Today I walked north of Barnsley in what was once coal mining territory. This area was known for its piles of coal waste or what were called slag heaps. Some of us knew the district as The Yorkshire Alps because of those man-made hills. A few of the slag heaps were levelled or taken away but most still remain and are now grassed over. Not much remains of a once proud heritage that fuelled Britain's industrial revolution, its trains and its shipping. Some say that without coal The British Empire could never have been established.
At the top there's a picture of two Victorian cottages on Chapel Lane in Carlton. Below is the village's Anglican church - dedicated to St John the Evangelist. It was constructed in 1878/79 under the instructions of The Earl Wharncliffe who owned some of the local collieries and was fabulously rich.
And so was the Alexandra working men's club in nearby Royston. A working men's club was a place where both working men and their wives could socialise, enjoying reasonably priced alcoholic beverages. There would be weekend entertainment and attached sports clubs too. Most working men's clubs had their own football and cricket teams. There would also be outings to the coast for families and Christmas lunches for the elderly etcetera.
St John the Baptist Church in Royston was built in the 12th century and is Grade I listed. A beautiful building, it predates the age of industrialised coal mining by several centuries.
Finally, here's a photo I took of a lonesome tree and a pylon standing in the open land between Royston, Carlton and Athersley...
from Yorkshire Pudding https://ift.tt/3pWkMne
