HRH Princess Alexandra officially opened what was then the Runcorn - Widnes Bridge in 1961. The original layout contained the traffic lanes and pavements.

In 1977 the bridge was given its name of the Silver Jubilee Bridge. A pedestrian bridge was put on the right hand side. The inside was given over to 4 lanes of traffic - 2 Widnes & 2 Runcorn bound. The road approaches were significantly upgraded to feed into and from dual carriageways.

The opening of the Mersey Gateway Bridge upstream has permitted this bridge to be downgraded to take more local traffic. This bridge has been refurbished.

St Matthew's is on land given by George Brunskill who also assisted materially in its erection.

On St Matthew's grounds is a memorial to Peter Egerton-Warburton, former Police Commissioner and Explorer.

Death of Major Egerton-Warburton.

One of the names most intimately associated with exploration in the interior of the Australian continent is that of Major Peter Egerton-Warburton, CMG. It is with regret that we announce the death of this veteran explorer, a regret which we are sure will be shared by all who are acquainted with the history of the endeavours which have been made to open up the country in Central Australia, about so much of which our acquaintance consists more of conjecture than fact.

The major's death occurred at his residence at Beaumont on Tuesday, and he had attained the ripe age of 76 years, of which about 36 years were spent in this colony.

His career was one of varied and trying experience both in India and Australia. He is well remembered as one of the pioneers of exploration, and the heroism and perseverance with which he conducted the arduous work of discovery in our arid central country will give him a permanent place in colonial history. By his indomitable endeavours in this direction in years gone by he has been greatly instrumental in adding to our still meagre knowledge of the desert tracts in the north-west of South Australia.

The late Major Warburton was born at Arley Hall. Northwick, Cheshire, on August 16, 1813. He was educated in France, principally at Orleans and Paris, and in 1825 he entered the Royal Navy, serving for four years on board HMS Windsor Castle, under Captain D King. In 1829 he abandoned sea life and entered the Military College of the Honourable East India Company, at Addiscombe, where he received instruction for several years. He obtained his commission in the company's service and sailed for India in 1831: and in 1835 he was appointed adjutant of the Marine Battalion at Bombay. From that position he was transferred to the General Staff, and was rapidly promoted until he reached the rank of acting deputy-adjutant general. This appointment he held for two years, and in March, 1853, he retired from the service with the rank of major and the pension of a captain. He had been nearly 24 years in the service of the company, of which period 22 years had been passed in India. He now turned his attention towards Australia and sailed from India in the early part of the same year. In July he landed at Albany, but his stay in Western Australia was very brief.

He decided to come on to this colony, and in September he reached Adelaide. At this time Sir Henry Fox Young was Governor of South Australia, and shortly after his arrival Major Warburton received a position in the Civil Service. Towards the end of December, 1853, he was appointed Commissioner of Police in succession to Mr G F Dashwood, who held the post for a month or two in the place of Mr Alexander Tolmer. This office he held until February,1867, and in 1869 he was appointed Colonel-Commandant of the South Australian Volunteer Force. He carried out these duties very creditably until 1877, when he resigned, afterwards taking charge of the Imperial pension establishment.

Major Warburton's great work, however, was connected with various exploring expeditions in Central Australia. His principal and most recent exploration was that which was undertaken in 1873, when he succeeded in crossing the continent from a point on the overland telegraph line to the De Grey River, in Western Australia, passing en route through that terrible stretch of country known as the Sandy Desert. When the overland telegraph line was completed in 1872, the question of the character and capabilities of the country in Central Australia was very prominently brought up. The South Australian Government encouraged enterprise in this direction, and identified themselves with the work.

Between 1872 and 1875 three explorers were out— Major Warburton, Mr Ernest Giles, and Mr W C Gosse. They all started from different points on the line for the westward. Mr Giles started from Chambers's Pillar in 1872, but after discovering the Glen of Palms and Lake Amadeus, he met with obstacles which prevented him from proceeding either to the westward or the southward. On his return Major Warburton and Mr Gosse were about to start from higher points on the line, both fitted out by the Government, and generously supplied by the hon now Sir Thomas Elder, with camels for their use by the way. Mr Giles, however, set out again at about the same time, so that there were three explorers in the field at once. Major Warburton was commissioned by Mr Elder to search for cattle country to the west of the telegraph line in the centre of the continent. He was provided with 30 camels and had a small and carefully selected party to accompany him. He started westward from Alice Springs, one of the stations on the line, higher than Mr Giles had selected in his first expedition. Many months passed without any news being received from him, and grave misgivings were felt as to the fate of the expedition. At length after about twelve months' silence something was heard of him. A member of his party turned up at one of the most northern stations in Western Australia and reported that the gallant explorer was camped near the De Grey River, many miles away, with no provisions but camels' flesh, and very little of that. The party endured terrible hardships in forcing their way across the desert, and their privations had told upon them fearfully. An expedition was sent out for them, and everything was done for the party by the Governor of Western Australia (Sir Wm Robinson) and the Chief Secretary (the Hon W Barlee). They were sent on to Adelaide, where they met with an enthusiastic welcome. Major Warburton subsequently visited England, where he was awarded the gold medal of the Royal Geographical Society for his efforts towards increasing our knowledge of the interior of Australia. He received the Companionship of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1875. After his return from England Major Warburton retired into private life, and has lived near Adelaide until his decease.

The funeral of the late Major Warburton took place on Thursday morning, the remains being interred in St Matthew's churchyard, Kensington. Prior to the ceremony at the ground service was conducted in the church by Bishop Kennion, assisted by the Rev C W Hawkins. There were present among others at the grave – Messrs R J E Warburton, W E Warburton (sons), and H Short (son-in law), Sir S Davenport (president Geographical Society), Sir W Milne, Sir E T Smith, Dean Marryat, Canon Dendy, the Revs A Honner, W A Swan, W H Mudie, and S French, Colonel Downes, Commissioner Peterswald, Dr Hayward, and Messrs F S Grant, W Sandover, A J Baker, H Foote, F W Frampton, W M Sandford, P Auld (Stuart's party), W H Tietkins (explorer), T Gill (hon treasurer Geographical Society), A T Magarey (hon secretary Geographical Society), L H Sholl (under-treasurer), J R

Phillips, A Davies, M Giles, J F Cleland, G F Cleland, W C M Finniss. C Giles MP, T Giles, F H Stokes, Wm Dean, E B Grundy, G W Hawkes, F G Waterhouse (Stuart's party). H Smythe, and C B Hardy,

Ref: Express and Telegraph (Adelaide SA) Friday 8 November 1889 p3

Earth Designs Garden Design and Build were asked to created a landscape and propose garden design in Leyton, London*. Here are the details of the project

The Kitchen Garden in Leyron, London E10

BRIEF:

This site was an open corner plot in an end of terrace house. Its exposed aspect meant that it suffered from a lack of shade and was adversely affected by strong wind. An awkward shape, it had fairly low, shabby, trellis-capped walls on two sides and thus suffered from lack of privacy.

