BBC Radio 4 recording with Steph McGoven

Andrew Fielding of Ecosal-UK with Steph McGoven of the BBC after her visit down the Winsford rock salt mine. On the table are three different reproductions of ceramic salt pans which were used in salt making processes from the Iron Age and Roman periods. The recording will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2015 and include details about the Salt Network we are promoting to link up salt making sites across the country.

21-23 High St and The Former Beehive Public House - Northwich Cheshire

First attempt at using the free software app from Autodesk - 123D Catch.

The detail is decorative feature on a framed building in Northwich.
These buildings were designed to withstand ground movement caused by rock salt mining and wild brine pumping. Buildings like this one currently used as estate agents - Meller Braggins are not typical of the early buildings but get the most attention. 21-23 High Street, Northwich.
The council are at last looking at the unique historic character of this group of buildings. In 1891 Thomas Ward declared that they were 'unique in the country'.
HLF have awarded a Stage 1 pass towards a grant of £1.5m towards the Historic Townscape Initiative. The stage 2 application should be submitted by April 2015.
Already much damage is being done to the surviving buildings - such as removal of original windows and replacement by pvc double glazed units. See the Bee Hive below.

The modern pvc windows have been added to the former pub within the last few weeks.

STRA Workshop 13-14 November 2014

Rebuilding the George Street Chapel Pipe Organ

In January we recorded the rebuilding of the George Street Chapel pipe organ for Age UK Oldham.
It was returned to the chapel by organ builders David Wood of Huddersfield.
In August the Age UK Choir were recorded singing All Things Bright and Beautiful and Breath on Me Breath of God.
This version of Breath on Me Breath of God, 'Trentham', was composed by Robert Jackson (1842-1914) who succeeded his father as organist at St Peters Church, Oldham.

Portrait of Robert Jackson in Gakkery Oldham collection.

Observation

 

Fair weather eye. Good and bad days recently.
Bid for an EU grant, to help with promoting the heritage of salt, failed when we couldn't even get the application completed - because not one of the nine organisations from five countries would commit themselves to act as the Lead Partner and take responsibility for managing the paperwork and financial form filling on behalf of the whole project.
It's a risk averse world. But it has meant that a possible 250,000 euros now isn't available to help promote the heritage of traditional salt making in Spain, Portugal, Germany, UK and Bulgaria. Thats about £56,000 lost to the UK salt projects to help tourism, the ECOSAL-UK Salt Network and SMEs in Cumbria, Cornwall and Wales.

Good Days - blue skies, blue seas

Bad days - grey skies, grey seas.

Drone over Jackson Pit

Spent this morning recording Lisa Thomson filming the George Street Re-enactors at the rear of George Street Chapel in Jackson Pit. Lisa and Louis brought along a drone helicopter to get some aerial views of the group.
We could find lots of applications for this great piece of technology.

Winsford Salt Fair Regatta 2014

The 2014 Winsford Salt Fair commemorates WWl with a parade of narrowboats dressed overall.
Winsford is the highest navigable section of the River Weaver Navigation. The narrowboats travelled down from the Trent and Mersey Canal via the Anderton Boat Lift. Now all pleasure craft narrowboats and larger barges, Weaver Flats, used to carry coal to the numerous Winsford salt works and take white salt away for distribution.

At the upper limits a large flash was formed where
subsidences were formed through wild brine pumping. 

AIA Conference Tour 2014 - Nantwich - Middlewich - Northwich

Today I led the guided Tour K, the final tour of the 2014 AIA Conference.
Excellent visit to Nantwich Museum to view the lead salt pan and medieval 'salt ship' where delegates were met by Graham Dodd.
Then a tour of the derelect, but soon to be restored, electric brine pump a part of Murgatroyd's Salt Works. The group was met by Heritage Middlewich volunteers lead by Kerry Fletcher before we all departed for lunch at The Big Lock pub on the Trent and Mersey Canal.
The final port of call was Ashton and Neumanns Flashes and the Lion Salt Works at Northwich, where we were given a tour of the salt works now that the main restoration works are almost complete.

Murgatroyds Brine Pump, Middlewich.

Lion Salt Works, Northwich.

Inside one of the salt warehouse at Lion Salt Works.

Talk to AIA Conference 2014, Chester University

Andrew gave three talks to the 2014 annual conference of the Association for Industrial Archaeologists at Chester University.
The first was a general introduction about salt, the second described the unique framed buildings developed in Northwich to withstand ground subsidence casued by wild brine pumping and rock salt mining.
The third described the formation of ECOSAL-UK as a legacy of the Ecosal-Atlantis project.
Andew also circulated a draft copy of the book about the set of photographs taken in Northwich by Thomas Birtles between 1891 and 1892 at the passing of the 1891 Brine Compenation Act.
The book will be available in October direct from A&A Fielding Ltd or from on-line printers Blurb.

