The Magpie's Hoard

The Yorkshire Grey

Yorkshire Grey formerly Minerva Tavern now demolished, originally uploaded by sheffdave

In last Saturday's Guardian, Richard Hawley was lamenting the redevelopment of Sheffield city centre:

"We're losing all these back street places. Like this pub, the Yorkshire Grey, from the early 17th century, a beautiful building. They knocked it down and put a car park up. I'm not against modernity, but it takes away the sense of otherness that can take hundreds of years to build." Read more...

I too have concerns about the way my home city is changing, but I would like to set the record straight about the Yorkshire Grey.

High Bradfield to Malin Bridge

Agden Side, originally uploaded by Roger B..

Meteorologically speaking, today was the best day we’ve had for three weeks or more. Liz and I decided to make the most of the good weather by catching an early bus out to High Bradfield.

We walked along the top of the cliffs that overlook Rocher Wood, then followed the lane to Agden Side. As we ate our lunch at the top of the slope, several small flocks of fieldfares and redwings passed overhead. One flock was intercepted by a sparrowhawk which, despite a high speed chase, failed to make a kill.

After lunch, we dropped down to Low Bradfield via the track that runs around Agden Reservoir. We then took the popular path along the north bank of Damflask, which was extremely busy. It looked as though lots of people had made New Year's Resolutions about getting more exercise!

Leaving the crowds behind, we headed down Stacey Lane into the Loxley Valley. The first daffodil buds were just starting to open on the bank next to the lane - they seem to get earlier every year.

Unusually, the triangular dam at Loxley Fisheries was deserted. As we walked along the bank, we disturbed a kingfisher from its perch above the goit. Further down the valley, Old Wheel Dam held an assortment of waterfowl, including two female goldeneyes.

Female Goldeneye, originally uploaded by Roger B..

The light was fading as we wearily trudged up the hill from Malin Bridge on our way home to Walkley. Just as we reached the top of Rivelin Bank, a skein of about 200 geese flew over. Judging by their calls, I think they were pink-footed geese. They were heading north-west - next stop Martin Mere perhaps?

A fitting end to a great winter walk!

William Norris Ordish

This fish and chip shop was run by my great grandfather, William Norris Ordish.

The shop was on Aston Street in Sheffield, at the junction with Bernard Road (near where the city's waste incinerator stands today). This row of buildings was demolished many years ago.

I'm not sure who the man in the doorway is - it doesn't look like the proprietor, but it might be one of his sons (Willie or Albert... or possibly Fred, who emigrated to Canada).

I think this picture probably dates from around 1910. According to the old street directories, William Norris Ordish moved from South Street to Aston Street in 1906 or 1907. He was still in business in 1919, but by 1922 he had retired to Maltravers Road. He died about 15 years later.

When you look at this image in close-up you can pick out some extra details, such as the pots of aspidistras in the window and the sign on the door which I think reads "Try our fish - direct from Hull and Grimsby".

Since I first posted this picture on my blog in July 2006, I have been contacted by no fewer than three 'long-lost' relations:

• Margaret, who is descended from my great grandfather's brother;
• Ian, who is descended from my grandmother's sister;
• Judy, whose husband may be descended from my great great grandfather's brother.

Thanks to my mother, I now have a large collection of old family photographs. I have posted a selection of them on Flickr but, for privacy, viewing is restricted to people on my "family contacts" list. If you would like to view the pictures, please get in touch.
 

Iconography

This morning I went to the Lord Mayor's Awards at Sheffield Town Hall to pick up a certificate for one of my photographs.

The picture in question was this one:

It won a gold award in the 'Iconic Sheffield' category - not bad for a rough and ready shot taken on my way home from work, using an improvised camera support instead of a tripod!

Only the other day I was having a rant about how the word 'iconic' is over-used these days - a bit like the words 'passion' and 'passionate'.

According to Dictionary.com, one of the meanings of 'iconic' is:

"Having a conventional formulaic style."

I don't think that's quite what the competition organisers had in mind. Maybe next year they should have a category called 'Ironic Sheffield'!

