My Lancashire - My accounts of the local area

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 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...