The side wall of the house enclosed the third side of the garden, and an area of uneven concrete, which the client stipulated should be kept but made more attractive, bordered the fourth.

The client has an allergy to insect bites, so stated that he did not want a water feature, which would attract insect life, included in the design. There was also an area containing a coal bunker, which the client and Earth Designs agreed should remain as a ‘working area’.

SOLUTION:

The design was styled as a contemporary cottage garden – a variation on a ‘Pottager’s Garden’, featuring herbs with the potential to incorporate vegetables within the raised flowerbeds. The beds, running along the house and boundary walls, were constructed with used railway sleepers and built at odd angles to add personality to the space.

Within these beds, a planting palette of scented orange, purple, cream and green foliage was carefully selected to give year round interest and texture. Two seating areas were included in the design, one for dining and one for contemplation, situated in separate areas to catch the sun at different times of the day.

The dining area, featuring a small table and bench seat constructed from railway sleepers, was given increased privacy with the addition of a hinged trellis closing off its exposed side. The other seating area featured a corner deck, large enough to hold two sun loungers at full spread.

The middle of the space featured a triangular raised bed in which a semi-mature tree was planted, offering shade and shelter from the elements. The main area, enclosed by the raised beds, was carpeted with a combination of slate tiles, sunken railway sleepers and pea shingle, amongst which clumps of lawn chamomile and creeping thyme were planted.

The existing garden walls were raised in height, rendered and painted white, to provide an attractive backdrop to the raised beds while significantly increasing the privacy

of the space.

The existing concreted area was overlaid with slate tiles, to provide a hard, practical, yet attractive surface. An archway constructed from railway sleepers was used to demark the existing ‘working area’ from the rest of the garden. This archway was placed so that it would also offer support for an existing honeysuckle.

TESTIMONIAL:

“It is common these days to talk of the garden as another room, an extension of the house, bringing the garden into the home, and the home into the garden etc, etc…

Earth Designs didn’t do that. They gave me a sanctuary. From a pretty vague and basic brief, (I’d like a tree, I’d like to have scented flowers, it’s a windy garden, it’s overlooked, it needs to be low maintenance….) they created a calm yet excitingly varied space in which I can escape from the world to somewhere tranquil, or entertain intimately or on a large scale.

They worked like Trojans, often putting in 12 hour days. The quality of the work, and choice of planting and hard landscaping is impeccable. Their aftercare service is terrific - if I have a query or a problem, they deal with it. They are, in short, a good bunch.

They didn’t only give me a garden, they made a dream come alive, and I thank them for it.”

If you dig this and would like to find out more about this or any of other of our designs, please stop by our web-site and have a look at our work.

Earth Designs is a bespoke London Garden Design and build company specialising in classic, funky and urban contemporary garden design.

Our Landscape and Garden build teams cover London, Essex and parts of South East England, while garden designs are available nationwide.

Please visit www.earthdesigns.co.uk to see our full portfolio. If you would like a garden designer in London or have an idea of what you want and are looking for a landscaper London to come and visit your garden, please get in touch.

Follow our Bespoke Garden Design and Build and Blog to see what we get up to week by week, our free design clinic as well as tips and products we recommend for your garden projects www.earthdesigns.co.uk/blog/.

Earth Designs is located in East London, but has built gardens in Essex , gardens in Hertfordshire Hertfordshire and all over the South East. Earth Designs was formed by Katrina Wells in Spring 2003 and has since gone from strength to strength to develop a considerable portfolio of garden projects. Katrina, who is our Senior Garden Designer, has travelled all over the UK designing gardens. However we can design worldwide either through our postal garden design service or by consultation with our senior garden designer. Recent worldwide projects have included garden designs in Romania. Katrina’s husband. Matt, heads up the build side of the company, creating a unique service for all our clients.

If you a not a UK resident, but would like an Earth Designs garden, Earth Designs has a worldwide design service through our Garden Design Postal Design Vouchers. If you are looking for an unique birthday present or original anniversary present and would like to buy one of our Garden Design Gift Vouchers for yourself or as a present please our sister site www.gardenpresents.co.uk. We do also design outside of the UK, please contact us for details.

I have given this some thought over the years; what distinguishes a neck corset from a collar? For me, a collar has limited adjustment using buckles or locks, etc. A neck corset has infinite adjustment through laces.

Obviously, tight-lacing a neck corset could be deleterious to the wearer, but they can certinaly be utilised to immobilise the wearer's head and to restrict breathing. There are a few photos out there of a girl I knew as Gina, who intentionally wore a neck corset so tight that she could barely breathe, the veins in her forehead stood out, and she couldn't swallow.

Neck corsets could be used to give the appearance of a stretched neck by pushing the collar bones down and the chin up. I have never worn a neck corset, but I am guessing that a neck corset that tall will be highly restrictive.

One of the lovely hand tinted tourist prints from an old album that was very kindly given to me by a distant relative, Colin Wonfor.

So... just how much can a person be influenced by the work of the Pictorialists? Well, it turns out, it is a field of photographic history that I completely ignored for decades, but have recently come to appreciate and understand they've been lurking in the back of my artistic mind for many many years.

Stieglitz, Steichen, Prodger, Boughton, de Meyer, Devens, Coburn, White, Puyo, Mortensen, and many others found creative ways of expressing their art through the photographic process.

These are my digital adaptations, given that I no longer work in a chemical darkroom, nor with film.

----

Photographer: C'est moi

Photog's Assistant: Judith Turano

Model/Hair/MUA/Couture: Eyerish Heather Collins

After being given a reprieve, 22194 has now come to the end of her use at Ashford. Her last hours in her home depot before removal to Eastbourne for storage.

Given to me some years ago by Dave Churchman, who made it.

GIVEN A MASS OF OLD CROCHET PATTERNS SOME TIME BACK .THESE ARE THE ONES I KEPT,MUST ADMIT I USUALLY MAKE UP MY PATTERNS NOW AS I GO.

