Re: Spire farm development
 

I agree give him time and a bit of leeway now

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Having said that don't hold your breath.

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Its you that made a pathetic attempt to do that.:rolleyes:

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Frome 13 mths ago.....I AGREE......

Re: Spire farm development
 

from 13 mths ago...I AGREE

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I used to live there around 1954. I remember the tower well. It was in a hell of a state. I have seen recent pics and thought the left hand gabled building was a recent addition. This pic brings it all back. I can remember standing in the "window" helping to stack the hay in the barn as it was brought in from the meadows on the hay cart. I was about 6 or 7. What health and safety???? Thanks for pic, it brings back part of my childhood which was rather hazy.

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Hi Rosegrove. I was only 6 or 7 at the time so I'm not certain about the accuracy here but I think the Jacksons farmed at Spire Farm ( High Riley) until around 1953/4. My uncle bought it then. ( The less said about that the better!)
I lived there for a short while and used to play with the Jackson lads, Harry and Thomas. When I knew them they lived at High Riley Cottages. We used to walk down to St Paul's school together. I was scarred for life by the memories of terrible school dinners!!!

There were 2 lots of woods as I recall. One behind the cottages and one alongside the track leading up from Plantation Street.I'm ashamed to say that my uncle was responsible for selling off the trees for felling. I was very young at the time but I seem to have some recollection that the barn "caught fire" as well. I had moved to Blackpool by that time so I could be wrong.

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It was a wonderfully quiet place in the mid 1950's. What's gone wrong??

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Yeah! As I said somewhere else in this argument, it used to be such a peaceful spot in the mid 1950's. Wonder if Thomas Jackson is reading any of this stuff??

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Rupertbear, thank you for your clarification of the woods. When we were children we used to walk from Barnfield Street up Sandy Lane, and turn right alongside High Riley Cottages. That way led to a wood behind the cottages that in the spring was filled with bluebells. It was lovely, and yes, very quiet. This was in the mid to late nineteen forties and early fifties. There was no concern about children wandering around there without adults.
Our family used to walk round by Spire Farm on Sunday afternoons. There was a pigsty on the property and my brother and I used to hang over the stone wall to look at the pigs.
Retlaw, another walk was to turn left from Sandy Lane on to Leemings Pad. Part way along, on the right, I remember farm buildings. Would this be the New House Farm in your post 8? Do you know how old it was? We continued on to Plantation Road. These were lovely walks at any time of year.

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There was/is a path (don't know it it's still there) that ran up from the sports grounds behind the college, up a clough which led up to Blue Bell woods.

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The official Blue Bell Woods was :D:D Go up to New House Farm take the lane that forks off to the right, which goes down a slight decline, when it reaches a bridge over a stream the area of woods running up from there is the official one as it was coated in those flowers in the spring - though I suppose any kid, finding blue bells in a wood, would call it that name, so most woods would be called that.;)

We used to help Strak when he farmed Spires back in the 70's!

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Still there

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Are there still as many blue bells though? As it was on Countryfile some time ago that they were on the decline! :confused::)

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No Dick Guy's cattle trample them down

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Who's he? I think there was a man who ran Spires farm before Straks called Riley - am I right?

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If you look back through the posts you will see that the place was called Riley before the Norman Conquest, a lot of the place names in the area retained their names especially when the monks of Kirkstall started aquiring lands in the area, Riley was one of their vaccaries, anoter was Antley, when the monks left, the lands reverted back to the de Lacey family, he appointed one of his stewards to oversee the place he was called Robert he took the name of the place where he lived, and became Robert of Riley, (Robert de Riley) over tha past 900 years there may have been many Riley's who lived there.
Before the1500's very few people had a surname, a man would just be known as Jack of Barnfield, if he had a son he was usually referred to as Jacks son, some took the name of their trade Sam the Smith, Herbert the Tailor, John the Harper. Etc Etc.

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yeh I know - High Riley Farm is the one further back from Spire farm.

