An occasional series exploring the road which was once called Chorlton Row.
This is a familiar enough picture of what is now Beech Road, and it crops up every so often.
John Lloyd offers the date of 1880 which maybe correct.
The wall to the right belongs to what had been Daniel Sharpe’s house, and beside it is the smithy, which from 1860 had been worked by the Clarke family.
Like now, the road snakes off towards Barlow Moor Road, and while there had been some new build along its course, there were still two farm houses and plenty of open land which was still being farmed.
There had been a smithy on the Row from at least 1834, and the magic of “heating and hammering” on this spot would continue well into the 20th century.
The blacksmith was at the heart of the rural community and in 1834 this task was performed by William Davis who supplied the needs of the village, repairing broken tools, forging new ones and shoeing horses.
He lived with his family at Black’s cottage on land he rented from Lydia Black and John Brundrett.
The smithy was well sited. To the east along the Row were the Bailey and Gratrix farms and around the corner on the green three more.
Little more is known about William Davis, but we know that John Clarke paid £55 for the goodwill and fixtures , including the forge, pigsty and shed, in 1859.
If this picture dates from 1880, it is more than likely that the man in shirt sleeves standing in the doorway is John Smith who would be 50 years of age.
Location; Chorlton
Picture; Beech Road, circa 1880 from the Lloyd Collection
John Lloyd offers the date of 1880 which maybe correct.
The wall to the right belongs to what had been Daniel Sharpe’s house, and beside it is the smithy, which from 1860 had been worked by the Clarke family.
Like now, the road snakes off towards Barlow Moor Road, and while there had been some new build along its course, there were still two farm houses and plenty of open land which was still being farmed.
The blacksmith was at the heart of the rural community and in 1834 this task was performed by William Davis who supplied the needs of the village, repairing broken tools, forging new ones and shoeing horses.
He lived with his family at Black’s cottage on land he rented from Lydia Black and John Brundrett.
The smithy was well sited. To the east along the Row were the Bailey and Gratrix farms and around the corner on the green three more.
Little more is known about William Davis, but we know that John Clarke paid £55 for the goodwill and fixtures , including the forge, pigsty and shed, in 1859.
If this picture dates from 1880, it is more than likely that the man in shirt sleeves standing in the doorway is John Smith who would be 50 years of age.
Location; Chorlton
Picture; Beech Road, circa 1880 from the Lloyd Collection
A lovely atmospheric scene.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting look back on the past!
ReplyDeleteLovely photo - the smithy was still there when I was growing up in the 1950s
ReplyDelete