Stoke Road

Stoke Road Part II , Blisworth, Northamptonshire, UK. All pictures are presented at relatively low resolution. Printed below each image is the photographer's name, if known.
Back to INDEX page Part I This is Part II
	30-11 This is the oldest building of the Westley's group built in stone, building 1 in the map below - not visible in the view from near the twin cottages. This photograph was probably taken in c. 1930.
	30-12 By approx. 1938 the building was derelict and was pulled down by the council. This is building number 1 in the map below. This T-shaped building is shown on the 1727 Grafton survey maps.
	30-13 This diagram is to show the changes since about 1840 that have occurred due to modernisation. The blue enclosure marks the freehold of Ann Westley in 1839. It was part of the Grafton Estate in 1812, referred to as "House, yard and garden". Buildings 1 and 2 are the oldest built in stone that were demolished in 1939. Building 4, in brick, was also demolished by the council at about the same time. The buildings drawn in darker colour are those present today - VH is Victoria House and building 3 is its very close neighbour, both in brick. The horizontally oriented rectangle is the location of the new doctor's surgery which was created by converting in c. 1975 a private bungalow built in c. 1955. Other buildings were present in 1839 but presumably lost in the subsequent building operations.
	30-14 Showing a part of Victoria House and the adjacent house (building 3 in the plan).
	30-15a The Westley Buildings in the 1930s. The two buildings on the left are also shown in the picture above. Note the low ceilings, as evident from the positions of windows, and the austere entrance of the main block. Victoria house is believed to have been built quite early c.1840 as a home for Ann Westley, the miller. For a closer view of the main entrance - please click here.
	30-15 The doctor's surgery, at first a bungalow with a small extension but in 2000 it was extended with a second floor for admin. staff and storage as seen here. This freed space on the ground floor for more consulting rooms.
	30-16 & 17 The well located near to the ironstone brake drum. Water was obtained by a bucket that was lowered and raised using a long pole. This was used by families in the Westley Buildings until they moved into council houses elsewhere in the village, notably on the Courteenhall Road. Provision for water was not satisfactory at some of the new houses - a point that was particularly annoying as it was said "the drum well contained the best water in the village".
	30-18 Twin cottages (The Green) on the Stoke Road. See also Misc Places for an Alexander picture of this scene. The cottages are listed.
	30-19 A more recent picture at The Green. The Green was originally a 1 acre grass common which was destroyed when the canal cutting was dug out.
	The section of Stoke Road between the above mentioned cottages and the Stoneworks farm runs along the side of the deep excavation for the canal. It became obvious that the ground was too unstable and the edge of the road become 'challenged'. In the summer of 2000 the road was narrowed as shown and, finally after a good deal of legal wangling with British Waterways, work to stabilise the road using large steel cages full of rocks, was completed in the summer of 2002. Although the date of this photograph is not known, it is obvious that a distinct width of grass border has been lost over the years. Image 30-18 also shows a wide grass border opposite the cottages. In 2008 the area is being revisited in order that a safety barrier be installed.
	30-20 The Blisworth Stoneworks house built in c. 1840 as offices for the large quarry in the fields behind - see also the next picture. The farm house and a barn behind it are listed buildings.
	30-25 The monkey puzzle tree by the Stone Works house in 1981. It appears to be fading in vitality - the cement lorries for the tunnel repairs 1981 to 1984 can hardly be blamed for the tree being completely dead by 1990.