CHESHIRE CHEESE DARTS TEAM 1958

We're grateful to Mike Jennings who posted this excellent photo of a local pub darts team of fifty-seven years ago on our Middlewich Diary Facebook Group -Ed

Mike writes:
Here is a photo from my archive.
Cheshire Cheese darts team, January 1958. 
Back row R to L Fred Latham, John Robinson(Uncle), Wilf Barrow, Tom Hemmings.
Front Row R to L Eddie Robinson (Uncle), John Hemmings, Frank Robinson (uncle), J Hitchen.
Mike Jennings

STANTHORNE MILL POOL

We believe this image to be out of copyright. If you own the copyright, or know who does, please let us know

Here's another Middlewich postcard which is new to us and supplied by Mike Jennings. As you can see, it's captioned 'Stanthorne Mill Pool', but appears to show a section of the River Wheelock with, on the right hand side, what might be a mill race - i.e. a stream of water taken from the river and carried off in a narrow channel to power a watermill. - in this case Stanthorne Mill.

The presence of Stanthorne Mill might also explain the existence of the weir immediately adjacent to the bridge which carries the footpath from Nantwich Road to Stanthorne. Was that there, partly at least, to increase the flow of the River Wheelock towards the Mill? The fact that the mill no longer functions as such could explain why the weir itself has been allowed to go to rack and ruin over a long period of time.

Or is this a more credible explanation of Mike's postcard? 

Is Mike's picture (photo 1) an earlier version of the scene shown in Jack Stanier's slide from the 1970s (photo 2)? The weir is indicated by a red arrow in each picture. Is that Mill Lane snaking down from top right to top centre, before the houses, such as 'Three Willows', between Nantwich Road and the river were built? Certainly the bridge over the weir is quite distinctive and its curved abutments (as seen in photo 3) might be discernible in both photos. This would mean that 'Stanthorne Mill Pool' was not actually at Stanthorne at all and that the weir, as we've suggested, was there to ensure a good and strong flow of water to the mill, several hundred yards away.

It is, of course, very difficult to make out the actual course of the River Wheelock in any photos taken since the first world war because of the profusion of trees along its banks.

Photo number 4 dates back to the 1960s when the area was not quite so overgrown and shows the 'mill pool' looking from the weir towards the Shropshire Union Canal Middlewich Branch which runs on its embankment behind the trees at the top of the picture.

(originally published 10th April 2013, revised 15th April 2013)

UPDATE (16th April):

Edward O'Hare writes: 

Hi Dave, my Mum and Dad have just confirmed your alternative theory as they both remember the small stream by the side of the river.

Also, the tree that is seen on the right hand river bank eventually grew right over the river, so that you could cross over from one side to the other without getting wet - most of the time!

(Edward is the son of Mike and Rita O'Hare, who live in Nantwich Road, close to the area shown in these photos. Many thanks to him and to Mike and Rita for confirming this for us - Ed)

WHIT WEDNESDAY PROCESSION IN HIGHTOWN 1949

by Dave Roberts
Here's a photo from Mike Jennings, who tells us that his mother knows the names of everyone pictured in this Whit Wednesday walk in Hightown in the early 1950s.
It took us a while to arrive at a proper description for this photograph. At first we thought it might have been a May Day procession (and my description, when the Facebook link was created for this entry talked of a 'maypole', largely because of the ribbons; it reminded me of the maypole we had a Wimboldsley school in the 1950s which I myself used to dance expertly around, if anyone can imagine me doing such a thing), but the obvious religious flavour of the occasion made us think again, particularly when Geraldine Williams said, 'Is it definitely a May Day procession? It's obviously a church group (check the surplice on the fellow holding up the pole); and it's a bit short for a maypole - he would be in great danger of strangulation once the dance got going unless there's an extension somewhere! And is it my imagination or had they caught the short straw in the order of procession and were following a horse-drawn vehicle (judging by the state of the road!)'
Geraldine also had some ideas on who some of the people in the picture might be: 'I think I recognise the tall girl in the centre, who has allowed the compulsory hair ribbon with bow to slip down to a more flattering position! I also think I know the second girl from the left, but I'll await Mrs Jennings' verdict.'
Cliff Astles also recognised at least one of the people in the picture: 'One of them, for sure, is my wife Barbara Elaine Astles, nee Evans of 6 Cross Lane. She is on the far left of the picture'.
Barbara added, 'It was a St Michael's Church event and took place every Whitsuntide. We would walk from the church along Wheelock Street, stopping a number of times to perform a maypole dance - winding in and out of the ribbons. I can't remember if we went back to the church, but there were always crowds of people watching the procession as we went along Wheelock Street'.
The setting will, of course, be familiar by now to even the newest Middlewich newcomer, partly because it's still very recognisable with Fitton's butcher's shop and the Natwest Bank (then known by the rather more dignified title of the 'Westminster Bank' and soon to be just a memory) to the right.
Finally, Mike Jennings got back in touch to say: 'Hi Dave, I've just checked the original photo of the "May Day Parade". It was sent as a letter to my mother who was serving with the ATS in Singapore at the time. The information on it confirms that it was 'The Whit Wednesday Walk 1949'.
We'll be re-publishing this entry soon with Mrs Jennings information about the people in the picture, along with some additional photos of other Whitsun walks in Middlewich which have come to light..

