Jacksdale & Westwood - Part 04 - ... And Out Again
w/e 17 October 2010
All this week's pictures were taken
with a Kodak DX6490
At last, our visit to Jacksdale and Westwood took
place under clear blue skies that certainly show the former mining
villages in a much better light. We pick up our circular route
in this part on Palmerston Street in Westwood but we'll end back
in the centre of Jacksdale.
Near the end of the previous part, we had passed a pub that had
closed and was being converted to housing and another, the Royal
Oak that was still open. Now as we continue up Palmerston Street,
there is another pub called The Corner Pin. When mining was the
major occupation in these parts, all three pubs would have been
sure of a regular clientele but in these recessionary times many
hostelries have found it difficult to continue so to see two
pubs in close proximity still open in such a small community
is probably a rarity.
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The community is also served by the Westwood Infants School and
Nursery a little further up the street on the opposite side.
Shielded by high fences and trees, the school is housed in old
buildings with some modern extensions. I'm never quite sure whether
the high fences are to keep the children in or intruders out.
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Next to the school is the large open area of the recreation ground
complete with a football pitch and a play area with slides and
climbing frames for children.
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The recreation ground is overlooked by a development of council
bungalows for the elderly behind which much of the space between
the two villages was filled in the latter half of the twentieth
century with housing giving rise to the notion that Westwood
has a propensity of new housing whilst Jacksdale features much
older properties.
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At Palmerston Street's junction with
Wagstaff Lane a small area on the grass verge has been used to
create a garden to commemorate the Queen's Golden Jubilee. A
strategically placed bench provides a good place to enjoy the
vista down Palmerston Street (right) whilst a sign opposite (left)
for "Westwood" indicates that we are leaving the village
and returning to Jacksdale.
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Once again the boundary between the two villages is somewhat
indistinct but as we descend the hill along Wagstaff Lane we
will be led directly to the centre of Jacksdale. From this high
point of the circuit there are some decent views of the surrounding
countryside.
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At the end of Wagstaff Lane stands Jacksdale's War Memorial that
was originally erected in 1921 as a tribute to the men who had
fallen during the First World War. Since then more names from
other conflicts have been added and the monument has had a rather
chequered history.
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In 1959 the marble figure that topped the monument fell and was
smashed to pieces and dirt and grime from the industry in the
area also had a major impact on the appearance of the War Memorial.
More recently in 1996 it underwent major restoration and in 2009
a new soldier was erected replacing the marble figure that fell
in 1959. The War Memorial was the centre of attention in June
2010 as the first anniversary of "Soldier Day" was
celebrated and plans are already underway for next June. For
much more information about its history see the "Jacksdale
Memorial" page on the Jacksdale and Westwood website.
This completes the circuit of the two villages but in the next
and final part we will take the Pye Hill Road out Jacksdale towards
Ironville to complete our exploration.
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