So Straks was he one of the Slavic invaders! He was polish! :rolleyes:

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New High Riley Farm is the proper name for what people refer to as Spire Farm. There is also the High Riley Brox, High Riley Cottages, which way are you facing when you say farther back, Mole Side End, Blue Slates, West Farm.

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OK - is Mole Side End the farm that sits just below the hill above the lodges. Is that still a farm? Or converted into flats. There was another ruined farm house at the top of the field at the top lodge, I believe the name is Green Field. There was also another small farm a few fields behind it and the owner was an old guy who used to shout/swear if you strayed off the path and even come after you if you walked across his field.

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Green Fields Farm was derelict, the Easterly Bypass went right through it, the other farm you mention could be Miry Lane Farm, the last farmer was Norman Proctor, somebody's done it up, comes home in a helicopter.

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They do that, but only in-between breaking our fences and eating our grass.:eek::mad:

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He has Broad Oak Farm

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He could be on about slate pitts walter?

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Who has? Riley? I take it Broad Oak Farm is the one below what used to be Warmden Res (now drained) which used to be a good trout fishery and I think where the trout in the Broad Oak Brook came from also was it Lamont who had the farm up on the top near Warmden?

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Slate Pitts was the one in the trees side of Moleside Hill. I think Miry Lane Farm is right as the one where the dark figure lived (Norman) :rolleyes: Used to see him in town as well at the egg stall.

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Broad Oak Farm no longer exists, it was at Broad Oak Fold, but disappeared when the estate was built. The only farm in the Warmden Res area is Clough Bottom Farm at the end of Cat Hall Lane, map ref 774-277.

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I'm just looking at a Ordanance Survey Pathfinder Map from 70's and where Broad Oak Farm was there is nothing marked just some buildings and Warmden Res. Then on the hill towards Spires Farm is marked Heights Farm - that is where Lamont used to live, if it's still there. So I take it a housing estate has been built where Warmden Res used to be?

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No Broad Oak Farm was at Broad Oak Fold, Sandy Lane junction of Barnfield, Heights Farm and the surrounding area is still as it was before they drained the Warmden, that lane used to go on past Heights Farm to Warmden Quarry, and is no where near Spire farm.
When I was in the Fire Brigade one of my jobs was updating the Farm Records, which showed the quickest access route & the nearest water supplies, in our division we had over 900 properties in the records which required a lot of checking as farms or small holdings were sold off or demolished.
Every fire appliance on the station carried a copy of those records, now its done by computer and it uses postcodes to search for the routes, when they showed it to me I beat it 7 out of 10, a lot of the outlying properties don't have a post code.
Blue Slates, West Farm, Moleside End are just 3 that I can still remember, the last one up Sandy Lane with a post code is New High Riley. They have to collect their own mail posty won't or can't get up some of the older roads or lanes in Accy, Sandy Lane is impassable past New House farm.

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Did you ever meet or see Straks - he looked like Kojak with completely bald head except he had a Polish accent.;)

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Yes had a few run ins with him he was always blocking the lanes with his machinery, even warning him about the lack of a decent water supply in case his barn went up, didn't seem to bother him.

The last fire I attended at at High Riley, we had to run a water relay from Hambledon Lodge, that a hell of a long time ago

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He rented the farm I think - don't think he owned it. Where is Hambledon Lodge? That res below Hambledon? Did you used to attend a lot of grass fires - I recall there used to be a lot in the summer over the hills.

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Carry on up Sandy lane past Blue Slates & its there right in front of you, there's some picture of it on goggle urth, just type in Accrington & then traverse East up Sandy Lane across the Bypass and bingo.
Grass fire are a bloody nuisance, I was in favourr of letting them burn out as long a they did no damage, you can't light it twice

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Well from what you say here Broad Oak Farm had long gone when I was around. There used to be a single barn at the bottom of Sandy Lane where the path went off to Ardenhall and further along some ruins of buildings, is that where it was?

The other farm I am talking about was in front of the Warmden Dam and always had loud noise of a generator running all day and loads of vehicles parked up year on year, do you know what I mean? It was before Heights Farm which was along way behind it to the left as you come up through Broad Oak.

