Marsden moor

 Marsden moor (and surrounding areas)

just a few pictures of various parts of Marsden moor we have come across on our walks The moor has been affected by fires. Dozens of firefighters were required to put out a blaze in 2011. A fire in February 2019, during an unseasonal spell of warm weather, was described by West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service as one of the biggest moorland fires it had ever had to deal with and deep underneath is the famous Standage tunnels and canal (https://undergroundwarriorsuk.blogspot.com/2013/12/red-brook-engine-house-standege-tunnels.html)great for walking running or even cycling Be aware of Shooter nab on Bin moor if the red flags are flying stick to the paths these are just random pictures taken without any tunnels or buildings 

warning flag for shooters nab

Shooting club

One of many Reservoirs ,upon the moor we have visited Red brooke,

Black Moss,Swellands,Butterly,Blackely,Wessenden all reservois 

overflow

Anyones guess

slip way for water overflow

Three of us planning next walk 

To the far left on Pule hill

Air shaft on the moor for standege tunnels

 

Park bridge A-U-L

Park Bridge

We still continue to explore the area and we always find something new we also still have yet to find the site of the water wheel which powered the original flour/cotton mill and the juror is still out on that, it's been a long journey were we have discovered why sallies hole was put in we have found original underground tunnels linked to many a youngster who walked and played in them they are in our other sections, we discovered it was a hive of industry were hundreds of men women and children have worked played lived and died and it still lives on as a recreation area enjoyed by many , Park Bridge is an area of Ashton-under-Lyne, in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It is situated in the Medlock Valley, by Ashton-under-Lyne's border with Oldham. Park Bridge anciently lay within medieval manor of Ashton, however there is no record of Park Bridge until the 17th century. The name is probably a reference to the medieval Lyme Park, in the north west of the manor of Ashton.The site was origionaly of a cotton mill powered by a water wheel and coal minines dotted about, For nearly two hundred years from the 18th to the 20th centuries it was the site of the Park Bridge Ironworks.Samuel Lees junior founded Park Bridge ironworks in 1786 on 14 perches of land rented from the Earl of Stamford. Originally the ironworks produced raw iron; the ironworks was one of the largest in 19th century Tameside, and one of the earliest ironworks in the northwest. Samuel Lees' wife, Hannah Lees (née Buckley), inherited ownership of the ironworks on her husband's death in 1804. Under Hannah Lees, the ironworks was expanded including the construction of a weir and a water power building on the River Medlock. The success of the ironworks precipitated the construction of worker housing in the 1820s. Further worker housing was added in the 1840s and 1850s.The ironworks remained the largest such works in Tameside, including a nearby colliery and associated with the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge Railway. The business was inherited by another four generations of the Lees family, until the closure of the site. The ironworks started to decline at the end of the 19th century with the cessation of coal mining in the Medlock Valley in 1887. Competition from the steel industry over a long period and the closure of the railway in 1959 further dented the profits. The ironworks finally closed in 1963, still under the control of the Lees family.The abandoned ironworks fell into decay and was demolished or reduced to ruins in the 1970s. Because the buildings were not recorded before their demolition, the site of the ironworks is of interest to archaeologists – particularly the Manchester universaty  – as part of the development of the later iron industry in the north west. In 1975 the Medlock and Tame Valley Conservation Association opened the Park Bridge Museum to encourage interest in the historical significance of Park Bridge(closed)

Picture shows the iron works in it heyday

The stable and information centre 

Ready to be demolished the Roller shop just out of photo rear right was the steam boilers 

Part of two chimneys still stands today

One of many information boards around the site

Picture showing the railway bridge (ten arches) with Hanna Lees iron works 

 

Park Bridge was a little village made up of workers and thier families

As it looks now ,nice place to picnic or walk Fair bottom bobs is a newcome type steam engine which pumped water out of a nearby coal mine 

This is thought to be near Fenny field Bridge between canal and river Medlock 

to be updated and continued 

Roman fort

Castleshaw Roman fort was a castellum in the Roman province of Britannia. Although there is no evidence to substantiate the claim, it has been suggested that Castleshaw Roman fort is the site of Rigodunum, a Brigantian settlement. The remains of the fort are located on Castle Hill on the eastern side of Castleshaw Valley at the foot of Standedge but overlooking the valley. The hill is on the edge of Castleshaw in Greater Manchester. The fort was constructed in c. AD 79, but fell out of use at some time during the 90s. It was replaced by a smaller fortlet, built in c. 105, around which a civilian settlement grew. It may have served as a logistical and administrative centre, although it was abandoned in the 120s.

The site has been the subject of antiquarian and archaeological investigation since the 18th century, but the civilian settlement lay undiscovered until the 1990s. The fort, fortlet, and civilian settlement are all protected as a Scheduled Ancient Monument, recognising its importance as a "nationally important" archaeological site or historic building, and protecting it against unauthorised change

what it proberly looked like

no idea 

dug up yrs ago

on surveyance

Part of moat

Worth a visit about 15 min walk from car park 

we did it on Fathers day as a quick recky

The fort at Castleshaw, constructed from turf and timber, was built around 79 and guarded the York to Chester Roman road. Due to the site's protected status as a Scheduled Ancient Monument it has not been possible to excavate the fort, however previous trenches have demonstrated that the fort had two Phases to its construction.The location of the fort's granary, stables, the principia (headquarters), the  (commander's tent), and six long narrow buildings which are possibly workshops or storerooms are all known.The fort was small, would probably have been home to around 500 soldiers of an auxiliary cohort, and fell out of use during the mid AD 90s.Rather than allow the defences to fall into potentially hostile hands or be used against Rome, the fort was slighted.

The fort was replaced by a fortlet, also built using turf and timber, in AD 105. Although the fortlet was built on the same site as the fort, it did not use the same foundation trenches.There were two construction phases of the fortlet, the second – dating to c. 120 – featured gates, an oven, a well, a granary, a workshop, barracks, a commanders house, a courtyard building, and possibly a latrine. The barracks were built to accommodate 48 soldiers and even with administrative staff and officers, the garrison of the fortlet would have numbered less than 100. The first phase was laid out along the same lines as the second phase.The fortlet defences – as with most other fortlets – were designed to withstand attacks from brigands or hold off an enemy until reinforcements from the main army could arrive rather than withstand a determined attack.A civilian settlement or vicus grew around the fortlet in the early 2nd century. It probably would have been home to those who benefited from trade with the garrison or hangers on of the soldiers. Since it is unlikely that a garrison of under 100 could have supported a vicus, it has been suggested that the fortlet was a commissary fortlet, one which was the administrative and logistical centre of part of the Roman army. With soldiers regularly arriving to collect pay and orders, a vicus could have been supported. The fortlet fell out of use in the mid 120s. The fort and fortlet of Castleshaw were superseded by the neighbouring forts at Manchester and Slack.The vicus was abandoned around the same time as the fortlet fell out of use