Issue 137 - Summer 2001
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ennineennine LinkLink PPMembers Quarterly Journal - Issue 137 - Summer 2001 CELEBRATORY ISSUE Huddersfield Canal Society Ltd 239 Mossley Road, Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, OL6 6LN Tel: 0161 339 1332 Fax: 0161 343 2262 EMail: [email protected] Website: www.hcanals.demon.co.uk Volunteer Co-ordinator - Frank Smith Office Manager - Robert Gough David Sumner 4 Whiteoak Close, Marple, Stockport, Cheshire SK6 6NT Chairman Tel: 0161 449 9084 Trevor Ellis 20 Batley Avenue, Marsh, Huddersfield, HD1 4NA Vice-Chairman Tel: 01484 534666 John Sully 19 Kingfishers, Peterborough, Cambridge, PE2 6YH Treasurer Tel: 01733 236650 John Fryer Ramsdens Solicitors, Ramsden Street, Huddersfield, HD1 2TH Company Secretary Keith Gibson Syke Cottage, Scholes Moor Road, Holmfirth, HD9 1SJ HCS Restoration Ltd Tel: 01484 681245 Jack Carr 19 Sycamore Avenue, Euxton, Chorley, Lancashire, PR7 6JR West Side Social Chairman Tel: 01257 265786 Josephine Young HCS Ltd, 239 Mossley Road, Ashton-u-Lyne, Lancs., OL6 6LN Membership Secretary Tel: 0161 339 1332 Brian Minor 45 Gorton Street, Peel Green, Eccles, Manchester, M30 7LZ Festivals Officer Tel: 0161 288 5324 David Finnis Fall Bottom, Oliver Lane, Marsden, Huddersfield, HD7 6BZ Press Officer Tel: 01484 847016 Ken Wright Bridge House, Dobcross, Oldham, Lancashire, OL3 5NL Editor - Pennine Link Tel: 01457 873599 Vince Willey 45 Egmont Street, Mossley, Ashton-u-Lyne, Lancs., OL5 9NB Boats Officer Tel: 0161 339 1332 Alwyn Ogborn 14 Stanhope Street, Mossley, Ashton-u-Lyne, Lancs., OL5 9LX Special Events Co-ordinator Tel: 01457 833329 Allen Brett 31 Woodlands Road, Milnrow, Rochdale, Lancs., OL16 4EY General Council Member Tel: 01706 641203 Neville Kenyon Meadow Head, Tottington, Bury, Lancashire, BL8 3PP General Council Member Keith Noble The Dene, Triangle, Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire, HX6 3EA General Council Member Tel: 01422 823562 Alec Ramsden 16 Edgemoor Road, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, HD7 2HP General Council Member Tel: 01484 662246 The opinions expressed in Pennine Link are not necessarily those of the Huddersfield Canal Society. Permission to repeat any of the features in Pennine Link is granted, provided that the source is acknowledged. 2 - Pennine Link - Summer 2001 ennine PLink Summer 2001 Issue 137 HCC Postscript The finishing touches. Slaithwaite or Bust Activity on the 10 East side. 41 The Editor’s Scene Boats return to the canal. Warehouse Hill Mikron Theatre 13 Company. 50 HCC Postscript 10 Slaithwaite or Bust 41 Project Director Alan Stopher says his farewells Society stalwart Keith Sykes reports on the first and acknowledges the contributions made by three days’ activity on the East side and the race everyone involved in the project. for Slaithwaite. The Editor’s Scene 13 Sue Day’s Story 44 Ken Wright looks back on the momentous events Sue Day, and horses, take her boat ‘Maria’ on from April 9th to May 11th and then compiles a the first west-east navigation of the Narrow since photo-essay of the historic scenes. Robert Aickman in Ailsa Craig. Just a Few Words 35 Warehouse Hill 50 Reports from the ‘front line’. First impressions A review of the Mikron Theatre Company’s from the pioneering boaters who were amongst production about the restoration of the HNC. the first to attempt a through navigation. Editorial 4 Chairman’s Annual Report 5 Front Cover: The Grand Finale. The canalside crowds at Restoration Progressed 8 Armentieres Square enjoyed a spectacular firework display which concluded the Stalybridge Renaissance Festival, Crossword - 33 40 celebrating the restored canal and a regenerated town HCS Council News 47 centre. Photo: Bob Gough What the Papers Say 51 Photo credits in this Issue: AS - Alan Stopher, AW - Anne Letters to the Editor 52 Wright, JS - John Sully, KS - Keith Sykes, KW - Ken Wright, Mikron - Mikron Theatre Company Real Heroes 54 Summer 2001 - Pennine Link - 3 Editorial All good things I obviously cannot thank all my contribu- come to an end. tors personally but I must, of course, And this is the end thank Bob Gough, the assistant editor of the road for me (who is now also office manager to add to as far as editing his earlier title of OM (one-man) technical Pennine Link is section!). Bob’s help and his encourage- concerned. And ment, coupled with his extensive techni- what a road! I started in mid-1995 when cal and artistic expertise, have been the we had just had our first bid to the main reasons for our continuing success, Millennium Commission turned down - being acknowledged as the country’s and the Rochdale bid looked like suc- leading canal society magazine. Long may ceeding! I had just started a group, he continue in his work. comprising local authority engineers, to What of the future? My frequent pleas for begin the systematic financial assessment somebody to take on the editorship of all the remaining blockages on the eventually