Preview September 2024
We are back from holiday and beginning next week new articles will appear on the Magazine webpage. Today we give a flavour of what is to come, and a sight of some photographs we wanted to share.
Dawn at SP, July 2024
But first…
In the two years since the community re-launched the website there have been over 20,000 first time visits. We have expanded by adding many more photographs, articles, and new pages, most recently, ‘The Walk’. This week subscribers numbers exceeded 220. We are encouraged by the interest and greatly appreciate the many kind messages.
Some changes will be made in the content, timing and presentation of articles, but more of that, we think, later.
Great news
Lancaster City Museums have announced the John Walker exhibition at the Maritime Museum.
Courtesy Lancaster City Museums: The term 'Umbrella legs' was coined by some SP residents to describe John's walking (he was fond of long walks). The source is Hugh Cunliffe's book, 'The story of Sunderland Point'.
The Museums have also allowed us access to the final and large batch of John’s digitised photos. We have collected those most relevant to the Point and organised a second gallery. This will be added to the website after final editing - soon as we can.
Alice Walker (John’s Mother) probably with grandchild: Courtesy Lancaster City Museums.
John famously had a close relationship with his mother, this image perhaps confirms it. A special photograph .
Coming Next Week
Swallows 2023: Photo Alan Smith
Last year Alan recorded the successes and tragedy of a family of Swallows at number 7. The family have returned this year and Alan picks up the story with more extraordinary photos.
Coming Soon
In 1924 George Armstrong began the tenancy of number 19 which lasted over 30 years. He and his family used it for summer holidays and named the house ‘Brachium Forte’. His granddaughter, Rosemary Thacker (nee Taylor), whose parents are commemorated with the seat between the fish house and number 21, has kindly written an article telling us about her grandfather and family.
Numbers 18 and 19 c1950: From the collection of Rosemary Thacker
Memories Grim and Gay (Morecambe Visitor 1929)
The story of Margaret (Maggie) Wilson will be finished this autumn. We met her briefly at the Ship Inn (number 11) and later at the Queens Hotel (number 21) in the article on Public Houses at the Point. At the great age of 94 she gave an interview to the Visitor, the result was only a hazy snapshot of her long and tragic life. The full story is much more interesting.
Modern photo of the Crows Nest Inn, Barrow. Managed by Margaret and her son in the 1890s before a second tragedy struck: Photo internet.
Other stuff in the works
Paul Hatton has just finished digitally recreating the delightful map of the ‘Marine Garden of James Williamson’. We are still working on a bit of the backstory.
Controversy has raged for years and years over the prospect of ‘a new road for Sunderland Point’ but our story will concentrate on more recent times…
Excitingly, special guests have take up the challenge to prepare material and photographs on the Moths and Butterflies found at Sunderland Point - with a special mention on the Belted Beauty - the drafts look great.
Small Tortoiseshell: Photo Alan Smith
News from the schedulers suggests what is going on here can be fully explained:
Not far from the Postbox. September 2023
Some New Photographs
We are indebted to Philip Smith for these two wonderful photographs
Plover Scar Lighthouse from the boat, early morning: Photo Philip Smith
Sunderland Point panorama from the River: Photo Philip Smith
And to Rachael Knowles for this splendid photo taken at early dawn
Early morning, boats on the mud: Photo Rachael Knowles
And we have two others:
Late evening, Silver River on the river bound for Glasson Dock
Troublesome sky on the West Shore. August 2024.
And finally
This lovely photograph slipped out of the latest batch of John Walker images, but almost certainly not taken at SP. We don’t know where or who it was or estimate a date other between 1900 and 1920. Best suggestions are Heysham Village or the older part of Glasson Dock. Can anyone shed any light on who she might be?
Unknown woman, a John Walker photograph: Courtesy Lancaster City Museums.
Comments and suggestions are always welcome. If you have any older photographs connected in any way to SP we would be delighted to see them. Volunteers to write articles will be shown the red carpet, in fact treated like royalty.
See you next week.