Rivelin Aftermath

We had another power-cut on Wednesday evening, so I went down to the Rivelin Valley to take a look at the flood damage.

Although it was still much higher than normal, the river had calmed down a lot since Monday night. The water also looked much clearer, having dumped most of the mud that it had been carrying. It soon became apparent why the water had been so muddy when the river was in spate. Tons of soil had been scoured from the riverbanks, taking with it much of the riparian vegetation. In places, the banks had been stripped down to the bed-rock. Several riverside trees had toppled over because the water had undermined their roots. Massive boulders, wrenched from the banks, were scattered across the river bed.

Elsewhere, the raging water had left behind thick deposits of silt and rubble. From an ecological standpoint, it will be interesting to see how rapidly these deposits are colonised by plants. The silt should hold lots of 'propagules' - seeds, bulbs, root fragments, etc - eroded from the banks further upstream. Botanical surveys of the lower, urbanised sections of the Sheaf and the Don often turn up unexpected colonies of woodland plants growing in the riverside silt, which presumably arise from propagules washed down from the headwaters.

There was some erosion on the riverside footpath, but nothing that can't be mended. One of the footbridges had suffered damage where a huge log had become wedged underneath it.

Club Mill Bridge

In Tuesday's post I mentioned that Club Mill Bridge in Sheffield had been destroyed in the flood. Last night my friend Cheryl Gibson sent me a photo that she took of the bridge a month ago whilst it was still intact. I've combined her picture with one of the shots I took yesterday morning (click on it to view a larger version).

Club Mill Bridge was also known as Wardsend Bridge. You can view an old postcard of it here.

There are lots more images from the recent floods on Flickr. Take a look at:

www.flickr.com/groups/sheffield/pool

www.flickr.com/groups/flood/pool

www.flickr.com/groups/412825@N21/pool

The Morning After

This morning's news reports revealed the full extent of the damage caused by yesterday's deluge: three people dead; thousands of homes and businesses flooded; many more without electricity.

I was due to be working at home today, typing up several survey reports. Shortly after I sat down at my PC, the power went off for the second time in the past 24 hours.

Unable to work, I decided to venture out and take some photos of the flood damage. I headed down towards the River Don at Hillsborough. Much of Livesey Street was still submerged and it was clear that the water level must have been much higher yesterday. The receding water had left a thick deposit of mud in the car park of Hillsborough College.

As I neared the river, I realised that the road had been closed off with plastic tape. I was shocked to discover that Club Mill Bridge had been washed away. The bridge, which linked Livesey Street with Club Mill Lane, was built of stone and dated back to the 19th century.

A nearby electricity substation also appeared to have been hit by the flood waters, which presumably explains the power outages in the surrounding neighbourhoods.

The Sheffield Flickr Group has lots more pictures of both the flooding and the aftermath.

Flood Chaos in Sheffield

Here in Sheffield it has rained steadily for the past 24 hours. The rain fell on ground still saturated from the drenching we received 10 days ago, resulting in rapid run-off into the city's river system.

This is the River Rivelin, one of half a dozen fast-flowing tributaries that feed into the Don. I have never seen the level so high.

A few miles downstream, the River Don has burst its banks causing unprecedented floods. BBC News 24 reports that RAF helicopters had been drafted in to rescue people stranded in factories and offices.

I will try and write an update on the situation tomorrow!

When...

...will it stop raining?

Springwatch starts here

February 19th has a special significance for me: it's the earliest date on which I've ever seen frogs spawning in the Sheffield area. When February 19th comes around, I know that spring will be here soon.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I've signed up as a volunteer recorder with the Nature's Calendar project. When I noticed the date this morning, it prompted me to re-visit the project's website to see what I should be looking out for.

I'm afraid it's already too late for me to record some early spring events, such as the first time I spotted hazel catkins or the first time I heard a song thrush singing. However, I was able to record the first flower on a lesser celandine, which Liz spotted yesterday whilst we were walking in the Rivelin Valley.

I took a quick look at our garden pond this lunch-time: no sign of any fornicating frogs yet!