Location 2 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Gosford Forest Park is located on the A28, Armagh to Newry Road close to Markethill. Facilities Beside the large car park is a toilet block. A lunch room can be pre booked through the Forest Service at Gosford Forest Park, telephone 028 3755 1277 or www.forestserviceni.gov.uk. Forestry Education visits are free. Please contact Forest Service at the above number to notify them of your intended visit. Teachers / Group Leaders are responsible for the group through out the visit. Route The route is approximately 2.5km along maintained track for the entire route, passing through grassland, parkland and woodland. The track is mostly wide and level and may be suitable for those with mobility difficulties, although you may wish to use the main path from the car park to the millponds, avoiding the steeper path at the ravine. This is a working forest environment and from time to time paths may be closed for forest operations. Health & Safety prohibition signs will inform you of any areas you must not enter. Safety Please be aware of traffic in the area around the car park and along the main driveways. In parts the trail passes alongside a stream with steep banks, although the path is wide. The ponds are fenced along the edges where the eco-trail passes close by. Building work is expected to continue on the castle until early 2009. Please take care near any areas that are under construction. Refer to ELB or your organisation’s guidelines for ratios of adults to children whilst on educational visits. Equipment for the trail Tackling the Trail • Outdoor clothing including outdoor shoes • Crayons and waterproof coats • Compass • Leader Guide for Activity Booklet and • Measuring tapes map • Plastic spoons and bowls • Participant Activity Booklet and map • Magnifying lenses (optional) • Pencils/pens • Camera (optional) • Blank paper • Calculator (optional) To maximize the participants’ outdoor experience while on the trail, the amount of 3 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK writing in the Activity Booklet is brief. It is suggested that participants work in small groups to allow them to discuss information and views, to take turns in recording information and to gain as much first hand experience as possible. Participants can record information with drawings, diagrams, notes, lists etc. and photographs if possible. The pre and post visit activities give participants time in the classroom to read background information and to use their collected information in structured activities. The trail which consists of 13 points marked by numbered posts with green and white markings are indicated on the map. To reduce the number of posts in the forest, only the less obvious locations are marked by posts, i.e. E2, E5, E6, E7, and E11. At each point there are questions in the Leader Guide that can be used to promote discussion and thinking. The Activity Booklet and the Guide have questions and activities which involve hands-on investigation and recording by the participants. In addition to the main activities, a sheet of photographs is available for participants to tick off if when they see features. They can also be used as discussion points. Some of the activities involve measuring and calculating. The techniques are given on the information sheets and would be best practised before going on the trail. 1 It should take about 2 /2 hours to walk around the trail and complete the activities. Links to Revised Northern Ireland Curriculum The main elements of the proposed Northern Ireland Curriculum that can be covered by completing the Ecotrail and pre and post visit activities are set out below. There are also opportunities to cover aspects of Creative, Expressive and Physical Development, Language and Literacy, Mathematics and Numeracy and Personal Development. Key Stage 2: THE WORLD AROUND US: Theme1: The Way We Live Children should have opportunities, through direct observation and hands on experience to: • Explore how we live now and how people lived in the past • Carry out investigations of natural habitats
Pupils should investigate in an active way aspects of the following; Plant and animal life • Investigate a local habitat, including the relationship between the animals and plants in classifying according to observable features The way we lived in the past • Life in our local area – a study of evidence of the past from buildings, place-names, maps etc. Leaders Guide for Activity Booklet 4 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
Discussion symbol - Questions for the leader to use to encourage discussion
Record symbol – Participants can record their answers with drawings, writing or a list
Photo symbol - A good place for photographs, if you are taking a camera.
Optional activity – Additional activities if time allows O
WELCOME TO GOSFORD FOREST PARK ECOTRAIL
E1 Sign post
PLEASE BE AWARE OF TRAFFIC WHILST IN THE CAR PARK Read the information about the park and look at the map on the notice board. Can you see the castle, the deer park, the main entrance road and the lakes on the map? Note: The top of the map on the notice board is north.