I've got Meadow Top Farm on my map which was other side of Warmden from Heights Farm also Wooley Lane Farm further over towards Baxenden and then Hen Heads Farm more closer to Mitchell House Res.

I've seen vehicles go up passed New House Farm loads of times.

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Other than a 4x4, you can only access that part of Sandy Lane from the bypass. I've tried and its impassable to ordinary vehicles.

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You've lost me now with the Sandy Lane Farm;) But now I know it's Clough Bottom Farm - what's his trade - plant hire?

Re: Spire farm
 

Yes, as for Sandy Lane it starts at the junction with Adelaide St, up past the colledge of knowledge past Broad Oak Fold, up past the end of Leemings Pad then up past New House and carry on to High Riley Cottages, Spire Farm is down the lane to the left. Before they built the Bypass Sandy Lane carried on to Blue Slates, on the left was Moleside End Farm & to the right was West Farm, Carry on past Blue Slates & the last stop is the lodge.
Goggle urth now shows another property after High Riley Cottages before the bypass its entirely new, but blends in well with every thing else, looks like its been there for ever

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That will be number 5/7 garage i think retlaw, its in the field slightly to the rear of the cottages and has been up since 1992.Or if its on the topside of the bypass it could be Alan Whittakers' barn which is on the other sid of sandy lane to the cottages other than that there are no more buildings until blue slates, west farm etc .

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Field House Farm is the one I remember from when we walked around Leemings Pad in the nineteen forties. I never knew its name. Would it have been a ruin then? It seemed substantial from the path but I was very young at the time and wouldn't have known. Do you know when it was built, Retlaw?

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The building I remember seeing was on the opposite side to the Cottages just a bit further up the lane. Can't for the life of me remember the name of the farm 1/2 way between New House and High Riley, The Wright family from Hambledon Hall lived there, George, Harry, Richard.

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Is it not Leafield?

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Thats the one Thanks.
Used to spend a lot of time at West Farm whenthe Kemps had it, has to pass Leafield Barn on the way, Dick Wright had a bantam cock that was a right little barsteward, would attack any one going up Sandy Lane, had to arm myself with a 6 ft garden cane, even that didn't deter it no matter how hard you whacked it.

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Yeh I've been up Sandy Lane many, many time though I don't live in the area now I can't take a look to refresh my memory!

Do you know Brocklehurst Clough, near Spires Farm, there was an old ruin there for years then in the early 80's someone re-built it, do you know where I mean? ;)

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Thanks for the information about Field House Farm, Retlaw. We used to see a woman outside the house sometimes. She could have been the mother of the boys you knew.
The college on Sandy Lane wasn't built when we first lived in the area. There was a field where it stands now, and we watched haymaking in late summer. I don't know who the field belonged to.

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Re: Spire farm development
 

My dad Clifford Holt, as a boy, lived at number 11 Washington Street. From there he had a paper round which included either Spire Farm or High Riley Farm, or both, I can't remember now.

I worked out this must have been around 1935 or 1936. His round involved the Plantation Street area.

When he got to the top of Plantation Street he would walk up to the farms, hand the farmer his paper, get on the farmers' horse and ride it bare-back down the lane to the bottom field to graze, and then finish his round before going off to school at Woodnook.

The farmer gave him special permission to do this and he was very proud of the chance to ride a horse.

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Horses played an important part in the life of the town at one time. We got milk from one of the farms up Sandy Lane and it was delivered by horse and small cart. The driver was a man called Jim. My mother took a jug out to the cart, and Jim used a ladle to fill it from one of the large round containers. There was a small step on the back of the cart and he let us ride along on it for a short distance. That was the closest I came to a horse.

I didn't know Bullough's rented the field where the college is now, and I don't remember the horses. There was a high stone wall around the field.

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That was along time ago, before WW2. The only farmer I can recall delivering milk from up Sandy Lane was Tom Kemp from West farm, he had a proper milk float, the horse used to press its nose on our door bell, mother used to give it a carrot or an apple.

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There was one of the farmers who had Spire farm who delivered his own milk , his name was either Hardy or Leach my mum worked for him on the farm and the float.

