My Lancashire - My accounts of the local area

Posts

Who Was Maria Holland?

Who Was Maria Holland? A Portrait of Maria Holland - Once Hanging at St. Josephs Orphanage Mrs Maria Holland , was a wealthy Catholic woman from Preston. She donated land and money to establish an orphanage, hospital and dispensary on Mount Street (St. Joseph's Orphanage). These facilities served the community for over 50 years. She died in 1878, leaving a lasting legacy of care and charity in Preston. St Joseph’s Orphanage 2004. Photo Credit: The Victorian Society That's information, which is fairly readily available on the Internet and has been copied from place to place, but without much other detail about who Maria Holland actually was. This includes featuring on the Historic England listing for the orphanage, Urban Explorers accounts of visiting the Orphanage, and various news articles about fires at the orphanage and its gradual demise. These articles left me with a number of questions. I had a possible connection, based on a question and commen...

Stone Gateposts belonging to the former Whinfield House

Stone Gateposts belonging to the former Whinfield House On visiting the Harris Museum, after its recent reopening, I noticed a large print of a photograph that I was already familiar with on the wall. I think it's the one that Lancashire County Council have in their Red Rose Collections. A view of the River Ribble from Whinfield House in Ashton-on-Ribble It is a view of the River Ribble from Whinfield House in Ashton-on-Ribble. It is looking (south) east, of the drive of Whinfield House and a sailing ship moored on the river. The photograph is credited to the Preston Camera Club, which was once part of the Preston Scientific Society. It was taken in 1862. The first time I saw it, I recognised the gateposts, as they are still there now. Information on the Preston Digital Archive also confirmed that. The Gateposts on a view of the River Ribble from Whinfield House The text accompanying the photo on the Preston Digital Archive says that...

Social Media Contributions - Facebook Groups - History and Heritage posts

Social Media Contributions Facebook Groups - History and Heritage posts Brewery History Society - George The Fourth Hotel in Leyland Over the last few years, I have been contributing to a number of Facebook Groups that are related to History and Heritage. These are either of local (to Preston and Lancashire) interest or of national interest. My contributions to the latter will generally be about subjects that do relate to Preston or the wider area of Lancashire, unless I have travelled further afield and have seen something of interest on my journey. The topics include Benchmarks, Brewery History, Milestones, Pillboxes, Preston History and Preserving Preston’s Heritage, to name the main ones. Most of the groups are 'Public', which means they can be viewed without joining, as long as you are registered on Facebook. You do need to sign up to the groups to contribute though. Benchmarks of the British Isles A group where you can post your photos of the benchmarks of...

Local History Website From the Past - Lancashire at War Website

Local History Website From the Past Lancashire at War Website Lancashire At War Website Over the past couple of years, I have been sharing some of the local history websites or blogs that I have discovered along the way when researching Preston & Lancashire History. This has generally been via Social Media Group posts. There are a good number out there, but they aren't always easy to find. Some are extremely niche, and explore a very specific topic to a very detailed level. This one has previously had me in a 'battle' with the well-known social media platform beginning with 'F'. Whenever I posted it the system removed it after several hours, saying that it was akin to a canned meat food introduced in 1937. This particular local history website is about the county of Lancashire at war. Obviously that is all around the county. However, there is quite a bit that is specific to Preston. It is one of two websites written by brothers A & R Bow...

The Remains of Colonel William Assheton Cross' Observatory at Red Scar

The Remains of Colonel William Assheton Cross' Observatory On my travels along the Guild Wheel at the latter end of February 2023, I decided to wander off the path around Red Scar. I stumbled across something that I'd never seen before. It was a relatively large the stonework structure, which had once formed part of an observatory at Red Scar. The Remains of an Observatory Built by William Assheton Cross The Remains of an Observatory Built by William Assheton Cross I subsequently found a little bit online about William Assheton Cross. Colonel William Assheton Cross William Assheton Cross was born on 19 May 1818. He was the son of William Cross and Ellen Chaffers. He married Katherine Matilda Winn, daughter of Charles Winn and Priscilla Strickland, on 19th August 1846. He died on 25 January 1883 at age 64. The following passage comes from a JOURNAL ARTICLE in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society that were published in February 1884. Colonel WILLIAM ASSHET...

The Bombing of Ward Street in October 1940

The Bombing of Ward Street in October 1940 Of all the local history stories that I have discovered, learned about or have been told, this one is perhaps the closest to home. I've known about the events that took place on Ward Street in Lostock Hall, part of the Preston Rural District at the time, since I was a small boy. I spent some of my childhood at Ward Street. My Grandparents had once resided at number 74 Ward Street and we often visited one of my Grandmother's close friends and former neighbours, Peggy, Arthur and their son John, who still lived on nearby Fairfield Street. I can't honestly remember which number house that was, but I have a recollection of being inside the terraced house and going into the back yard. Whilst we did talk about 'The Bombing of Ward Street' when we were there. I can't remember much of the detail. Perhaps none were discussed. It was maybe just spoken about in general terms. There was a small factory on som...