In which direction is the castle? North
What can you see if you look east? Fields, deer enclosure
In which direction are the mill ponds? West
What would you reach if you walked south from the car park? The river
Make a list of the activities that you can do, and things that you can see in Gosford Forest Park. Caravanning and camping, walking, cycling, horse riding Historical sites, deer, rare breed, arboretum, woodland 5 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Directions: From the car park, head south along the boundary of the car park. At the corner of the car park follow the direction indicated by the red arrows. ➡➡➡ On your way you will pass a mini tower that was built by Prisoners of War in World War II. You can also see the remains of a waterwheel to the left as you leave the car park. Both of these features are on the photo page.
E2 Ravine
ALTHOUGH THE PATH IS WIDE, PLEASE TAKE CARE CLOSE TO THE EDGE OF THE RIVER
Have a look at the ravine and the river. How would you describe it? How do you think the ravine was formed? Use the words below to help you.
The river has eroded (worn away) the soil down to the rock, leaving steep sides in the ravine. In the river bed there are different types of rock, the harder rock has not been worn away as much and makes ridges in the stream bed. This has left an irregular and twisting shape to the river.
irregular straight sides twisting steep sides
level edges natural man-made 6 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Directions: Follow the red arrows to the mill ponds. Stop on the drive between the two millponds. ➡➡➡ A sluice gate at the millpond on the right diverts the water along a ditch.
E3 Millponds
The millponds were originally used to make sure that there was always water to turn the water wheel.
Look at the shape of the ponds and the ground around them. How would you describe them? Use the words below to help you.
Two equal sized ponds, either side of the driveway, regular shape, straight sides, island in the middle, path and bridge, weir out of both ponds, straight man-made ditch out of second pond, steep drop from first pond, probably dammed.
irregular straight sides twisting steep sides
level edges natural man-made 7 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK ➡➡➡ Directions: Walk along the drive and through the arch. Turn around to face the arch again.
E4 Gatehouse
This was the entrance to the original Manor House and Gosford Demesne before the building of the castle. At least one family lived in the gatehouses and it would have been their job to keep the entrance looking its best, brushing the drive and keeping the archway looking impressive.
Look around the archway and inside the gatehouses. Many alterations have been made and different materials have been used. This is one way of working out the age of each part of the building. A date above an archway shows when the north gatehouse was last worked on.
Are these features made of stones, brick or carved stone ?
Chimney breast in south gatehouse brick
Archway over entrance to south gatehouse stone
Window surround in north gatehouse stone
Hidden doorway on west face of the arch way carved stone
The edge under the slate roof cut stone
The end walls of the gatehouses stone
When were the gatehouses last worked on? 22-1-1969 8 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Directions: From the gatehouse, walk back along the drive and turn left ➡➡➡ along the path at the edge of the millpond. Continue along this path until you reach an area with conifer trees on the right and several deciduous trees on the left.
E5 Leaf Litter
Please take care of this natural environment and leave it looking as close as possible to how it was when you arrived. Leaf litter is made up of leaves and other plant material that is rotting down, with the help of many different animals, plants and other living things such as mould and fungus. Leaf litter can make a rich habitat where lots of different animals and plants can live. Find a good location under the deciduous trees. Use the plastic spoons to look through the leaf litter and the plastic bowls for mini-beasts that need a closer look.
What can you see in the leaf litter? What does it smell like? Is there anything living in it, such as plant, fungus or animals (mini-beasts)?
Leaf Litter Drawing
name colour approx size features E.g. Oak leaf brown 8cm lobed leaf Plants or fungus 9 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Drawing
name colour approx size features E.g. Grass green 10cm long and thin
Mini-beasts Drawing
name colour approx size features E.g. Millipede black 2cm many legs
Directions: Continue along the path with the stream on your left and stop ➡➡➡ 20m before the foot bridge. TAKE CARE NEAR THE EDGE OF THE STREAM 10 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK E6 Dean Swift’s Chair O
Dean Jonathan Swift visited the estate between 1728 and 1730 and was said to have got inspiration from walking in the grounds and this may be one of the places where he sat. He is most famous for writing “Gulliver’s Travels”, although he wrote this before visiting Gosford.
SOUND MAP Stand facing north, with the river on your left. Close your eyes, be quiet and listen to all of the sounds (about 1 minute.) Orientate this page so that the north arrow is pointing north. Be quiet and listen to the sounds again. When you hear a sound mark it on your map with its name or a small drawing of it. If the sound is close to where you are standing, mark it close to the X where you are standing on the map. If it is far away, mark it further out on your map. When everyone has finished, have a look at the maps to see if they are similar. Look at where the sounds are coming from. (Participants can do this activity individually on blank paper, or use the space below to complete it as a group.) N
X 11 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Directions: Continue along the path not over the bridge. At the next path ➡➡➡ junction turn left and after passing an entrance on the left hand side you will see a large fallen log on the right.
