit factory!

There a quite a few WW2 artefacts relating to defence in Blackpool and the Fylde. Perhaps this is the least well known and least obvious. I have however managed to put this in a little more context than straight forward shots. The panorama and the shots with the cloudy skies were taken from the site of the now flattened abattoir. perhaps it's easy to see why no one would want to move into a house here. Don't mind doing any graveyard shots, but to be honest this is quite upsetting. Info underneath each photo:

This is from the highest point of the rubble from the demolished abattoir. The railway line runs from Blackpool North station on the left to Layton, Preston and beyond. On the right just below the flats is the bunker which sits above the loopholed bridge. This faces north. Devonshire road is just in front of the flats too

This is the opposite view. The flats at Layton is the most obvious feature - due for demolition. I have many pictures of these from all over Blackpool. On the left is Burton's Biscuits. On the right is a new(ish) housing estate. Construction has stopped, perhaps someone will add a comment. Anyway the houses behind them are built on the remains of Billy Smith's Scrapyard and the Blackpool brewery. The houses to the right have started to be dismantled by the local hoodlums too. The road which runs from left to right is Devonshire road. Apologies for the strangely disjointed blue people carrier! I have got scarily big picture of both these panoramas.

Back to the bunker! This site has some more information and a little bit of history too as well as different photographs.

Looking North up Devonshire Road. This is the top of the bridge.
The loop holes can be seen on the left. The bunker is to the right.

Almost identical shot

This is too, but maybe a little clearer

This picture is practically looking straight at previous one.
I am just past the end wall of the flats above. This is the bridge looking south.

A little further on. Leaning over the fencing.
This is the roof of the bunker.
The road is below me

The same shot

Don't ask. Clearly not a telephoto!
Looking North. Devonshire road is beneath the bridge.
Layton Flats in the distance!

Added a bit of action - A train going to North Station!

The final section is showing the demolished area around the old abattoir - make your own mind up about this. Been like this for a few years now.


Close up of built houses, tiles off and boarded up. The house to left are on Devonshire road and the ones to the right are new lived in ones.

Further away, Layton flats about to be demolished.

Monday, 13 May 2013

Palm Beach Hotel

Situated on the seafront of Blackpool this slowly developing eyesore is earmarked for demolition by cash hungry developers!

Directly ripped from the Evening Gazette but found on a Bulletin board!

BOLD plans for an 11-storey hotel on Blackpool’s seafront have re-emerged.

The scheme to demolish the Palm Beach Hotel on New South Promenade in South Shore and replace it with a £14m new property is earmarked to have its planning permission renewed.

Since it was first approved in 2009, no work has been carried out on the development and the Palm Beach has been closed for around a year.

Blackpool Council’s planning committee is being recommended to renew the permission when its meets on Monday.

A report to the committee, chaired by Coun David Owen, says: “The introduction of relatively tall buildings in this location is to be welcomed in principle as it shows a level of investment and confidence in the area.”

However, some residents of nearby Arundel Court, St Martins Court and Clifton Drive have submitted fresh objections to the proposals.

They claim the buildings are too high, will be over-dominant and lead to a loss of privacy.

The Palm Beach scheme is one element of a comprehensive redevelopment plan for the whole of Bourne Crescent.

Outline planning permission was also granted in 2009 for hotels including The Colwyn, The Skye, The Trafford, The Sandpiper and The Headlands, which would see a mixture of residential and holiday accommodation built at each end of Bourne Crescent.

A third application for an 11-storey high residential development on the site of The Kimberley, The Waldorf and the Henderson hotels was refused because it did not include any holiday accommodation.

Hoteliers on Bourne Crescent say redevelopment is needed because of a decline in the number of guests choosing to stay in that part of Blackpool.

These are the Panoramas, there are some individual pix which will get uploaded. From a distance they look OK but from close up and from the rear they are ghastly