The Dark Row

Different trades have always huddled together in particular sections of Rows, and the names of Rows sometimes changed quite rapidly, according to what was going on there. The north side of Eastgate Row, nearest the Cross, has had various names: Dark Row, Cook's Row, Bakers' Row, Pepper Alley Row, the Buttershops and the Milk Stoops. This portion of row was more like an alleyway, hidden from the street by buildings. It was a dark, dubious place, where immoral and dangerous activities happened.

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Commercial News Room

Originally, what is now the Skipton Building Society was the Commercial Coffee and News Room. In the early 1800s it was the custom for the well-educated to read newspapers out loud for the benefit of the illiterate (and to show off, one imagines). In the comfortable room on the upper storey they could make use of a well-stocked subscription library, read the latest editions of the Chester Courant and the Chester Chronicle, and sip coffee.

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Newstead Gallery

The Grosvenor Museum has recently refurbished the Newstead Gallery, which re-opened on the 22nd December. It was definitely time for a sprucing-up, but alas, when I went to see it on the 28th, many of the new labels had fallen off. They assured me they would be replaced very soon. The bust to the right of the photo is of Professor Newstead himself.

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Coaching Inns

Chester's oldest coaching inns were established in the mid-seventeenth century, to provide beds for passengers while they waited for ships to take them to Ireland. Back then there were three coaches a week and the journey to London took four days in summer and six in winter. In the eighteenth century, thanks to improved roads and better carriage springs, it went down to two days, and Chester became an important coaching and carrying centre. The city then had a number of coaching inns, two of which were the Blossoms Hotel and the Dublin Packet.

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Round The Walls Race

Once again the Boxing Day Round The Walls Race had to deviate from its' usual route - this time the Race Course was waterlogged and the Fun Run had to be cancelled, but they did manage to re-open the city walls in time for the runners to go round. Father Christmas was running as usual, accompanied by some of his elves.

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Museum Lecture Theatre

The Grosvenor Museum has a lecture theatre, often used at lunchtimes, evenings, and weekends by various societies. They present an amazingly motley selection of events. Forthcoming samples, chosen at random, include 'English Civil War: Battle of Rowton Moor and the Siege of Chester 1642-46'; 'How to be a Medieval Monk'; 'The Art of the Jazz Age'; and 'Pope Hadrian IV 1154-1159: The most important Englishman of the Middle Ages'.  Lectures are open to all, and a typical price is four pounds.

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The Bluecoat

The Bluecoat has been a chapel, orphanage, and school. It was the starting place for Chester Infirmary, and was also briefly occupied by Chester University History department. Now, sadly, it stands empty. The railings that you can see outside are relatively new - I remember them being put there by Chester Civic Trust, as the originals had been melted down as part of the War Effort.

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Almshouses

Almshouses are charitable housing provided to enable people (typically elderly people who can no longer work to earn enough to pay rent) to live in a particular community. They are often targeted at the poor of a locality, at those from certain forms of previous employment, or their widows, and are generally maintained by a charity or the trustees of a bequest. Chester has its' fair share of them, and those shown below are behind the Bluecoat, on Northgate Street, and were attached to St John's Hospital, before it turned into the Bluecoat. They are reserved for 'poor persons of good character'. In April 2006, a brand new almshouse - the first to be built since the mid-19th century - was opened in the square behind the Bluecoat. Watched by its first tenant, Mary Pritchard, the formal opening of the new one-bedroom self-contained property was carried out by the Lord Mayor and the Chairman of the body that today administers the almshouses, the Chester Municipal Charities.

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Blakes Bakery

Blakes Bakery was founded in 1842, in Watergate Street Row, and closed relatively recently, in 2002. It was a family business that closed when the last member, Ken Blake, had no-one to carry on when he retired.I remember buying their excellent malted loaves. Now, sadly, it has been replaced by an Apple store.

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Bell (or Addleshaw) Tower

Over to the left of this photo is the Cathedral Bell (or Addleshaw) Tower. Towards the end of 1963 the cathedral bells, which were housed in the central tower, were in need of an overhaul and ringing was suspended. Due to structural difficulties and the cost of replacing the bells in the central tower it was advised that consideration should be given to building a detached bell and clock tower in the southeast corner of the churchyard. It was decided to proceed with that plan, and in 1969 an announcement was made that the first detached cathedral bell tower was to be erected since the building of the campanile at Chichester Cathedral in the 15th century. In February 1969, nine of the ten bells in the central tower were removed to be recast by John Taylor & Co as a ring of twelve bells with a flat sixth. The new bells were cast in 1973. Work on the new bell-tower began in February 1973. Two old bells dating from 1606 and 1626 were left in the tower. On 26 February 1975 the bells were rung for the first time to celebrate the wedding of a member of the Grosvenor family. The official opening on 25 June 1975 was performed by the Duke of Gloucester. The belfry is known as the Dean Addleshaw Tower, after the dean of the cathedral responsible for its construction. The tower is built in concrete, faced with sandstone at its base. It is the first detached bell tower to be built for a cathedral in this country since the Reformation.