E7 Giant Redwood Log
To find out the age of a tree, you can count the number of rings that you can see in the cross-section of the tree trunk. Each one represents one year in the tree’s life.
Count the rings on the fallen Giant Redwood to find out how old it is. To get an estimate of the number of rings, count the rings in a small section, such as the length of a pencil. Work out how many of the sections would fit from the bark to the centre of the log and multiply this by the number of rings in one section.
Numbers of rings in one section
Number of sections
Total number of rings and age of tree
You may wish the participants to begin E8 and return to E7 in their groups, so that there is room for them to get closer to the log.
Directions: From the fallen log, walk down the grassy slope to meet the ➡➡➡ path that runs parallel to the previous one. Continue along this path until you reach a seat and a post with a blue arrow. From this point on, the route is marked by the blue arrows. 12 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
E8 Arboretum
There are several large coniferous trees on either side of the path. Some of these trees include: Lawson Cypress (California), Douglas Fir (W. N. America), Chile Pine (Chile), Deodar Cedar (Himalayas), Giant Redwood (Gigantium Wellingtonia, California), Noble Fir (W. N. America)
N
Cedar of Lebanon Lawson Cypress
Douglas Fir
Deodar Chile Pine Cedar Norway (Monkey Puzzle) Spruce
Chile Pine (Monkey Puzzle)
Giant Redwood Deodar Coastal Cedar Redwood
Noble Fir
Deodar Cedar Chose one of the larger coniferous trees. Work together to 13 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK collect information. Use extra pages for bark rubbings and drawings of seeds, flowers, other plants or animals nearby or underneath and anything else you think is interesting.
Species ______
Information on label ______
Season of the year______
Drawing of tree Drawing of needles
Estimated height ______m Girth ______cm
Estimated age ______years (Divide the girth by 2.5. Look in the appendix for more information)
Plants growing on the tree ______
Plants growing underneath the tree ______
Animals ______
Directions: Follow the blue arrows along the path and through the first ➡➡➡ gate in the wall on the right. The sundial at E9 is half way along the garden. 14 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
E9 Sundial
Look at the sundial. Use your compass to see if the north and south marked on the sundial are pointing in the right direction. Work out which numbers the Roman numerals stand for (you can use the numbers on your watch dial to help you). Where should the shadow be to tell the time? (Sundials are usually set for Greenwich Mean Time, so they would be an hour slow in the summertime.) If the sun is shining, read the time. How close is it to the real time? If you did the time line as a pre-visit activity, can you remember the significance of the date on the sundial?
Fill in:
The numbers next to the Roman numerals
Time by watch: ______
Where the shadow should be
Where the shadow is (if it is sunny)
Time on sundial: ______
Inscription on the sundial ______
The inscription translates loosely as, ”The hours pass, friends remain“.
Directions: Follow the blue arrows along the path leading past the castle. ➡➡➡ There are several good places to view the castle from the path as it follows the surrounding wall. TAKE CARE WHEN CROSSING THE DRIVEWAY. 15 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
E10 Gosford Castle
Please note that the castle is currently a building site and will become private houses. Do not enter the immediate grounds or intrude on people’s privacy. The castle took over 20 years to build and was started in 1819. The architect who designed it believed in using lots of different styles and you can see this on the castle. Can you locate the features in the pictures below.
✓ ✓ ✓
✓ ✓ ✓ From the path look at the castle. Choose a part that you would like to live 16 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK in. What rooms would you have and where would they be located? What are the views that you would see from the windows? You might want to alter it a little (remember it is a listed building, so you can’t change a lot). For example, could you use the roof for a terrace or a conservatory, would you have a private swimming pool? (This activity can be done as a group activity or individually on separate pieces of paper.)
Draw your “house” and label where the different rooms would be.
Directions: Follow the blue arrows leading along the path before turning ➡➡➡ right, away from the castle. The caravan site is on the right, near the end of the straight section of the path and the Spruce trees for E10 are on the left. Go into the trees. 17 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
E11 100,000th Acre Wood - Spruce Trees
Have a look around. How have the trees been planted? How have they grown? What is it like underneath them? What is growing there? How is this area different to the deciduous woodland where you looked at the leaf litter for E5? Do the trees look the same age? What age do you think they are?