Plenty of opportunity here today for using the camera as a means of 'painting a picture', given enough 'where-with-all' to realise the potential when its available and usually, here, this is the case. In this three part panorama/composite, a few folk are about crossing the old 'stepping bridge', some historic detail was given about this here-

www.flickr.com/photos/daohaiku/29082080745/in/

and two of the bridge personnel are at least interested in what's going on and who had waited for the arrival of the RHTT with fortunately, one of the H.N.R.C.'s 'Satsuma' liveried stock, 20314, on the front, whilst the other two crossing back over the bridge, are oblivious. Its a real shame, in these conditions, that the set had been to the 'car wash' and turned up looking pristine but that never happens once the season gets under way, this is only the middle of the third week and so almost another 6 weeks to go! Although DRS had run their own pair of class 20s, 20302 and 20303 for a short while, starting out on October 11th, a poor shot in the dark was taken of them at Carnaby, near the east coast resort of Bridlington, see-

www.flickr.com/photos/daohaiku/48907858018/in/

things went down-hill from there and 20303 was removed to have work undertaken on it and the set then ran with these two, today Harry Needle's 20314, ex-D8117, on the front, with the DRS blue-job, 20302 on the back. The two 'enthusiasts' appear momentarily distracted by what's going happening on the canal bridge, though its just three of us looking and talking enthusiastically about the RHTT passage in its less than pristine state. Behind the 'orange' are the 'blues', the usual set of'"Sandite Units', FEA-B RHTT A Tank Wagons and at the back, a grimy DRS blue 20, 20302, the latter barely recognisable from this view as it appears out of the lineside shrubbery. This is the 3rd section of the RHTT run today and earlier, the working, 3S11 which should have come out of York Thrall at 04:15, arriving in Sheffield at 06:36, was cancelled due to- 'This service was cancelled due to a request by the train operator (FL)...' and hence the following working back north, 3S12, also had to be cancelled, both of these being replaced by a V.S.T.P., 3J12, at 07:45 which left York Thrall at 07:45 but now bound for Woodburn Junction; missing out Sheffield completely on this day. The VSTP service at the later time to Woodburn, then ran on its usual eastern jaunt, 3S13, to Gainsborough Central, arriving back at Woodburn at 11:18, in preparation for this working, 3S14, at 11:29 to Hull and from the re, on the 3S15, back to York Thrall Europa, arriving at 19:03. ONe assumes that the 1st working of the day, 3S11, from York to Sheffield, didn't run due to problems with the other DRS blue class 20, 20303 and this had to be substituted for the HNRC unit, 20314.. What a day!

Given the sad news of the passing of the Queen it seems a good time to post this. They do an amazing job with the landscaping of the palace and the work inside, while not photographable was beautiful and well done.

Given out to the first 300 people to spend $35 on 4/10/10 at the opening of the new store in Garden City, New York.

Full review (including instructions) here

GIVEN A MASS OF OLD CROCHET PATTERNS SOME TIME BACK .THESE ARE THE ONES I KEPT,MUST ADMIT I USUALLY MAKE UP MY PATTERNS NOW AS I GO.

Houmas House / Burnside Plantation

40136 Highway 942

Darrow, Louisiana

Ascension Parish

NRHP Reference#:80001694

Added to NRHP:September 27, 1980

The first owners of the plantation were the indigenous Houmas Indians, who were given a land grant to occupy the fertile plain between the Mississippi and Lake Maurepas to the north.

The Houmas sold the land to Maurice Conway and Alexander Latil in 1774 by Celapane, Chief of the Bayou Goula and Houmas Indians.

The original French Provincial house that Latil erected on the property in is situated directly behind the Mansion, adjoined by a carriageway to the grand home described during its antebellum heyday as "The Sugar Palace." The original home was later used as living quarters for the staff that served the great house.

Click HERE to see a film showing the history of the property

By the time of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the plantation was established and producing sugar.

In 1810, Revolutionary War hero Gen. Wade Hampton of Virginia purchased the property and shortly thereafter began construction on the Mansion. However, it was not until 1825 when Hampton's daughter, Caroline, and her husband, Col. John Preston, took over the property that the grand house truly began to take shape.

Construction on the Mansion was completed in 1828. At the same time, Houmas House began to build its sugar production and continued to increase its land holdings, which ultimately grew to 300,000 acres.

Irishman John Burnside bought the plantation in 1857 for $1 million. A businessman and a character, Burnside increased production of sugar until Houmas House was the largest producer in the country, actively working the crop on 98,000 acres. During the Civil War, Burnside saved the Mansion from destruction at the hands of advancing Union forces by declaring immunity as a subject of the British Crown. In addition to building a railway to carry his products to market —"The Sugar Cane Train (1862)" — Burnside, a bachelor, is also said to have offered payment to any parents in the parish who would name their sons "John."

An avid sportsman who wagered heavily in horse races, Burnside once secretly purchased a champion thoroughbred back East with the intent of defeating the steeds of fellow local businessmen in a big race. He quietly slipped the racehorse into the billiard room of the Mansion where it was "stabled" until Burnside's surprise was unveiled at the starting line and hailed in the winner's circle.

Houmas House flourished under Burnside's ownership, but it was under a successor, Col. William Porcher Miles that the plantation grew to its apex in the late 1800's when it was producing a monumental 20 million pounds of sugar each year.

In 1927, the Mississippi came out of its banks in the epic "great flood." While Houmas House was spared, the surrounding areas were inundated. The ensuing economic havoc was but a prelude to the devastation of the Great Depression just two years later.

Houmas House Plantation withered away. The Mansion closed and fell into disrepair, a condition in which it remained until 1940 when Dr. George B. Crozat purchased it.

Crozat bought Houmas House to be a summer home away from his native New Orleans. He renovated the property with the intent to give it a more "Federal" look than the stately Greek Revival style in which it was conceived. The structure was painted white inside and out. Crown moldings and ceiling medallions were removed and both interior and exterior forms and finishes were simplified.

Eventually, the Crozat heirs opened the property to tourists. In 1963, the defining Bette Davis film "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte" was shot in the property. The room in which Ms. Davis stayed while filming is preserved as part of today's Houmas House tour.

Current owner, Kevin Kelly, who fulfilled a lifelong dream by acquiring the property in the Spring of 2003, the mansion today reflects the best parts of each period in its rich history alongside the big bend in the Mississippi River.

As per www.houmashouse.com/history.htm

HABS Documentation: lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/la/la0000/la0019/data/la0019d...

www.sankofagen.com/Houmas-Plantation

www.bwthornton.co.uk

Four miles north of Cirencester, the ancient village of North Cerney occupies the steep valley of the River Churn, the church and the old rectory form an attractive group on the western slope high above the river, while the village cascades down the opposite side beyond the main Cirencester to Cheltenham road. Sheep are allowed to graze in the churchyard in the summertime and can often be seen dozing in the shade of the many table tombs.

All Saints North Cerney is one of the most interesting churches in the Cotswolds, wonderfully furnished at the expense of William Iveson Croome (1891-1967) and full of rare medieval carvings and stained glass. Possibly the third church to have occupied this lofty site, archaeological evidence found when installing a new heating system revealed the foundations of a smaller earlier building. The Saxon origin of these fragmentary remains was given credence when a pre-conquest crucifix, part of an early reredos, was found during further works in the graveyard, now set in the splay of a window in the chancel. A Norman church was built in the 12th century represented by the present nave, the base of the west tower and half the length of the chancel. Liturgical changes in the 13th century increased the role of the chancel in celebration of the Mass and here as elsewhere the chancel was lengthened. The original altar is a rare survival hidden from Reformation iconoclasts under the floor of the Lady chapel and only discovered during alterations in 1912.