BBC Radio 4 - Open Country - 21 August 2014

BBC Radio 4 - Open Country

BBC Radio 4 programme Open Country talks about Cheshire Salt on Thursday 21 August 2014 at 15.00
repeated Saturday 23 August at 6.05am.
Felicity Evans taks to Andrew Fielding, Ecosal-UK; Kerry Fletcher, Midlewich Town Council Heritage Office; Chris Hewitson, Cheshire West and Chester, Lion Salt Works and goes below ground to the Winsford Rock Salt Mine, Compass and Minerals.

Salt Making at Saltfleet - Rained Off - 10 August 2014

Our demonstration day at Saltfleet was disappointing. Having built the hearth on a sunny Saturday afternoon in preparation for the demonstration day we were aware of the dreadful weather forecast given for the following day.  The whole country was braced for the aftermath of hurricane Bertha.
On the Sunday clouds were developing and the wind picking up as we lit the fire at 9.30am - the brine heated up and by 10.30 salt crystals were beginning to form. But that was the best of the day and as the wind got stronger the rain began sweeping across the field in torrents..... At 11am the Saltfleet Gala Day was cancelled!
Our salt hearth is built with bricks, but represents a clay hearth which might have supported clay pans found at Ingoldmells, Lincolnshire
Video to follow -

Each salt pan would have been supported in three clay pedistals.

Balls of wet clay allowed each pan to be set horizontally.

The first salt crystals forming in the clay salt pans.

  

Saltmaking Demonstration - Saltfleet - 10 August 2014

We shall be using our replica Ingoldmells Roman ceramic salt pans on Sunday 10 August at the Saltfleet Gala Day, Lincolnshire.
We will be part of the Heritage Lincolnshire and Lincolnshire Coastal Marsh Grazing Project displays.

Contribution to BBC Radio 4 - Open Country

Spent today with Felicity Evans and Mark Smalley of BBC Radio 4's Open Country programme contributing to a 25 minute programme about salt making in Cheshire. Also taking part were Kerry Fletcher, Heritage Officer at Middewich Town Council and Chris Hewitson archaeologist at the Lion Salt Works. Mark and Felicity later made a visit underground at the Winsford rock salt mine operated by Salt Union Compass and Minerals.
The starting point was the country park created around the remains of collapsed rock salt mines at Ashton's and Neumann's Flashes between the town centre of Northwich, the Lion Salt Works at Marston on the Trent and Mersey Canal, River Weaver and the the Anderton Boat lift that links the canal and the river.

Ashton's Flash

Neumann's Flash

Andrew Fielding, Mark Smalley and Felicity Evans

Our First Blurb Book - The Wreck of the Halsewell

Link to the Blurb Bookshop

 

 
 
 

    The Wreck of the Halsewell by William D. Wilson
    |
    Make Your Own Book
 
 

Books in Process of Publication

We have been experimenting with editing our research for publication on demand through Blurb.
A number of books in the pipe-line -

The Wreck of the Halsewell: With a Glossary of Terms by William D Wilson

The Timber Framed Buildings of Northwich, Cheshire. A&A Fielding

Thomas Birtles' Photographic Survey of Northwich, Cheshire 1891-1892. A&A Fielding

The Memoirs of John H Cooke: An Honourable Gentleman. A&A Fielding

Details of each to follow soon.

We have also been writing a book for Age UK Oldham about the history and restoration of their recent HLF funded work to restore and modernise  a former Independent Methodist Chapel - George Street Chapel.

Back Copies of The Mundling Stick Now Online

The Lion Salt Works Project has made available all the back copies of the newsletter, The Mundling Stick written by Andrew Fielding whilst he was Project Director of the Lion Salt Works Trust employed by Vale Royal Borough Council. The newsletter was a quarterly publication produced from 1995 until Andrew left the project in 2010.

Councillor Stuart Parker, Executive Member for Culture and Economy, said: “The Mundling Stick newsletters are a real asset to the historic story of the Lion Salt Works.

“They illustrate the vital role the Trust has played in bringing us to where we are today – with the £8.8m restoration of this unique historic site well underway.

“I am delighted that the newsletters can now be accessed online. Not only is this fascinating resource more accessible to a wider audience, it is also preserved for future generations.”Trust Chairman Nick Hunt said: “The Lion Salt Works Trust have always regarded the Mundling Stick as a primary way of communicating the salt heritage story to local and wider interest groups.

“It will be an invaluable archive in understanding how the Salt Works came to be regenerated.”

Wales and the Sea

Andrew attended a presentation this morning at Bangor, North Wales by Maritime Heritage Wales Ltd about their project 'Wales and the Sea'.
More details to follow