The trees are Sitka Spruce and were planted in straight lines by the Forest Service. They grow tall and have hardly any side branches because they are all growing towards the sunlight and are quite close together. It is quite dark underneath the trees and there is hardly anything growing on the ground. To find out the age of a tree, measure its girth in cm. Divide by 1.5 to get an estimate of its age. (Look in the appendix for more information.)
Tree 1 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 2 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 3 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 4 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 5 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 6 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 7 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 8 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 9 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Tree 10 girth ______÷ 1.5 Est. age______
Average age of trees: ______Between the trees and E12 have a look for evidence of other animals. Draw or 18 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK write what you can see, hear or smell.
DRAWING/LIST ANIMAL
Spruce cones that have been eaten Squirrel
Birds singing birds
Droppings rabbit
Directions: Continue west through the Spruce trees until you reach a path. Turn left and follow the path to the commemorative stone which is on the right, approximately 150 m along the path. To leave out E12, return to the path next ➡➡➡ to the camp site and follow the blue markers onto the main driveway. The deer park enclosure includes the fields on the far side of the driveway. There are also several smaller fields with rare breeds of cattle and sheep. To reach the Heritage Poultry Collection, turn right up the driveway. The path around the enclosures is on the right just past the large building on the right of the drive. 19 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK E12 O 100,000th Acre Wood - Commemorative Stone
Read the inscription. How old is the wood? Do you think that your spruce trees were planted at the same time as the wood?
“This 100,000 acre of state forest was planted on 3 April 1971 by the people of Northern Ireland.”
Directions: Retrace your steps along the path. At the end of the path turn right through a gate and turn left through a second gate to meet the main driveway. The deer park enclosure includes the fields on the far ➡➡➡ side of the driveway. There are also several smaller fields with rare breeds of cattle and sheep. To reach the Heritage Poultry Collection, turn right up the driveway. The path around the enclosures is on the right just after the large building on the right of the drive. 20 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
E13 Heritage Poultry Collection
What are some of the species that you can see? Pick one animal and draw/photograph and describe it. If available, use information from the signs on the fences.
Drawing Name ______
Description ______
______
Information ______
______
➡➡➡ Directions; Return to the car park following the blue markers. TAKE CARE OF TRAFFIC NEAR THE DRIVEWAY AND IN THE CAR PARK Look out for these things on your way around. Tick the ones that you see. 21 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
Sluice gate from ✓ Minature Stone ✓ Birch tree on stump ✓ millpond tower
Wild garlic ✓ Rabbit ✓ Horse chestnut leaf ✓
Coloured autumn ✓ Peacock ✓ Well ✓ maple leaves
Hidden archway at ✓ Waterwheel ✓ gatehouse
To find out about other Ecotrails visit www.ecotrailsni.com APPENDIX 22 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Pre-visit Activities
Discussion about Gosford Forest Park Ask the participants what they know about Gosford already. Have any of them visited before? What are their experiences? What do they know about it? Some of them may have relations who know about the history of the park or have memories of what it was like years ago.
Time line Give each group a copy of the information sheets. Ask them to highlight or underline the information that they need to make a time line. More information can be collected from the websites listed at the back of this booklet.
After the visit, there will be several more dates that can be added to the timeline, including the date on the sundial, the date on the gatehouse and the date on the 100,000th Acre Wood Commemorative Stone.
Post visit Activities
For Sale: A House in the Castle Ask the participants to design a brochure advertising one of the castle houses. It could be the house that they described at E9 on the eco-trail. They should include the information from the trail to promote the Forest Park as a great place to live, for example describe one of the rare breeds or deer, describe one of the old trees in the arboretum, the natural woodland habitat and some of the history of the estate. They can also add information from the information sheets or the websites listed below.
They need to decide how to organise the information in the brochure. For example, they could divide the information under headings for different activities to do in the park, or write it as a chronological account of the Forest Park. You may want to get some brochures from estate agents as examples of contents and the style of language that is used. How do you deal with possible negative points such as lots of visitors in summer?
A Castle Flag Ask the participants to design a new flag for the castle. They can include the things that they think are the most interesting and important to Gosford, from its history and now.