Much of the present church rose from the ashes of a fire that caused much damage sometime between 1450 and 1460, the Norman roof was beyond repair and the upper stages of the tower bore the brunt of the flames as they took hold of the building. Indeed the effects of the fire returned to haunt present generations of parishioners as substantial funds had to be raised to stabilise the tower which had begun to crack. After the fire, the rector, William Whitchurch undertook the restoration, rebuilding the north wall with large Perpendicular windows, only the one at the west end survives. A window commemorating Whitchurch was moved when the north transept was built and inserted in its new north wall, a Latin inscription reads "Pray for the soul of William Whitchurch".

Sometime between 1461 and 1465 the Norman south wall was pierced and a Lady Chapel was constructed giving the church a cruciform plan. The chapel can be dated by its east window which includes the Yorkist symbol of the radiant sun. Prominent among the chapel's furnishings are three 15th century carved figures, St Martin cutting his cloak to give half to a beggar, the Virgin Mary and St Urban holding a bunch of grapes, who also wears the tiara usually associated with Urban the Great. A passage squint leads from the west wall of the transept to the nave. The Lady Chapel screen was designed by F.C. Eden and carved by Laurence Turner in 1913, the St George above is by Giorgio Maurus 1920.

Late in the 15th century the north transept was replaced by a chapel dedicated to St Catherine, patron saint of wool merchants. The 16th century altar served the church until the recovery of the medieval mensa in 1912. A vestment press by F.C. Eden occupies the south wall, he also designed the altar frontal and reredos. The east window commemorates the curate who succeeded William Whitchurch and bears the Latin inscription "Pray for the soul of John Bicot", he is seen praying beneath the crucified Christ. However at some stage the stained glass was re leaded with the painted surface outermost and the decoration has suffered as a result. The north transept has a ceiled wagon roof and a curving squint leads to the chancel.

The chancel was lengthened in the 13th century. The altar frontal is made from material woven for Chartres Cathedral before the First World War. The mensa with its consecration crosses is supported on the original medieval stones though a modern frame bears the considerable weight. The attractive reredos is the work of architect F.C. Eden responsible for much of the 20th century work in the church. Robert Broad carved the communion rails from Norway oak in 1736. The stepped east window is by Waller 1878 and bears the legend 'God is Love' and has stained glass by Hardman.

The Perpendicular nave roof has an interesting collection of carved bosses at its eastern end. The roof rests on large carved corbels, those on the north side are thought to depict the reigning monarch Henry VI, William Whitchurch and the Lord of the manor, the Duke of Buckingham with a ducal coronet and moustaches. The church was lit by candles until 25 years ago and several 17th century Flemish brass candelabra survive. Unfortunately the original Queen Anne arms was stolen but the insurance money was used to make a replacement bearing the present Queen's Royal Coat Of Arms. The pulpit of c1480 is ornamented with lilies and was carved from a single block of stone possibly by carvers from Burford, the pedestal is slightly later. The eagle lectern is of similar date and is made of Flemish brass with a Spanish steel pedestal, it was found in the Marine stores at Gloucester docks. Old pew ends have been used to construct a reading desk, one of the panels has an inscription WC 1631, William Cherrington was churchwarden at this time. In 1870 an organ chamber was created in the north wall of the nave, accessed by stairs from the Catherine chapel, part of F.S. Waller & Son's restoration. The organ is richly decorated by Dykes Bower and William Butchart of Westminster Abbey. Above the east end of the nave is a rood loft designed by F.C. Eden and carved by William Smith in the village, using oak from nearby Rendcomb. John and Mary were carved at this time but the central figure of Christ is Italian c1600 found when the churchwarden William Croome fell over its packing case in an antique shop in northern Italy and bought for £10. F.C. Eden designed several stained glass windows including the figure of St Nicholas in the south nave window and the south window of the south chapel which has the arms of the owners of North Cerney House through the ages. The nave has a deep west gallery that obscures the double chamfered C13-C14 tower arch. The 15th century octagonal font has a 18th century cover.

The tower has two lower stages of Norman work with original north and south windows and a clasping north-west buttress of the same date. The west window is 16th century, the bell-stage has west and east windows c1200. The right jamb of the south tower door bears a scratch dial.

The church has a Norman south porch with a carved tympanum, the door is 15th century and has its original closing ring. On the outside of the south wall of the south transept you will find the incised figure of a manticora which has a human head and arms, the body of a lion and a scorpion's tail. Another manticora is carved at the base of the tower apparently the work of the same 'artist'. On the steep slope above the church is a churchyard cross of 14th date, recently restored. On the outside of the tower the roof-line of the original Norman roof is clearly visible. A ring of six bells include four by Abraham Rudhall I, 1714, one by John Rudhall 1820 and a treble by Warner, 1863. Lychgate 1910 by FC Eden.

www.bwthornton.co.uk

given it's May the 4th I thought it would be nice to build a mini LEGO Star Wars book.

Lesnes Abbey (pronounced /ˈlɛsnɨs/) is a former abbey, now ruined, in Abbey Wood, in the London Borough of Bexley. It is a scheduled ancient monument and the adjacent park and heath are a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The ruins are adjacent to Lesnes Abbey Woods.

After the Norman Conquest in 1066 the area of Lesnes, close to the town of Erith passed into the possession of Bishop Odo and is mentioned in the Domesday Survey. The year 1178 saw the foundation of the Abbey of St Mary and St Thomas the Martyr at Lesnes.

Lesnes Abbey, as it is known, was founded by Richard de Luci, Chief Justiciar of England, in 1178. It is speculated, this may have been in penance for the murder of Thomas Becket, in which he was involved. In 1179, de Luci resigned his office and retired to the Abbey, where he died three months later. He was buried in the chapter house.

The abbey is situated in the suburbs of south east London, in the north of an ancient but long-managed Lesnes Abbey Woods that are named after it, where the land rises above what would originally have been marshland.

In 1381 Abel Ker of Erith led a local uprising linked to the famous Peasants' Revolt. It actually began in Essex but a mob from Erith burst in to nearby Lesnes Abbey and forced the abbot to swear an oath to support them. After this they marched to Maidstone to join the main body of men led by Wat Tyler.

The Abbott of Lesnes Abbey was an important local landlord, and took a leading part in draining the marshland. However, this and the cost of maintaining river embankments was one of the reasons given for the Abbey's chronic financial difficulties. It never became a large community, and was closed by Cardinal Wolsey in 1525, under a licence to suppress monasteries of less than seven inmates. It was one of the first monasteries to be closed after the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1524, and the monastic buildings were all pulled down, except for the Abbott's Lodging. Henry Cooke acquired the site in 1541 and it eventually passed to Sir John Hippersley who salvaged building materials, before selling the property to Thomas Hawes of London in 1632. It was then bequeathed to Christ's Hospital in 1633. Some of the stone is said to have been used in the construction of Hall Place in nearby Bexley.

