Saddleworth and environs, May 2006
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'When God made Yorkshire and Lancashire, He laid aside the precious bits of jewelled earth. And when He had completed the two shires He took the beautiful things He had saved and made Saddleworth to be a little Shire on its own''. -- Ammon Wrigley
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Images of Saddleworth
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My great-grand father emigrated from the mill country of the West Riding of Yorkshire England as a boy of six in 1870 with his adoptive father, Samuel Butterworth, to settle in Lawrence, Massachusetts with its own mills. In 1886 when he was about to marry Mary Haynes, his presumed mother, Ellen Butterworth (nee Manchester), explained to him that his name was not really John Thomas Butterworth, but actually John Thomas Wood. Indeed, he still had a father, William Wood, alive in Saddleworth, England. My trip to Saddleworth in May 2006 revisits many of the places that John Thomas's family had lived in and explores the lush hills of this famous woolen district. |
St. Chad's Saddleworth and Adjacent Graveyards and Countryside
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St. Chad's is the parish church of Saddleworth. There are three graveyards: one in the upper church yard, a second in the lower church yard, and a third a few hundred feet south of the church. All are in striking disrepair. These images are less than perfect due to the wild weather that prevailed during my visit which included bright sun, violent rain and massive hail. Note the stocks ("1698") which stand in front of the church itself at the edge of the car park.
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Delph and New Delph
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While in Saddleworth, I stayed at an 18th century coaching inn with the name of the Old Bell Inn. There were a few lovely rooms, a charming pub and a first class restaurant. The proximity to the Delph Donkey trail made for a very pleasant and comfortable walk into Uppermill.
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Dobcross (formerly Woods)
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Uppermill
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Heathfields, Saddleworthfold and Pob Green
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Marsh Head
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Nebo and the site of Limbo
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The Huddersfield Narrows Canal, Railway and Stanedge Tunnels
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The Remnants of the Delph Donkey
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The Delph Donkey was the short spur line railway that went from Uppermill up to New Delph. It was abandoned in the 1950's and is now a pleasant rail trail.
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The Saddleworth Viaduct
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Other Saddleworth Churches and Graves
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The Pennine Moors
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Marsden
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Huddersfield
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Glossop
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The ride out to Glossop from Manchester was on a train with a folk music music program, also known as the Glossop Folk Train.
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Manchester City
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Rochdale and St. Chads Rochdale
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Bury
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East Lancashire Railway
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Saturday May 27th was the first day of a three day celebration of World War II at the East Lancashire Railway. Lots of folks were dressed for the part. I travelled the train north from BURY to the end of the line at RAWTENSTALL and then all the way south to the newly reopened station at HEYWOOD from which I walked a good mile or more to the Northern Railway station at CASTLETON, just south of Rochdale on the Oldham Line.
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Stockport to Stalybridge
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The rail service between Stockport and Stalybridge is signficant primarily for its infrequency.
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