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Roman Gravestone 49

The tombstone of a soldier from the Twentieth Legion Valeria Victrix. The expanded inscription reads:
Dis Manibus Publio Rustio Fabia (tribu) Crescenti Brixia militi Legionis XX Valeriae Victricis annorum XXX stipendiorum X Groma heres faciendum curavit. This translates as:
To the spirits of the departed and to Publius Rustus Crescens, of the Fabian voting tribe, from Vixia, lived 30 years and served 10 years. Groma his heir had this stone made.

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Northgate Ponds

The Northgate Ponds appeared sometime between 1882 and 1911 on the extensive railways lands to the north of the city centre. At that time the railways were a particularly important feature of Chester's landscape and economy. It is possible that the 'ponds' were tanks constructed to supply water to steam locomotives, especially as they are situated on land slightly higher than the railway tracks to the south and east. They had become considerably overgrown over recent years with the effect of reducing wildlife, but have been given a new lease of life with surrounding trees being cut back. The main pond was also drained, deepened in the centre, relined and refilled and appropriate flowers were planted around the edge.

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Zoo Lantern Magic

Chester Zoo are doing something special in the run up to Christmas. They are open until 8pm with a special Lantern Walk (and supper if you want it), you can have your photo taken with Santa and make your very own lantern. I almost feel tempted, but alas, don't have the requisite child to take with me...

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Jane's Handmade Christmas Cake

Jane, of Jane's Handmade Bread, has been making Christmas Cakes and Stollen. I have sampled both, and can testify as to their all-round deliciousness. She sell through various outlets, including many local Farmer's Markets. Her website is here: http://janeshandmadebread.co.uk/

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Roman Gravestone 47

A tombstone in the form of an inscribed panel, which reads: 'Gaius Lovesius Cadarus, of the Papirian voting tribe, from Emerita, a soldier of the twentieth legion Valeria Victrix, 25 years old, of 8 years military service. Frontinius Aquino his heir had this stone made.' He came from Merida, in South-West Spain, never to return.

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Roman Gravestone 26

This tombstone commemorates a veteran, a soldier who had completed his term of service. He must have chosen to stay in Chester, close to his comrades. Perhaps it was too far for him to make the long journey back home, or maybe he had met a local woman and raised a family. His gravestone does not tell us where he was born, or why he stayed. It reads 'To Gaius Valerius Crispus, veteran of the second legion Adiutrix Loyal and Faithful...'

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F. J. Proud and Sons

Out along Boughton, opposite the Leper Cemetery, is F. J. Proud, ironmongers. I love this shop, because you can still find all those essentials that are impossible to find anywhere else, like firebacks and grates, coal scuttles and tongs.

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Roman Altar

This altar was found in 1861 on the north side of Eastgate Street, near Godstall Lane. It was used for many years as a trademark outside Dutton's 'Sigarro Stores' in Eastgate Street. The (expanded) inscription reads: Genio sancto centuri(a)e Aelius Claudanius optio votum solvit, which translated means: Aelius Claudanius, optio, fulfilled hos vow to the sacred Genius of his century (by setting up this altar). Genius means 'guardian spirit', and an optio was a rank below that of centurion.

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Wattle And Daub

Behind the exteriors of many city centre properties lies wattle and daub, dating back to when each building was first built. Some places have exposed sections - The Cartoon Gallery and The Boot spring to mind. The section in the photo below is in Katie's Tearooms, in Watergate Street, and dates back to c.1325. You can read more about how it was done here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wattle_and_daub

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Professor Robert Newstead

In Overleigh cemetery lies the grave of Professor Robert Newstead, after whom the Newstead Gallery in the Grosvenor Museum is named. He did not do well at school and left early, but managed to work his way up to being a full Professor at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, as well as becoming a leading archaeologist and excavating half of Chester. A fascinating man, his grave is surprisingly modest, and was, until recently, neglected. However, I am told that the staff at the museum are now having outings to keep it tidy. You can read more about him here: http://www.chesterarchaeolsoc.org.uk/LRoyles-NewsteadLecture_05-12-09.pdf

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Silver Badges

Badges were often worn by occupants of almshouses, to show who was supporting them with their charitable donations, and these were usually made of silver and worn on shoulders/tops of arms. Those shown below came from the Hospital of St John the Baptist, which stood outside the Northgate.