The abbey was effectively lost and the area became farmland with the abbots house forming part of a farmhouse. It has been restored to show some of the walls and the entire outline of the abbey is visible giving a good idea of the size and atmosphere of the original place. It is on the Green Chain Walk and well worth a visit as it is surrounded by good parkland and an ornamental garden. There is a cafe and a small exhibition of the abbey and also toilet facilities for visitors. The is a low, leaning tree at the Northern side of the abbey, and this is reputed to be a mulberry tree.

The site was excavated by Woolwich & District Antiquarian Society in 1909-1910 approx. . Some archaeological finds from the Abbey's site are displayed in Plumstead Museum at 232 Plumstead High Street, others are further east in the museum above Erith Library in Walnut Tree Road. The "Missale de Lesnes" is in the library of the Victoria & Albert Museum in Exhibition Road, London.

The former London County Council purchased the site of the ruins in 1930, which were opened to the public as a park in 1931. Since 1986, the site has been the property of the London Borough of Bexley. A branch of the Green Chain Walk passes the ruins on its way from Oxleas Wood to Thamesmead riverside.

LUGNuts' founder Lino Martins has graciously given me permission to replicate his series of automotive illustrations based on various mixed alcoholic drinks.

The third in this series is a Lego -model replication of 'FrankenBerry' - 1984 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme.

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In Lino's own words:

"Here is my final installment of the holy trinity of cars. If you’ve been following my formula (advancing decades and increasingly larger rims) you may have predicted that Franken Berry would go in this direction. This is a 1984 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme customized as a Donk. The donk phenomenon originated in the American south amongst the rap and hip hop scene. “Donk” is sort of a blanket term given to cars with outsized rims but depending on car model and decade, these typically full-sized American-made sedans can be categorized as donks, boxes, or bubbles with many other sub-categories as well. This ‘84 Cutlass is an example of a box hi-riser. There is nothing subtle about the candy sparkle pink paint scheme. Massive rims that each borrow design cues from Franken Berry’s eyes also feature strawberries on four of the spokes. Beefy truck axles are required to accommodate such large rims while truck horns configured below the front bumper gives this ride an attitude as big as everything else. While I designed this car myself it is not unheard of to have such graphics along the side. Many real-life donks feature fast food restaurant logos, candy or junk food themes. Donks are the youngest of the three car cultures featured so it makes sense that it represents “The Son” in this Holy Trinity. I truly had a blast drawing this triptych of vehicles and I look forward to drawing other odd pairs or trilogies. I have other artistic projects on the burner right now but if you have suggestions for other pairings for me to draw leave them in the comments. No guarantees, but who knows, maybe they’ll happen. Thanks for reading and liking my work."

©All photographs on this site are copyright: ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2021 & GETTY IMAGES ®

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams). No image may be used as source material for paintings, drawings, sculptures, or any other art form without permission and/or compensation to ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

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I would like to say a huge and heartfelt 'THANK YOU' to GETTY IMAGES, and the 51.082+ Million visitors to my FLICKR site.

***** Selected for sale in the GETTY IMAGES COLLECTION on Sunday 19th October 2025

CREATIVE RF gty.im/2225511009 MOMENT ROYALTY FREE COLLECTION**

This photograph became my 7,388th frame to be selected for sale in the Getty Images collection and I am very grateful to them for this wonderful opportunity.

©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

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Photograph taken at 11:31am on Wednesday 16th July 2025 at an altitude of Fifty three in the Grounds of Warnham Nature Reserve in Horsham, West Sussex. This is a Marsh frog (Pelophylax ridibundus), a species of frog which are native to continental Europe and Western Asia. They are not a native species in the UK but were introduced in Kent in the 1930's.

The Millpond dates back to the 16th Century and parts of the woodland dates back even further to the 13th Century. A beautiful location for a walk, or to sit amongst nature and so see birds and butterflies in their natural habitat.

Nikon D850 Single-lens reflex digital camera F Mount with FX CMOS 35.9mm x 23.9mm Image sensor 46.89 Million total pixels Focal length: 350mm Shutter speed: 1/400s (Mechanical shutter) Aperture f/6.3 Iso160 Image area Full Frame FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L 45.4Million pixels (8256 x 5504) 14 Bit uncompressed Hand held with Tamron VC control enabled AF-C Priority Selection: Release Nikon Back button focusing enabled 3D Tracking watch area: Normal 55 Tracking points Exposure mode: Manual mode Metering mode: Matrix metering White balance on: Auto1, A1.00, M0.25 (4800K) Colour space: Adobe RGB Picture control: (SD) Standard (Sharpening +3.00/Clarity A+1.00) Active D-Lighting: Low

Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup. Black Rapid Curve Breathe strap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag. Nikon EN-EL15a battery.

LATITUDE: N 51d 4m 47.70s

LONGITUDE: W 0d 19m 52.20s

ALTITUDE: 53.0m

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 92.5MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 48.90MB

PROCESSING POWER:

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.21 (8/12/2022) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (16/01/20) LF 1.00 Nikon Codec Full version 1.31.2 (09/11/2021)

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with Windows 10 Home edition AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. My Passport USB 3.0 2TB portable desktop hard drive. Nikon NX STUDIO 64bit Version 1.2.2 (08/12/2022). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.16.0 (08/12/2022). Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.

Given the popularity of Fodens on the funfair it was inevitable that at least a couple would find their way into my present-day model fleet. This one is a Fleetmaster hand cast in whitemetal by an eBay seller called 'fairchasers' and improved by me; the trailer is a Kentoys plastic model.

Given the bleak history of so many lives lost at sea from the fishing village of Dunmore East, Co. Waterford, I felt the aspect and form of this tree overlooking the harbour, with its limbs outstretched towards Heaven, implied, perhaps, a prayer or entreaty for mercy and courage...

it is dedicated to the families and friends of all who are lost at sea.

Wikipedia says:

Kuntur Wasi (Quechua kuntur condor, wasi house, "condor house") is the name given to the ruins of a religious center with complex architecture and stone sculptures, located in the Andean highlands of Peru.

It is believed the inhabitants had a link with the Chavín culture.

Kuntur Wasi is located in the Northern Mountain Range of Peru, specifically at the headwaters of the Jequetepeque River, in the region of the city of Cajamarca near the small town of San Pablo. The Jequetepeque valley provided a transportation corridor between the coastal region and the highlands.

Kuntur Wasi was a center where people congregated.

