|
The musings of GERALD - July & August 2015
The Church heritage service was very successful once again. The flower arrangements were beautifully done - they really are a credit to the ladies who do them. The readings and poetry were well chosen and presented, and the collection of Church documents on display were very interesting - that table was busy all afternoon. Once again the food was delicious and the wine finished the afternoon nicely. Many thanks to the people who organised the service I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I am often asked the dates when our village was connected to the main services.
Electricity came to the village in 1934/35, when Lancaster city Council built a coalfired power station near the Aqueduct Bridge, in Lancaster. Docker had to wait until 1949 for their supply when a cable was laid across the fields from the substation at Storrs Hall heading towards Craven View and Snab Green.
Water came in 1938 when the villages in the Lune Valley were connected to the Thirlmere pipe line at Capernwray. Mains water was a great relief to lots of families - not much fun going to the well or pump on a cold dark night.
Mains sewerage came to Whittington in 1969. That was the end of quite a few small dark privies at the bottom of the garden - not a pleasant job for the local dustbin men whose job it was to clean them out. The road through the village was also widened at this time.
Whittington was connected to mains gas in 1986 - even though a gas pipe had come through the village in 1955 when all the small local gas works were shut down and a large new gas works was built at Morecambe. This was later made redundant when North Sea gas came on stream - and now it is broadband that we are getting connected to. I just cannot think of what else will come in the next fifty years.
Top of Page
The musings of GERALD - June 2015
Would someone please ask the powers that be to please remove the antique Whittington road sign that is lying at a drunken angle in the hedge on Kirkby Lonsdale road, could we please have it repaired and put in a less vulnerable place away from predatory hedge cutter drivers who seem to delight in decapitating road signs and footpath finger posts. Could it possibly be moved before some passing scrap merchant decides it would just top up his load of scrap iron, as that would see it gone forever.
Marie Blackburn saw the first swallow on April 16th but there are a lot fewer birds about this year and I have yet to see the usual ones flying around the Church.
We will be doing a small presentation in Church on May 31st at the Heritage Service at 5 pm there will be some of the Church records on view lots of other interesting material to look at if you are interested in our villages long history.
The Tartan Sound will be back playing music for dancing in Whittington Village Hall on June 6th at 8 pm, well worth a visit.
Top of Page
The musings of GERALD - May 2015
The sign at Biggins crossroads advising HGV drivers to use the Whittington road has been removed, I have no idea why. Did someone overstep their authority putting it there or has common sense prevailed?
Is it really 70 years since we celebrated VE day? What a relief it was. The ARP and the Home Guard were stood down, the black out curtains removed, church bells were ringing again, most of the evacuees went home, and the army camp at Storrs Hall was abandoned. No more gas mask practices, no need for people to carry their identity cards. Peace was really returning. We celebrated. Arkholme Trinity Sports restarted, a challenge football match between Arkholme and Whittington was arranged, Whittington won if I remember correctly, and we built an enormous bonfire on the island by the viaduct. Some soldiers who had been abroad for long periods returned. Billy Woodend had been defending Malta for almost four years and seen quite a few of his comrades killed whilst manning the anti-aircraft guns. Reg Bateson came home after four years as a prisoner of war and other men and women who had served in the forces returned to their families. What a celebration it was. Food rationing continued for a few more years - bread rationing was yet to start - but oranges and bananas were back on sale and some shops actually sold ice cream, what luxury and what a treat.
The swallows should be returning any day now. Keep watching for them, they are a bit later this year, they must be waiting for the weather to get warmer.
Could our new Parish Council when they take over in May do something with the Parish seats? They are in a bad state of repair and for the last few years they have totally disappeared under the long grass.
Top of Page
The musings of GERALD - April 2015
Keen observers of traffic signs will no doubt have noticed the new sign that has been put up at Biggins crossroads at Kirkby Lonsdale again advising HGV drivers not to use their road but I suppose use Church Street at Whittington instead. A similar sign was placed there a few years ago but we eventually persuaded Cumbria Council to remove it so perhaps with a little effort we can do the same thing again, I hear the Parish Council have the matter in hand so let us hope they are successful.
That hard working lady Marjorie Dixon from Harrison's Farm is 90 years old this week, best wishes for a happy birthday Mrs Dixon from all your friends in the village. Have you been watching the Rooks rebuilding their nests in that large oak tree at Dobby Lane? They really have worked hard and there must be almost twenty nests in the tree this year. They must have reared a lot of young Rooks last year.
There was a break in at the Village Hall last week but fortunately not a lot of damage was done and nothing much was stolen, no money is ever left on the property so really it was a wasted effort on their part but it is not nice to think that people are wandering the village at night looking for things to steal. A truck was broken into at Low Hall and a quantity of hand tools were stolen on the same night so it pays to be vigilant the whole time.
Top of Page
The musings of GERALD - March 2015
No need to pay to see a lovely snow drop display this year. Just walk up the road towards Moor Brow - the walk will do you good - look over the fence on the left hand side and you will see a beautiful white carpet of snow drops stretching right across the ghyll, a lovely reminder that spring is really here.
The annual charity dance held in January raised £1,015 divided equally between Cancer Care and the Macmillan Nurses charities.
I had a nice little note from Chris Travers who has been clearing up his late sister Bridget's house. He recalls how the family moved to Arkholme when they bought Cawood View in the nineteen fifties. He was just a schoolboy then, and he loved going for walks with my father when they exercised the dogs at Storrs Hall.
My bird feeders have been very busy this year. They just love the fat balls I have been putting out for them and they are eating two every day at the moment, such a variety of birds and all eating as if there was no tomorrow, so nice to watch them coming and going the whole time.
The next dance in the Village Hall is on Saturday 7 March when Bill Johnston will be providing the music - it will be another good night.
Top of Page
The musings of GERALD - February 2015
Friend and fellow bowler John Mason is recovering at home after major heart surgery, John was taken ill on a bowling green at Kendal last September and had heart surgery at Blackpool but it is good to know that he is feeling better and managing to have a walk when the weather is nice, so hurry up getting fit again John the bowling season starts in two months time.
David Kenyon tells me he raised £3,767 selling the Lune Valley calendar on behalf of St Johns Hospice and would like to thank everyone who bought one, I thought the photos he collected were very good and a true picture of our villages one hundred years ago.
Congratulations to the ladies who decorated the Church at Christmas it really was beautiful, we spent some time looking at the individual arrangements and wondered at the time and dedication it took to collect and arrange both the flowers and the foliage it really was lovely.
I must inform the Parish Council that the Whittington archives they were discussing do not belong to the Village but are my personal collection that I have put together over the years. 1 want the material to stay in tne village after my time and just wanted to make sure that there is somewhere in the village where it can be kept so that it is available to future generations.
There are two dances this month Dennis Westmorland is playing in Whittington Village Hall on February 7th and the Roe Valley band are here on the 21st.
Also best wishes to Jean Dixon, who is in hospital and also Keith Bateson, who are both recovering from operations.
Top of Page
|