Inspiration for Writing Dean Swift is said to have gained inspiration from his visits to Gosford Demesne. Ask the participants to use their sound map as an inspiration for a piece of fictional writing. They might like to include other elements of the estate that they looked at on the trail, such as the castle or the wood. It could be a piece of poetry, a story or even a letter, and should include descriptions of sounds and sights from their visit. Wall Display 23 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Ask the participants to work in groups, on one particular aspect of Gosford. These could include the timeline, the woods and the animals living there, the castle, the important or famous people that are linked to the estate’s history, other buildings or features that have been built over the years, one or some of the trees in the arboretum and what you can see and do there today. The display could be done in the style of a tourist map, using a grid to enlarge the eco-trail map and matching the writing and pictures to the relevant location on the map.
Background Information Sheets
Gosford Castle
After the Clonkearney Manor House on the Gosford Estate had burned down in 1811, Archibald Acheson, the Second Earl of Gosford began to build the castle, in Norman Revival style i.e. similar to Norman Castles built in the 12th Century.
The architect was the famous Thomas Hopper from London. He thought that "it is an architect's business to understand all styles, and to be prejudiced in favour of none"; The granite came from the Mullaglass Quarries in Bessbrook, Newry. Building began in 1819 and was completed in 1839, although additions were made after this and it is thought that the main entrance was added on as late as1859. The long building period was probably due to the lack of money and the total cost of the building was estimated at £100,000. The Second Earl died in 1849, and the estate was passed on to his son, along with the debts from the building of the castle.
After the Third Earl of Gosford died in 1864, the castle became a grand holiday residence., used over the Christmas period and for grouse shooting in August and September. The Fourth Earl of Gosford was forced to sell off the contents of the castle beginning with the contents of the library in 1888, and by 1921 everything had gone and the family moved out permanently.
During the Second World War from 1940, the castle was used by the British Army and the American Army, and had prisoners staying in the grounds. The German prisoners built the minature tower that is still in the car park. It was again used by the Army in the 1970s, during the Troubles. It has also been used for a travelling circus to stay in during the winter, and as a store for the Public Record Office.
The Department of Agriculture bought the estate in 1958 for forestry purposes and in 1978 the castle was leased by a group of business men who wanted to convert it into a luxury hotel. It was opened as a restaurant and a night-club, but none of these ideas was successful and in1983 the castle became empty again.
The castle was falling into a bad state of repair and its future looked bleak. In 2006, however, work began on turning the castle into luxury homes. Each will have its entrances, hallways, staircase and up to four floors. Residents will also have their own terraces, lawns, and/or courtyards and be able to enjoy the walled garden. Master craftsmen are currently working on the castle to install the technology and conveniences of the 21st Century, whilst maintaining the original features of the 190 year old castle. The castle is important because it is one of the largest in Ireland (in fact the largest Grade A 24 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK Listed Building in Northern Ireland) and the first of its kind to be built. Another castle built in this style is Penrhyn Castle near Caernarvon in Wales, which was also designed by Hopper, and is now owned by the National Trust. There is also one other example of this style in Ireland, at Glenstal Abbey near Limerick. Gosford Castle is exceptionally well built, although it was never intended to be a strong fort like the castles it was inspired by. It has a large square keep with corner turrets that contain chimneys and several other round and square towers.
The Acheson Family and the Earls of Gosford
The Acheson Family originally came from Scotland, and the Anglo-Saxon translation of the name means “Sons of the Sword”. They became important when they took part in the Crusades that began in the 11th Century. The family crest is a double headed black eagle (linking them to the Knights Templar).
Much of what is known about the Achesons at Markethill comes from 40,000 documents and 300 volumes that are held at the Public Records Office in Belfast.
King James I granted Henry Acheson of Edinburgh 1,000 acres of land in 1610. In return, Henry had to clear the land of native Irish people. Henry had brought nineteen Scottish families with him to settle and farm the land. Many people in Markethill today can trace their ancestry back to these settlers, with names like Greer and Galbraith. He also bought 2,000 acres of land at Cloncarney. Henry’s brother, Archibald, started to take control of the land in 1614, and was given the estate in 1628. The two brothers also had estates in Cavan and Longford, and probably kept estates in Scotland too.