It is thought to have been constructed around 1000-700 BCE, during the Initial Period. The architecture consists of a hill-top temple, quadrangular platforms, a sunken courtyard, and series of rooms.

In the floor of one room there is an anthropomorphic figure made of clay, about 30 inches (75 cm) in height. It is painted with cinnabar red, malachite green, and black, yellow, and pink. Its face has big square eyes and a wide mouth with prominent canine teeth. There are also stepped platforms and funeral structures.

Lithosculptures have been found, similar to the Chavín style.

Kuntur Wasi was occupied between the years 1200-50 BC.

It was first discovered in 1945 by Julio C. Tello. In 1989, scientists from the University of Tokyo excavated four tombs at Kuntur Wasi. Valuable items, such as pectoral necklaces (decorative breastplates), gold crowns, ornamental stone beads, earrings, sets of dishes and iconographies of people were discovered in the burial area.

Since the beginning of the University of Tokyo's archaeological mission, eight tombs have been found in the area.

The Kuntur Wasi Museum, managed by local citizens, opened in 1994.

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Según Wikipedia:

Kuntur Wasi es un sitio arqueológico que data del Formativo Inferior, se encuentra ubicado en el centro poblado del mismo nombre, en la provincia de San Pablo, en el departamento de Cajamarca, en el Perú.

En la lengua quechua Kuntur Wasi significa "Casa del Cóndor". Según el arqueológo japonés, Yoshio Onuki, estudioso principal de este sitio arqueológico, Kuntur Wasi es una expresión prechavín pero que posteriormente posee una gran influencia no solo de Chavín sino también de Cupisnique especialmente en la orfebrería y la cerámica.

Kuntur Wasi pasó por los siguientes periodos:

Fase Ídolo: Construcción del centro ceremonial con pisos enlucidos con cal de color blanco. En esta fase hay una cierta relación con Huacaloma y Pacopampa.

Fase Kuntur: Construcción de un nuevo complejo ceremonial en forma de U. Se desarrolla la cerámica fina y la orfebrería.

Fase Copa: Modificación del complejo arquitectónico ceremonial y la renovación del sistema de canales de drenaje.

Fase Sotera: Existe una relación con la Fase Layzón del valle de Cajamarca.

Corresponde a la decadencia de Kuntur Wasi.

Simba was given to us by a dog rescue group after he was found wandering the streets of Tijauna, Mexico. He loves attention from people, and will sit on you for pets. He's very vocal and friendly. His English isn't so good yet, but we're sure he'll learn quick :) Let's give him a warm Canadian welcome. Will you be the one?

ADULTS: Yes

CATS: Yes

DOGS: Unknown

KIDS: Unknown

Given to me last Christmas by a dear friend to substitute my tobacco smoking.

Visit their site The Vape Company.

YORK, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 19: during the BUCS Men’s Northern Tier 6 Group C match between York St John University 8ths and Leeds Trinity University 4ths at Haxby Road on October 19th 2022 in North Yorkshire, United Kingdom. (Photo by Matthew Appleby)

GIVEN A MASS OF OLD CROCHET PATTERNS SOME TIME BACK .THESE ARE THE ONES I KEPT,MUST ADMIT I USUALLY MAKE UP MY PATTERNS NOW AS I GO.

For devirginification, Jesse is given the unique task of being assigned to simulate sex with an inflatable cow. As he put it later, "The best part was fucking the cow!" He really got into it.

BACKSTORY: We went to Rocky Horror Picture Show on graduation night again, and it was quite awesome, as usual.

Jesse.

inflatable cow.

movie: Rocky Horror Picture Show.

sexual comedy.

University Mall, theater, Fairfax, Virginia.

May 17, 2008.

Pic by Casey.

... Read my blog at ClintJCL.wordpress.com

... View Jesse's MySpace at www.myspace.com/Yi_Zong/

... View Casey's photos at www.flickr.com/photos/CaseyLea/

A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.

Some wall paintings are painted on large canvases, which are then attached to the wall (e.g., with marouflage). Whether these works can be accurately called "murals" is a subject of some controversy in the art world, but the technique has been in common use since the late 19th century.

HISTORY

Murals of sorts date to Upper Paleolithic times such as the paintings in the Chauvet Cave in Ardèche department of southern France (around 30,000 BC). Many ancient murals have survived in Egyptian tombs (around 3150 BC), the Minoan palaces (Middle period III of the Neopalatial period, 1700-1600 BC) and in Pompeii (around 100 BC - AD 79).

During the Middle Ages murals were usually executed on dry plaster (secco). In Italy, circa 1300, the technique of painting of frescos on wet plaster was reintroduced and led to a significant increase in the quality of mural painting.

In modern times, the term became more well-known with the Mexican "muralista" art movement (Diego Rivera, David Siqueiros, or José Orozco). There are many different styles and techniques. The best-known is probably fresco, which uses water-soluble paints with a damp lime wash, a rapid use of the resulting mixture over a large surface, and often in parts (but with a sense of the whole). The colors lighten as they dry. The marouflage method has also been used for millennia.

Murals today are painted in a variety of ways, using oil or water-based media. The styles can vary from abstract to trompe-l'œil (a French term for "fool" or "trick the eye"). Initiated by the works of mural artists like Graham Rust or Rainer Maria Latzke in the 1980s, trompe-l'oeil painting has experienced a renaissance in private and public buildings in Europe. Today, the beauty of a wall mural has become much more widely available with a technique whereby a painting or photographic image is transferred to poster paper or canvas which is then pasted to a wall surface (see wallpaper, Frescography) to give the effect of either a hand-painted mural or realistic scene.

TECHNIQUE

In the history of mural several methods have been used:

A fresco painting, from the Italian word affresco which derives from the adjective fresco ("fresh"), describes a method in which the paint is applied on plaster on walls or ceilings. The buon fresco technique consists of painting in pigment mixed with water on a thin layer of wet, fresh, lime mortar or plaster. The pigment is then absorbed by the wet plaster; after a number of hours, the plaster dries and reacts with the air: it is this chemical reaction which fixes the pigment particles in the plaster. After this the painting stays for a long time up to centuries in fresh and brilliant colors.

Fresco-secco painting is done on dry plaster (secco is "dry" in Italian). The pigments thus require a binding medium, such as egg (tempera), glue or oil to attach the pigment to the wall.

Mezzo-fresco is painted on nearly-dry plaster, and was defined by the sixteenth-century author Ignazio Pozzo as "firm enough not to take a thumb-print" so that the pigment only penetrates slightly into the plaster. By the end of the sixteenth century this had largely displaced the buon fresco method, and was used by painters such as Gianbattista Tiepolo or Michelangelo. This technique had, in reduced form, the advantages of a secco work.

MATERIAL

In Greco-Roman times, mostly encaustic colors applied in a cold state were used.