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Chester Mystery Plays

The Mystery Plays were originally performed in medieval times, to educate those who could not understand Latin in the 'mysteries' of the bible. In Chester there was a cycle of 24 plays, performed on carts which were dragged round the city. Each play was performed by a different guild, and attempts were made to make them appropriate, e.g. the Bakers guild might perform the miracle of the loaves and fishes. Nowadays they are still performed by various social groups within the city, and almost entirely by amateurs. They occur every five years, and preparations are now being made for next years cycle, which, for the first time ever, is being performed inside the Cathedral. You can find out more about them here: www.chestermysteryplays.com

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Last Silver Hallmarked Chester

On display in the Grosvenor Museum is the last pieces of silver ever hallmarked Chester, just before the closure of the Chester Assay Office in 1962. It was made by Francis Maurice Lowe, who used the maker's mark of A. Vincent Ward because he had not registered his own mark.

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Overleigh Cemetery Geology II

This impressive tomb is made of oolitic limestone, and comes from Dorset. If you look closely you can see fossils and small balls called ooids, which form when small grains wash up and down the beach. There is no name on the stone, and surprisingly for such a large monument, no-one now knows who is buried there.

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Canal Companies

Originally there were two local canal companies, Chester and Ellesmere, which had the objectives to link the rivers Mersey, Severn, and Dee. The sharp bend created where the two canals joined, directly underneath King Charles' Tower meant that an iron hook was needed, so that boats could be pulled to the outer corner of the bend before turning.

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Horse-Drawn Narrow Boats

In the photo below, taken underneath King Charles' Tower, you can see where the ropes linking the narrow boats and the horses that used to pull them have worn grooves under the city walls, cutting deep into the sandstone bedrock.

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St Werburgh's Church

St Werburgh's was built in the 1870's, and stands on Grosvenor Park Rd. It is one of two Catholic churches in the city centre, and has an enormous house standing next to it, presumably for the use of priests. The pulpit was donated by Pat Collins, of Pat Collins funfair, which comes to Chester every May during the Cup races.

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Edgar's Field Playground

Edgar's Field has some new playground equipment, plus an interesting-looking something - stone? sculpture? Impossible to tell without peeling bits off, but it tells the story of Edgar being rowed up the river by eight princes, who then swore allegiance on this field, and also shows the Minerva Shrine.

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Overleigh Geology - Lichenometry

A lot of headstones in Overleigh cemetery are, like this one, home to lichens. Lichens grow very very slowly, many at only 1-2mm per year, and some may reach 150mm. There is a branch of science called Lichenometry, and you can read more about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichenometry

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Overleigh Geology - Acid Rain

This headstone is made of marble, which is a metamorphic rock that used to be a limestone, transforming into marble when it became heated at a high temperature. Marble dissolves easily in acid, including rain, which is acidic. When this headstone was new the lead lettering sat level with the surface; as the marble has dissolved the lead letters have become raised above the surface.

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Overleigh Geology I

Last week I went on an interesting walk round Overleigh Cemetery, looking at gravestones through the lens of geology. It was interesting to note that the later the date of the grave the further away the headstone comes from. Earliest examples of Chester headstones (i.e. Roman) are made from the local red sandstone, which does not weather well (those in the Grosvenor Museum are in such good condition because they were buried within the walls). Below are two much later (1950s) both made from lighter coloured sandstone, one of which has weathered very badly, because the sediment was less well cemented.

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Powells Jewellers

Powells Jewellers is right by the Cross. The shop wraps around, with one entrance in Eastgate Street and another in Bridge Street. The whole building is listed, including, interestingly, the drawers that you can see in the bottom of the photo and the spiral staircase (not very clear, but to the left).
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Christmas Lights Switch-On

Yesterday evening was the switch on of the Christmas lights, the beginning of late night shopping, and the lantern parade. Entertainment was provided by the Handbag of Harmonies, the streets were crowded, and the rain held off. A good time was had by all.

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Le Grand Bal de Chester

Saturday 8th December sees the second Grand Bal de Chester, for those who like to dance the night away, or just to learn new dances. The form below tells you all about it, and you can find out more about the monthly dances at their website, www.rondezvous.co.uk

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Chester Races 2013

The dates for the races next year have been decided, and the signs are up. You can get tickets here:
http://www.chester-races.co.uk/racing/tickets-badges

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