To protect the settlers, the Acheson brothers built bawns, or stone farm houses. Henry’s bawn at Coolmalish was 140 feet by 80 feet with four towers. Archibald built a bawn at Clonkearney, near the present estate. He kept weapons and was able to raise 148 men to fight for the King, if they were under attack. The native Irish, who were no longer allowed to own the land, were paid by the settlers to work on it. Needless to say, they did not get on well.
Archibald became Baronet of Nova Scotia, Canada and was Secretary of State for Scotland. He died in 1634 and his son Patrick became the Second Baronet. Patrick died in 1638 and was succeeded by his half brother, George.
It was during the time of Sir George that the Irish rebelled. In 1641, the Church at Mullabrack was damaged or destroyed, the rector murdered and the bawn on the Gosford estate was destroyed. Clonkearney Manor was built as a replacement in the early 1700s. It was a large, red brick house where the Acheson ladies entertained their important friends. It was lived in until 1840 and all that now remains is a section of the foundations, on the right of the path leading to the millponds. Farm buildings were built where the main car park is now. The waterwheel that is still there was used to mill grain. It was supplied by water from the ponds and the estate entrance was through the archway between them. After Sir George died in 1685, his son Sir Nicholas inherited the estate. After his 25 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK death in 1701, his son Arthur took over the estate. Sir Arthur Acheson and Lady Anne were friends with Dean Jonathan Swift, a famous author, who stayed on several occasions, for months at a time. Dean Swift was even given a site on Drapier’s Hill to build his own house, but there appears to have been a falling out between him and the Achesons, maybe due to his poems about them, and the house was never built. Sir Arthur died in 1748 and was succeeded by his son Sir Archibald Acheson, who became Baron Gosford of Markethill in 1776 and later Viscount in 1785. Archibald died in 1792, leaving his son Arthur the estate. Arthur became the Second Viscount of Gosford. In 1806, he was given the title of Earl of Gosford and died the following year. Archibald his eldest son became the Second Earl of Gosford. His marriage to Mary Sparrow in 1805, from a wealthy family in England allowed him to build Gosford Castle. Their marriage did not last and she returned to England, never having lived in the castle. On her death in 1841, Sir Archibald sent men to collect Lady Acheson’s body and return it to Gosford. Unfortunately, they had too much drink and lost the coffin on the way home. As work on the castle started Sir Archibald also bought more land in Richill, extending the estate to 12,000 acres. Sir Archibald died in 1849 and was buried in the Church of Ireland at Mullabrack. A plaque there commemorates his life and includes his full title- Archibald Acheson, Second Earl of Gosford, Viscount Gosford, Viscount Worlingham of Beecles in Suffolk, Baronet of Nova Scotia and Lord Lieutenant of the County of Armagh. His son Archibald, the Third Earl of Gosford succeeded to the estate. He loved books and created a large library with many rare books, in the castle. He died in 1864 and was followed by his son, Archibald, Forth Earl of Gosford. The Forth Earl was a friend of the Prince of Wales (who later became Edward VII), with the title of Lord of the Bedchamber. He married Lady Louisa Montagu, who had been Lady of the Bedchamber, and was the daughter of a Duke. Archibald lived an extravagant lifestyle and ran up debts that the estate could not afford. He sold off the wonderful library of books in 1888, much of which is now in a collection in America, to pay a racing debt. But that was not enough, and in 1921 a sale was held, lasting at least two weeks, the rest of the contents of the castle were sold off and the family moved out never to return. The Forth Earl died in 1922 and was succeeded by his son, also Archibald Charles Montagu Brabazon Acheson, the Fifth Earl. He served in the Coldstream Guards in Africa and fought in the First World War. After his death in 1954, he was followed by his son Archibald Alexander, the Sixth Earl of Gosford. He joined the Air Force, fighting in World War II and later worked for the government and the Queen. After his death in 1966, his son Charles David Alexander John Sparrow became the Seventh Earl of Gosford. http://www.dochara.com/play/all/gosford.php http://www.proni.gov.uk/introduction_gosford_2.pdf http://www.bygonesandbyways.com/folders/gosford/the_achesons.htm The Northern Ireland Forest Service 26 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK
Gosford Forest Park has been owned and managed by The Forest Service since 1958. The Forest Service is part of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, and is accountable to Parliament. The Forest Service aims to make a profit from the wood in its forests in Northern Ireland and at the same time look after the forests so that they can be used for purposes other than harvesting wood. This includes visits by members of the public. The Forest Service also aims to protect and enhance the rural environment and to encourage an increase in the amount of woodland in Northern Ireland.