reached two pairs of ears. After canal. The Diggle railway station was, discussion the new editor will be BRIAN even then, a possibility - and that’s all it is, MINOR, the Society’s Festivals Officer, still. David Sumner, our Chairman, who has been around for a long time and finished his column with “The granting of has worked for the Society in many a Millennium commission award in 1996 differing roles. He will be ably assisted by would reward us all and re-open the MARTIN CLARKE, a Society member who Canal by 2001, which no one in authority is much better known as the mastermind dreamed possible when we were born in behind www.penninewaterways.co.uk the 1974”. How accurate he was. best local canal website by far. Martin will, On the editorial side I promised a I hope, become “deputy editor” when he Womens’ Page - it didn’t work very well gets into his stride. I wish them both a but I have to thank my wife, Anne, and whole shelf full of new ideas (and con- remind you of the 40 episodes of The tributors!) Wife’s Tale she wrote over 10 years, as That’s about it. The canal is open, on well as typing most of all the Plinks I have time, and the Society can look forward to edited. changing from restoration to operation, Other newish features were restoration maintenance and BOATING. Already stories, more about boating, biographies, there are boats passing through Uppermill better restoration maps. I did try ecologi- on a daily basis and the Visitor Centre is cal items and failed miserably! And who attracting large crowds. I look forward to can forget the enormous contribution working on the dredger and also main- John Harwood has made with the regular taining the Saddleworth length. See you crossword, canal journeys, canal histories, there. Cheerio. technical articles, etc. My thanks again, Ken Wright John. 4 - Pennine Link - Summer 2001 Chairman’s Annual Report Trevor Ellis dubbed is in Huddersfield, where three sections our project the have been sold and culverted for industrial Impossible Restora- use. Secondly, a length of canal at tion. And this has Slaithwaite has been filled in and now been retitiled the landscaped. More seriously, a longer “Impossible stretch in Stalybridge has ‘disappeared’ Dream” by the (culverted) under a large car park and now producer, Ken Stephinson, film shown on factories. Here, an alternative to uproot- BBC2 television on 18th May 2001. ing the new works might be to divert the However, on April 19th 1974, eleven canal into the adjacent river. committee members of the recently “These are severe difficulties indeed, but formed Huddersfield Canal Society had are not insurmountable given public different ideas. Under the chairmanship support and financial help from grant- of John Maynard, the Society discussed giving bodies. The existence of the and agreed upon a strategy and I quote: Huddersfield Canal Society can give “ (i) Ensuring that no further seriously impetus for (sic) full restoration - but it is detrimental works occur on the Hudders- up to all of us to publicise it and to make field Narrow Canal. (Such as the cascading authorities realise that restoration propos- of Diggle Locks under the Tame Valley als are to be taken seriously.” Improvement Scheme) Early efforts followed a well-known (ii) The commissioning of a feasibility study, pattern. We undertook ‘clean-ups’, leading to the line being surveyed by a lobbied local authorities, kept a watch to qualified Civil Engineer to propose a prevent further ‘official vandalism’ and set detailed estimate of the costs of up a study group to look into the feasibil- restoration.” ity and costs of re-opening. The above was reported in Issue number It was twenty years ago when restoration one of Pennine Link dated 31st May 1974. proper commenced in Saddleworth. The current Issue (137), edited by Ken With tacit approval from British Water- Wright, is to commemorate the re- ways, following a public meeting, opening of the canal twenty seven years Anthony Burton ceremoniously broke later. open the concrete capping to Dungebooth Lock. Three years later, a It is worth reminding ourselves of the demonstration section of canal was open. enormity of the task facing the early Private sector support enabled the pioneers. Bob Dewey, Hon. Secretary, Uppermill stretch to be completed and reported in the same Issue number one: the rest is history! HCS set up job crea- “The big problems for the re-opening of tion schemes, Greater Manchester Coun- this canal to through navigation are caused cil bequeathed €1.2 million and the local by a mere 1½ miles of the canal (it is 20 authorities were finally convinced that it miles long in total) as they have been filled could be done. The Society’s balance in, landscaped and even built on. The first sheet at the end of 2000 was over Oldham Evening Chronicle Oldham Evening 3 - Pennine Link - Summer 99 Summer 2001 - Pennine Link - 5 €500,000 represented largely by invest- The celebrations over the May Bank ments and cash in bank and in hand.