tarboat's photos with the keyword: winsford

Terracotta around the commemorative stone over the original entrance to the Verdin Grammar School of 1895 in Winsford. Sadly the wording is almost illegible these days. The building was designed by Woodhouse and Willoughby of Manchester. It was built for £8,000 by James Fowles, a Winsford builder. As for the terracotta, my best guess is that it was manufactured by Jabez Thompson of Northwich.

The No.3 shaft at Meadowbank salt mine is used for manriding.

This is not the usual look of a working mineshaft, but Winsford Rock Salt Mine No.4 Shaft presents this plain functional aspect. It is the main downcast shaft and has two large fans at the bottom which draw in around 135 cubic metres of fresh air per second. The shaft is 4.88m in diameter and 189m deep, with a two-tier lift consisting of a cargo compartment and a personnel carrier. The cargo compartment is 7 metres high, 2.4 metres wide and 4 metres deep and brings all the materials and engineering equipment underground. It can carry 15 tonnes. In addition to use by Salt Union this is also the access for the Deepstore record storage facility which uses the vast worked-out spaces.

The decorative work around the doors on these 1891 built terraced houses on High Street in Winsford is unusual in that it mixes brickwork with carved stone pieces. It is a pity that the door has been changed.

Another example of terracotta and stone decoration in High St, Winsford. Griffiths Villas date from 1897. The stonework has darkened in the polluted atmosphere when this town was based around open pan salt production, whereas the terracotta and brick has survived well.

The Palace Cinema on Dingle Lane, Winsford, was originally built as the Drill Hall which was opened by Lord Dundonald of Gwrych Castle on 26th June 1901. I have been unable to find a defintive date for it being converted to a cinema, but by 1935 it was definitely open as the Palace. Films were shown until the early 1970's after which it became a bingo hall, a use which continues today.

Today I took a stroll with the dogs along the banks of the River Weaver from Town Bridge in Winsford downstream to the Meadowbank Mine. As you walk through the parkland that runs along the eastern bank it is difficult to envisage just how industrialised it once was, with saltworks crowded upon each other right down to the water on both sides. Apart from the former Colin Stewart works there is little industry until you begin to approach Newbridge and the Meadowbank Salt Mine appears. It appeared that no salt was being raised as redevelopment work was being undertaken on the conveyor from the skip shaft, seen here in the background, to the cone on the left. A new lorry loading point is being constructed in the white building seen just to the right of the cone. Meanwhile, a number of machines were moving rock salt about on the much depleted stockpiles along the riverside.

Early morning at the Meadowbank salt mine in Winsford.

Mist rises on the River Weaver as it passes the dust cone over the stocking point at the Meadowbank Mine in Winsford .

Another triumph of terracotta. Next to the Brunner Guildhall in Winsford is the Verdin Grammar School of 1895, designed by Woodhouse and Willoughby of Manchester. It was built for £8,000 by James Fowles, a Winsford builder.

Fine decorative work on the Verdin Grammar School building in Winsford. I think that this winged lion (one of three on the building) is the work of J. C. Edwards (Ruabon) Ltd. This company specialised in decorative pieces such as this.

The former Winsford Drill Hall on Dingle Lane. All that work and expense to put the date on the building which shows the pride and confidence of the period. Now a bingo hall.

Left corner of front.

Above right window.

A triumph with red Ruabon terracotta. The Brunner Guildhall in Winsford stands as a representative of proper architecture whilst facing the sixties and seventies disaster of the Civic Hall and shopping centre. The plaque to the left of the door states: THIS HALL WAS PRESENTED TO THE URBAN DISTRICT COUNCIL OF WINSFORD BY SIR JOHN TOMLINSON BRUNNER BARONET MEMBER FOR THE NORTHWICH DIVISION OF CHESHIRE IN TRUST FOR THE DAILY USE OF TRADE AND FRIENDLY SOCIETIES AND FOR OTHER PUBLIC PURPOSES UNDER THE MANAGEMENT OF A REPRESENTATIVE COMMITTEE AND WAS OPENED BY HIM ON THE 4TH DAY OF NOV 1899 EDWIN HAMLETT: CHAIRMAN OF THE COUNCIL JOHN HENRY COOKE: CLERK ON THE 15TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 1898 THE COUNCIL. MR WILLIAM STUBBS. CHAIRMAN: DECIDED BY RESOLUTION TO GIVE TO THE BUILDING THE NAME OF THE BRUNNER GUILDHALL. The building now forms a part of Mid Cheshire College.

Erected by public subscription in 1888 to commemorate Queen Victoria's jubilee, the Winsford Free Library building is now offices.