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But what if the dog come across a farm animal on a public path, could the blame be put on the dog owner or the farm owner?

Was up last week, didn't seem that bad, was muddy and not as eye pleasing as I remember it. Not seen the new build at the bottom before how long has that been there?

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The bottom of where?

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Spire farm. Say coming up from the cobble path, stables and another building, it's a while since I have been up that way so it could have been there a while.

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Do you mean that on the right hand side just past were you walk up to the lodges. If so it is supposed to be a stud farm

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That's the one. Supposed to be?

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There never seems to be anyone around. I think it's called Blair Stud Farm

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Thanks for the photo that is what it looked like before!
Oh yeh thanks - that makes sense that since the 70's that road has been washed away by rain and lack of maintenance. ;)

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From Newhouse it is impassable unless you drive a 4 X 4

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i totally agree with walkinman221 and everything he says about the state of spire farm and the footpath. The perfectly good dry stone wall he mentions was about 75 yds long and 6ft high. I wouldnt like to think how much it would cost to build a wall like that these days, only an idiot would knock it down and replace it with a cheap wooden fence.
As for the manure pile at the side of the footpath, what an eyesore. Maybe someone will slip on the slime that has encroached onto the footpath and maybe sue

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JoanR mentioned getting milk delivered from a farmer called Jim. I think that was my father. We used to live at West Farm. The horse was called "Paddy". I have a photo of him delivering milk as you described - if anyone is interested.

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Ataylo, we moved to Cobham Road in the summer of 1946, and it is from then that I remember Jim delivering our milk with his horse and cart for several years. Does that fit in with when your father was doing it? I don't remember him delivering it on Barnfield St. where we were previously, although he might have.
I would like to see the photo.

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JoanR my father moved to West Farm in 1946. I was born in 1949. I think we moved to bottled milk and aquired a van in the mid 50's. So it should fit in with your time frame. The photo was taken around 1951/2 because I'm in it but very young. It also shows 2 other children on the cart getting a ride as you described and I think it was taken in the street that ran parallel to Abbey st between Sandy Lane and Plantation St. Might have been Chapel St.

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It's a lovely photo of the time, and thanks for posting it, Ataylo. The milk cart is as I remember, with the large wheels and the curved rail at the side. Your father always wore that flat cap as well. I remember the switch to bottled milk, but couldn't say when it started.

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Mr RHFOY
Accrington businessman in court over threat to slit wife's throat (From Lancashire Telegraph)

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At what point does an ex 'Businessman' just get called a yob, a wife beater a...

well you know the idea, no better than anyone else?

Or should we be forgiving just because he had a business and for some reason this puts him, for some reason, above the ordinary pleb?
:confused:

Re: Spire farm development
 

Some of his posts did seem wild and irrational - obvious signs of a man under stress.

As for being a 'business man', I suppose the more you have to lose, the greater you feel the loss.

I do not condone domestic violence (heaven forbid, I have had some !).

There are too many psychopaths in our society, and they are the ones who tend to acquire wealth by trampling others down on their way up.

Re: Spire farm development
 

I hate to say it but i told you so , the man was and probably still is a nutter!!!!! You only had to look at what he did to the spire and its land to get the idea of his character.

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Seems yeh were spot on me owd tatter.;)

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Apparently loads of police activity at the spire today was due to the police finding a cannabis farm in the bungalow attached to the main building:eek::eek:

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coppers were up there yesterday

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Yes they were so was mr foy i think, thats why the fuzz were in attendance. They must have discovered the weed yesterday and removed it today, plenty of them to.

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yeh we saw Mr Foy up there

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Almost 300 cannabis plants were found at East Side Spire Farm on Sunday. - Accrington Observer

I have just read this entire thread from the beginning.... wow!!!

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Wow indeed:eek::D

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That is part of the problem within our education system…init though?

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Does anyone here know anything about the Lamonts who lived at Heights farm, Accrington? We have some photos of the farm from our family who lived at Broad Oak Fold and later Lower Withams farm.

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