Another Loss for the Local History World

Although Michelle and I never met Ralph Smedley (one of the few local historians whom we really admired that we somehow never managed to catch up with) we thought that his death deserved an interuption to the normal scheduling of this board, if only because we were huge fans of his work and because his 'Thornton Cleveleys Remembered' was one of the books that led us to our discoveries on Bourne Hill.
Anthony Coppin of the Garstang Courier has written this obituary for Ralph, which sums up his passing and the loss to our local history perectly:

Ralph was the author/compiler of two books on Thornton Cleveleys (old photos and old postcards) and a friend to many amateur historians in the Fylde area.
He was also a friend to many Cleveleys residents who were interested in the past of their seaside town, including the late Fred Anyon (a journalist from Clarence Avenue, whose father had been a local photographer), the late Louis Noon of West Drive West and the late Councillor Frank Townend (Rossall Road sub-postmaster after whom the Townend community centre is named).
Ralph encouraged me in my interest in the history in North Fylde, particularly Poulton and Cleveleys, when I was a reporter on the Blackpool Evening Gazette, covering North Fylde.
I recall him loaning me many documents over the years on various topics (eg the building of the "new" Poulton railway station at the top of the Breck; a "Cleveleys exhibition", and details of the (later famous) architect Lutyens' early work - in Cleveleys.
Ralph was an unassuming chap and certainly knew his stuff. He had been interested in Marsh Mill, Thornton, for some years and, when it was turned into a tourist attraction by Wyre Council he worked at the mill as a guide. He was much respected by his colleagues at the mill.
I did not see as much of him in recent years, which was my loss, though kept in touch through mutal friends. I am sure all who take an interest in local history, especially those who knew him, will be saddened by his passing.
Ralph died on September 16, 2008, aged 75 after a short illness.
A service and cremation was held at Carleton Crematorium on Wednesday, September 24, at 11am.

By Way of a Mid-Week Extra

Don't worry...a full explanation of our stump-legged effigy at St. Helen's (see final paragraph of the posting below) will be revealed on this board sometime between Thursday evening and Friday morning, as per our usual end of the week update...unless my computer blows up, of course. For now, however, as the title of this posting suggests, by way of a mid-week extra, I've been given a copy this afternoon (courtesy of Mr. Higginson and Mr. Bloomer of the Fylde Country Life Museum) of two obituaries from the Garstang Courier (both published last week) dedicated to my old friend Neil Thompson. The newspaper clippings speak for themselves really, so all that it remains for me to say is, if you're having difficulty reading them at the current size, just click on the thumbnails and all will, hopefully, become clear:

Neil Thompson

This isn’t our ‘advertised’ Christmas posting yet, unfortunately, because, once again, we’re the bearers of bad news. There’s something about Christmas that makes personal tragedies all the more poignant, perhaps never more so than today. This afternoon we received a telephone call from Tony Bloomer of the Fylde Country Life Preservation Society to tell us that our old friend and colleague, Neil Thompson, passed away last night, having been suffering from a brain tumour for some time now.

It’s going to seem odd not having him around. It’ll certainly seem a lot quieter. There’ll be fewer arguments for one thing. They were the ‘right’ sort of arguments, I ought to point out, mostly about history and archaeology and all the stuff that, when push comes to shove, doesn’t affect the way you feel about someone.

If the truth be known, Michelle and I have always had a soft spot for Neil. It was hard not to, really.

He was a larger-than-life character who always made us laugh, from his opinions on the bench at Catterall Council, to his work with the cub scouts, his dedication to the Fylde Country Life Museum and, of course, his chairmanship of Wyre Archaeology. Neil, Michelle, myself and Tony Bloomer created Wyre Archaeology a few years ago, and Neil’s own passion for the subject never wavered once, right up until the end.

We didn’t always see eye to eye, of course. In fact, quite often, we’d frighten innocent ramblers taking a quiet stroll down Grizedale Beck or trying to drink their coffees outside the Priory in Scorton with our ‘in depth discussions’. Nonetheless, virtually every weekend for the last few years, Neil and Michelle and I have ventured out into the darkest, dustiest corners of the Fylde and Wyre in search of our history, prepared for debate and a grand day out.

As Neil always said, “It’s a good job we’re not all the same, otherwise we’d never get anywhere.”

I’ve decided against posting a photograph, opting instead for the drawing below. It shows Neil holding a grain tester. I originally drew it for one of the information boards in the Fylde Country Life Museum. Neil never told me whether he liked the drawing or not, but I suspect he did because, after he’d seen it, he always tried to take the centre stage in every other drawing. On one occasion he even rolled up his trouser legs, donned a pinafore and climbed inside a dolly-tub…just to illustrate how such a device would have worked, you understand.
He was a big character, and he’s going to leave a big gap in a lot of people’s lives.

Announcements...

It’s time for a mid-week posting, or rather a mid-Saturday-morning posting because we’ve got a couple of important announcements to make.

The first, unfortunately, isn’t a pleasant one. We heard yesterday that our old friend and colleague, Headlie Lawrenson, had passed away. This, as anybody involved in our local history scene will acknowledge, is a major loss.

Headlie was a genuinely smashing bloke, quietly spoken but always fascinating. Over the years he was involved in some of the most important and prestigious excavations in the district, from the ruins of Newers Wood, the pile settlement at Nateby and the Roman road at Street, to the discovery of Cabus Cross and the preservation of the old church in Pilling.

When Michelle, Neil and I first established Wyre Archaeology, despite his commitments as President of Pilling Historic Society, Headlie was one of the first to join our burgeoning group. And to every meeting he brought some previously unseen document or map for us to cogitate over, along with his lifetime of invaluable knowledge.

His encouragement for our often times outlandish speculations was always welcomed, not least because he was recognised as such a distinguished figure in the field.

It was Headlie who showed us the Devil’s hoof print on Stakepool Bridge, the gravestones on the beach (or at least their location beneath the new sea defences). He managed to secure us access to the infamous Reverend Potter’s pulpit and the Chapter House at Cockersands Abbey, amongst many other locations. His relentless enthusiasm for the Wyre and its history never faltered, right up until the end.

To put it bluntly, we’re going to miss him.

On a slightly more upbeat note…hopefully…some of our readers might have noticed the new link in the right hand column for the ‘Fylde and Wyre Antiquarian Chat Room’. Anybody who’s interested might like to join us on our test run on Sunday evening (that’s Sunday the 21st of October) at 7.00 p.m. There’s nothing to download, you can remain anonymous if that sort of thing bothers you and, of course, it’s free.

Future meetings will be announced over at the forum (the link for which is also somewhere in the right hand column). So, hopefully we’ll meet some of you there.