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WHIPPET RACING IN MIDDLEWICH

We're taking a back seat on this one, never having heard of the Middlewich & District Pedigree Whippet Racing Club, and we're more than happy to hand over to regular Middlewich Diary contributor Mike Jennings who says:

Hi Dave

I found this car sticker in my cupboard. It is from the late 1970s. 

I know very little about The Middlewich & District Pedigree Whippet Racing Club.

It sounds a grand organisation to belong to and I can see in my minds eye the attire needed to belong to the club!

I wonder where the race track was?

At the back of my mind I am sure they ran on Station Field and used a bicycle placed upside down with someone winding the peddles furiously pulling a ball of rags (Hare) attached to a rope???

There must be Ex Club members still out there or maybe it still exists?

Yours not wearing a flat cap

Mike

- So does anyone remember this club? Does it still exist? It's over to you...

Facebook feedback

Geraldine Williams Mike was quite correct. It did start off at Station Field with the bike, etc. as he describes. I think it originated as part of Dennis' fund-raising (Ahem!) for a new swimming pool for Middlewich.

Andy Kendrick  We used to race on Dennis White's field for a few seasons, then moved to Sutton Lane. My Dad had five whippets; two came second in the United Kingdom Open.
Brill times - proper traps and lures racing on a straight, but winners had to be handicapped - i.e. put back a few lengths if they won the week before.
We had a pedigree whippet by the name of Blue Smoke - i.e. our Smokey classic racing dog. She was lovely, with fawn legs and a slatey blue coat, hence the name.
She was so good that crossed lurchers could not beat her.
Another point to mention: After we raced on Dennis White's and Sutton Lane we had the privilege of holding the UK Open, and this was held on RHM's sports field (no doubt because of the ready supply of beer.
The new venue was an indication of how many attendees with dogs were turning up and how the sport had grown in Middlewich at that time.
I remember people from Cumbria, West Kirby and Birmingham attending the event, among others.
It was very good.
The lure was on a spindle powered by a car battery and it moved quite fast (it had to!).
The traps were controlled by a chap called Rolly Banks, who came from Audlem. He was a real character and wore a deerstalker, even in 70 degrees heat.
Real class!
It was a big deal at the time. We reared these dogs to hunt rabbits in the 1970s and there was many a pensioner at the time grateful for an inexpensive feed. They would come to us and asking when they could have more.
Roasted and stewed one rabbit could provide three meals, and they always wanted more.
The dogs had a lot of potential, and when the racing came along their energy was put into road work.
My Dad went miles with us, following the dogs around Bradwall, Sproston and all the villages around Middlewich.
The hunt was then turned to lamping to get some pocket money. We used rifles then - the dogs were a back-up.
I must point out to anyone concerned about animal welfare that things were difficult at the time.
This was also another way of controlling the rabbit population and limiting crop damage. The farmers loved us most of the time.
This was the 1970s and things were hard sometimes.
Then along came the whippet racing and our dogs had a chance to shine.
And that's the story of how whippet racing started in Middlewich.
My Dad must have pictures somewhere. If I manage to find them, I'll post them.
I'm glad someone remembered the whippet racing, as it was a great Sunday afternoon out.

- Many thanks to Andy for this fascinating insight in what seems to have been quite a major sport in Middlewich - Ed.

...and here are some more memories, this time from...

Wendy Sproston I'm sure my Mum and Dad went to the RHM club once for the whippet racing.
We used to race whippets from when I was about three years old until I was in my late teens.
We went all over the country, but mainly the Midlands.
I used to love being the 'lure girl' - taking it back up to the traps at the end of each race for pocket money.
It kept you fit, I can tell you!
My dog was a racing champion. Her race name was Amazing Flight but at home we called her Stella.
We had so many dogs as I was growing up and, although they were racers, they were always my pets too.
Stella always went to bed with me.
It was such a great sport to be involved with, and the dogs loved it.
They always knew where we were, and would get excited as we drove into whichever racing venue we were going to.

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On June 2nd 2011 the Salt Town Site's 'Middlewich Diary' pages were featuring the enigmatic 'SNJ' sign which many a frustrated motorist, stuck in one of the endless Holmes Chapel Road traffic jams, may have seen while gridlocked on the 'station bridge'. 

How many of those motorists realise that 'SNJ', and the railway it's associated with, could be part of the solution to those endless hold-ups?

WHERE AND WHAT IS 'SNJ'?