Gosford Forest Park has 240 hectares of woodland and open parkland. It was designated the first conservation forest in Northern Ireland in 1986. It is home to a herd of 50 Red Deer. Red deer were a native species of Ireland but became extinct and had to be reintroduced. They are the largest species of deer in Ireland, measuring 120cm at the shoulder. The Forest Service have three wildlife rangers, whose jobs include looking after the deer. http://www.forestserviceni.gov.uk
Measuring height and age of a tree
Height You will need: tape measure, metre stick Measure the distance from your eye to your outstretched hand. Hold a metre stick with one hand so that your arm is straight out horizontally and the stick is pointing upwards. The amount of stick showing above your hand should be the same as the distance that you measured from your eye to your hand. Stand facing the tree. Walk backwards (being careful about where you are going!) until the bottom of the stick is level with the bottom of the tree and the top of the stick is level with the top of the tree. Measure the distance from where you are standing back to the tree, using a tape measure. See Diagram below.
MEASURING THE HEIGHT OF A TREE
Metre stick amount sticking up equals length of arm
Distance to base of tree is almost equal to the height of a tree This procedure works because you are making a triangle with one side along the 27 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK ground from you to the tree, one side up the tree and the third an imaginary line from where you are standing to the top of the tree. This (almost) makes a right angled isosceles triangle, where the height of the tree is the same as the line along the ground to the base of the tree.
Age You will need: tape measure If a tree is cut down and you can see a cross section of the trunk, you can count the ‘rings’, as there are usually one for each year. To calculate the age of a living tree, measure the girth of the tree (around the trunk) about 150cm up from the ground. As a rough guide, every 2.5 cm is a year’s growth if the tree is in the open. So divide the girth by 2.5. (If the tree is in a wood and growing close to other trees, 1.5cm - 2cm would be roughly a year’s growth).
If the tree is quite old, it may be hard to tell if there were other trees around while it was growing. Trees growing in the open tend to have more side branches; ones growing with a lot of competition from other trees, in a wood, tend to have tall, straight trunks and few side branches as they are striving for the sunlight. This is only a rough calculation, as the amount that a tree grows depends on the species, as well as the growing conditions during the year.
Conifers tend to grow a whorl of branches each year; think of a Christmas tree. If the tree is not too tall, count the whorls where the branches grow out of the main trunk, one whorl for every year. Additional Websites Excellent identification sheets and games etc http://www.naturedetectives.org.uk/explore/idsheets/
Additional information for leaders, including leaflets and posters on trees etc. http://www.woodland-trust.org.uk/woods/index.htm
Online teacher and pupil resources linked to woodlands http://www.wild-about-woods.org.uk/
Online tree information and games for children http://www.woodland-trust.org.uk/discovery/index.htm
Contains picture library of tree species (cost to download) http://www.forestry.gov.uk
Child friendly sheets on tree identification http://www.naturegrid.org.uk/woodland/woodland_gallery.html
Age of trees http://www.rfs.org.uk/thirdlevel.asp?ThirdLevel=117&SecondLevel=66 Info on trees, animals and plants found in woodland 28 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL GOSFORD FOREST PARK http://www.rfs.org.uk
Child friendly site lots of info on animals and plants http://www.uksafari.com/wildfiles.htm
Identification on woodland animals, including mammals, birds, mini beasts http://www.naturegrid.org.uk/woodland/woodland_gallery.html
Info sheet on animal footprints http://www.iwt.ie/factfiles_paws.php
Mushrooms and toadstools photographs (lots of them!): http://www.nifg.org.uk/photos.htm
General environmental information http://www.naturegrid.org.uk/
Map and satellite of Gosford Forest Park http://uk.autold.com/map-g924.html
Info on the Burges Family (scroll down to Archibald Acheson) http://www.thepeerage.com/p3232.htm#i32316
Family mottoes (scroll down to Acheson or find your own) http://www.heraldryclipart.com/mottoes.html 29 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL // GOSFORD FOREST PARK 30 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL // GOSFORD FOREST PARK 31 // GUIDE TO ECOTRAIL // GOSFORD FOREST PARK