Hirst Wood is about a quarter mile outside Saltaire along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal. The old photo above shows a lock-keeper standing by the swing-bridge at Hirst Wood, with a cottage behind him. The cottage is a bit of a mystery and it's unclear whether it belonged to Hirst Wood Farm or to Hirst Mill, or whether it was the lock-keeper's cottage. We know it existed at the time the first Ordnance Survey map was drawn in 1847 and had been demolished by 1934. The canal itself dates back to 1777. I took the colour photo at more or less the same spot to show how it all looks now. You can see the same bit of stone wall on the far bank, in both photos.
Where Hirst Wood Farm used to stand, there is now a car-park (on the right) but the canal and swing bridge are much the same. In the distance you can see a building that is now Hughes Bakery, which makes walking in the area a pleasure, owing to the fragrance of fresh-baked bread wafting around! The young lady standing by the bridge was waiting for a narrowboat to pass through the lock. She had the job of opening the bridge to let the boat proceed up the canal.
Look back here, here and here for other notes and photos on this little area.
No comments:
Post a Comment