Tempera painting is one of the oldest known methods in mural painting. In tempera, the pigments are bound in an albuminous medium such as egg yolk or egg white diluted in water.

In 16th-century Europe, oil painting on canvas arose as an easier method for mural painting. The advantage was that the artwork could be completed in the artist’s studio and later transported to its destination and there attached to the wall or ceiling. Oil paint can be said to be the least satisfactory medium for murals because of its lack of brilliance in colour. Also the pigments are yellowed by the binder or are more easily affected by atmospheric conditions. The canvas itself is more subject to rapid deterioration than a plaster ground. Different muralists tend to become experts in their preferred medium and application, whether that be oil paints, emulsion or acrylic paints applied by brush, roller or airbrush/aerosols. Clients will often ask for a particular style and the artist may adjust to the appropriate technique.

A consultation usually leads to a detailed design and layout of the proposed mural with a price quote that the client approves before the muralist starts on the work. The area to be painted can be gridded to match the design allowing the image to be scaled accurately step by step. In some cases the design is projected straight onto the wall and traced with pencil before painting begins. Some muralists will paint directly without any prior sketching, preferring the spontaneous technique.

Once completed the mural can be given coats of varnish or protective acrylic glaze to protect the work from UV rays and surface damage.

As an alternative to a hand-painted or airbrushed mural, digitally printed murals can also be applied to surfaces. Already existing murals can be photographed and then be reproduced in near-to-original quality.

The disadvantages of pre-fabricated murals and decals are that they are often mass-produced and lack the allure and exclusivity of an original artwork. They are often not fitted to the individual wall sizes of the client and their personal ideas or wishes can not be added to the mural as it progresses. The Frescography technique, a digital manufacturing method (CAM) invented by Rainer Maria Latzke addresses some of the personalisation and size restrictions.

Digital techniques are commonly used in advertisements. A "wallscape" is a large advertisement on or attached to the outside wall of a building. Wallscapes can be painted directly on the wall as a mural, or printed on vinyl and securely attached to the wall in the manner of a billboard. Although not strictly classed as murals, large scale printed media are often referred to as such. Advertising murals were traditionally painted onto buildings and shops by sign-writers, later as large scale poster billboards.

SIGNIFICANCE OF MURALS

Murals are important in that they bring art into the public sphere. Due to the size, cost, and work involved in creating a mural, muralists must often be commissioned by a sponsor. Often it is the local government or a business, but many murals have been paid for with grants of patronage. For artists, their work gets a wide audience who otherwise might not set foot in an art gallery. A city benefits by the beauty of a work of art.

Murals can be a relatively effective tool of social emancipation or achieving a political goal. Murals have sometimes been created against the law, or have been commissioned by local bars and coffeeshops. Often, the visual effects are an enticement to attract public attention to social issues. State-sponsored public art expressions, particularly murals, are often used by totalitarian regimes as a tool of mass-control and propaganda. However, despite the propagandist character of that works, some of them still have an artistic value.

Murals can have a dramatic impact whether consciously or subconsciously on the attitudes of passers by, when they are added to areas where people live and work. It can also be argued that the presence of large, public murals can add aesthetic improvement to the daily lives of residents or that of employees at a corporate venue.

Other world-famous murals can be found in Mexico, New York, Philadelphia, Belfast, Derry, Los Angeles, Nicaragua, Cuba and in India. They have functioned as an important means of communication for members of socially, ethnically and racially divided communities in times of conflict. They also proved to be an effective tool in establishing a dialogue and hence solving the cleavage in the long run. The Indian state Kerala has exclusive murals. These Kerala mural painting are on walls of Hindu temples. They can be dated from 9th century AD.

The San Bartolo murals of the Maya civilization in Guatemala, are the oldest example of this art in Mesoamerica and are dated at 300 BC.

Many rural towns have begun using murals to create tourist attractions in order to boost economic income. Colquitt, Georgia is one such town. Colquitt was chosen to host the 2010 Global Mural Conference. The town has more than twelve murals completed, and will host the Conference along with Dothan, Alabama, and Blakely, Georgia. In the summer of 2010, Colquitt will begin work on their Icon Mural.

Given the PSE 13 treatment

Given its beautiful but highly venomous spines, the Lionfish need not worry about other predators on the reef. They all avoid it. And that leaves this invasive species -- one with a voracious appetite -- free to kill off populations of native reef fish throughout the Caribbean and the east-coast Atlantic waters of the U.S.

Given the extent of the undergrowth this well-worn stone staircase gets much less footfall than it used to. This is the path running down from Crackenedge Lane to Wood Lane and then onto Bradford Road. No doubt once used by workers living in the terraces on top to get to work in the mills in town.

However it did have another function, long-gone, because Wood Lane, after crossing the the ex-LNWR 1848 main line to Huddersfield and Manchester south of Batley, was the access road to the former Great Northern Railway Batley Carr station opened in 1880 and closed in 1950 (See below).

North Toraja (or Toraja Utara) is a regency (kabupaten) of South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and the home of the Toraja ethnic group. The local government seat is in Rantepao which is also the center of Toraja culture. Formerly this regency was part of Tana Toraja Regency.

The Tana Toraja boundary was determined by the Dutch East Indies government in 1909. In 1926, Tana Toraja was under the administration of Bugis state, Luwu. The regentschap (or regency) status was given on October 8, 1946, the last regency given by the Dutch. Since 1984, Tana Toraja has been named as the second tourist destination after Bali by the Ministry of Tourism, Indonesia. Since then, hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors have visited this regency. In addition, numerous Western anthropologists have come to Tana Toraja to study the indigenous culture and people of Toraja.

GEOGRAPHY

Tana Toraja is located on the Sulawesi island, 300 km north of Makassar, the provincial capital of South Sulawesi. Its geographical location is between latitude of 2°-3° South and longitude 119°-120° East (center: 3°S 120°ECoordinates: 3°S 120°E). The area of the new North Toraja Regency is 1,151.47 km², about 2.5% of the total area of South Sulawesi province. The topography of Tana Toraja is mountainous; its minimum elevation is 150 m, while the maximum is 3,083 above the sea level.

Tana Toraja Regency (Indonesian for Torajaland or Land of the Toraja, abbreviated Tator) is a regency (kabupaten) of South Sulawesi Province of Indonesia, and home to the Toraja ethnic group. The local government seat is in Makale, while the center of Toraja culture is in Rantepao. But now, Tana Toraja has been divided to two regencies that consist of Tana Toraja with its capital at Makale and North toraja with its capital at Rantepao.

The Tana Toraja boundary was determined by the Dutch East Indies government in 1909. In 1926, Tana Toraja was under the administration of Bugis state, Luwu. The regentschap (or regency) status was given on 8 October 1946, the last regency given by the Dutch. Since 1984, Tana Toraja has been named as the second tourist destination after Bali by the Ministry of Tourism, Indonesia. Since then, hundreds of thousands of foreign visitors have visited this regency. In addition, numerous Western anthropologists have come to Tana Toraja to study the indigenous culture and people of Toraja.

GEOGRAPHY

Tana Toraja is centrally placed in the island of Sulawesi, 300 km north of Makassar, the provincial capital of South Sulawesi. It lies between latitude of 2°-3° South and longitude 119°-120° East (center: 3°S 120°ECoordinates: 3°S 120°E). The total area (since the separation of the new regency of North Toraja) is 2,054.30 km², about 4.4% of the total area of South Sulawesi province. The topography of Tana Toraja is mountainous; its minimum elevation is 150 m, while the maximum is 3,083 above the sea level.

ADMINISTRATION

Tana Toraja Regency in 2010 comprised nineteen administrative Districts (Kecamatan), tabulated below with their 2010 Census population.

The Torajans are an ethnic group indigenous to a mountainous region of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Their population is approximately 1,100,000, of whom 450,000 live in the regency of Tana Toraja ("Land of Toraja").[1] Most of the population is Christian, and others are Muslim or have local animist beliefs known as aluk ("the way"). The Indonesian government has recognised this animistic belief as Aluk To Dolo ("Way of the Ancestors").

The word Toraja comes from the Buginese language term to riaja, meaning "people of the uplands". The Dutch colonial government named the people Toraja in 1909. Torajans are renowned for their elaborate funeral rites, burial sites carved into rocky cliffs, massive peaked-roof traditional houses known as tongkonan, and colourful wood carvings. Toraja funeral rites are important social events, usually attended by hundreds of people and lasting for several days.

Before the 20th century, Torajans lived in autonomous villages, where they practised animism and were relatively untouched by the outside world. In the early 1900s, Dutch missionaries first worked to convert Torajan highlanders to Christianity. When the Tana Toraja regency was further opened to the outside world in the 1970s, it became an icon of tourism in Indonesia: it was exploited by tourism development and studied by anthropologists. By the 1990s, when tourism peaked, Toraja society had changed significantly, from an agrarian model—in which social life and customs were outgrowths of the Aluk To Dolo—to a largely Christian society. Today, tourism and remittances from migrant Torajans have made for major changes in the Toraja highland, giving the Toraja a celebrity status within Indonesia and enhancing Toraja ethnic group pride.

ETHNIC IDENTITY

The Torajan people had little notion of themselves as a distinct ethnic group before the 20th century. Before Dutch colonisation and Christianisation, Torajans, who lived in highland areas, identified with their villages and did not share a broad sense of identity. Although complexes of rituals created linkages between highland villages, there were variations in dialects, differences in social hierarchies, and an array of ritual practices in the Sulawesi highland region. "Toraja" (from the coastal languages' to, meaning people; and riaja, uplands) was first used as a lowlander expression for highlanders. As a result, "Toraja" initially had more currency with outsiders—such as the Bugis and Makassarese, who constitute a majority of the lowland of Sulawesi—than with insiders. The Dutch missionaries' presence in the highlands gave rise to the Toraja ethnic consciousness in the Sa'dan Toraja region, and this shared identity grew with the rise of tourism in the Tana Toraja Regency. Since then, South Sulawesi has four main ethnic groups—the Bugis (the majority, including shipbuilders and seafarers), the Makassarese (lowland traders and seafarers), the Mandarese (traders and fishermen), and the Toraja (highland rice cultivators).

HISTORY

From the 17th century, the Dutch established trade and political control on Sulawesi through the Dutch East Indies Company. Over two centuries, they ignored the mountainous area in the central Sulawesi, where Torajans lived, because access was difficult and it had little productive agricultural land. In the late 19th century, the Dutch became increasingly concerned about the spread of Islam in the south of Sulawesi, especially among the Makassarese and Bugis peoples. The Dutch saw the animist highlanders as potential Christians. In the 1920s, the Reformed Missionary Alliance of the Dutch Reformed Church began missionary work aided by the Dutch colonial government. In addition to introducing Christianity, the Dutch abolished slavery and imposed local taxes. A line was drawn around the Sa'dan area and called Tana Toraja ("the land of Toraja"). Tana Toraja was first a subdivision of the Luwu kingdom that had claimed the area. In 1946, the Dutch granted Tana Toraja a regentschap, and it was recognised in 1957 as one of the regencies of Indonesia.

Early Dutch missionaries faced strong opposition among Torajans, especially among the elite, because the abolition of their profitable slave trade had angered them. Some Torajans were forcibly relocated to the lowlands by the Dutch, where they could be more easily controlled. Taxes were kept high, undermining the wealth of the elites. Ultimately, the Dutch influence did not subdue Torajan culture, and only a few Torajans were converted. In 1950, only 10% of the population had converted to Christianity.

In the 1930s, Muslim lowlanders attacked the Torajans, resulting in widespread Christian conversion among those who sought to align themselves with the Dutch for political protection and to form a movement against the Bugis and Makassarese Muslims. Between 1951 and 1965 (following Indonesian independence), southern Sulawesi faced a turbulent period as the Darul Islam separatist movement fought for an Islamic state in Sulawesi. The 15 years of guerrilla warfare led to massive conversions to Christianity.

Alignment with the Indonesian government, however, did not guarantee safety for the Torajans. In 1965, a presidential decree required every Indonesian citizen to belong to one of five officially recognised religions: Islam, Christianity (Protestantism and Catholicism), Hinduism, or Buddhism. The Torajan religious belief (aluk) was not legally recognised, and the Torajans raised their voices against the law. To make aluk accord with the law, it had to be accepted as part of one of the official religions. In 1969, Aluk To Dolo ("the way of ancestors") was legalised as a sect of Agama Hindu Dharma, the official name of Hinduism in Indonesia.

SOCIETY

There are three main types of affiliation in Toraja society: family, class and religion.

FAMILY AFFILIATION

Family is the primary social and political grouping in Torajan society. Each village is one extended family, the seat of which is the tongkonan, a traditional Torajan house. Each tongkonan has a name, which becomes the name of the village. The familial dons maintain village unity. Marriage between distant cousins (fourth cousins and beyond) is a common practice that strengthens kinship. Toraja society prohibits marriage between close cousins (up to and including the third cousin)—except for nobles, to prevent the dispersal of property. Kinship is actively reciprocal, meaning that the extended family helps each other farm, share buffalo rituals, and pay off debts.

Each person belongs to both the mother's and the father's families, the only bilateral family line in Indonesia. Children, therefore, inherit household affiliation from both mother and father, including land and even family debts. Children's names are given on the basis of kinship, and are usually chosen after dead relatives. Names of aunts, uncles and cousins are commonly referred to in the names of mothers, fathers and siblings.

Before the start of the formal administration of Toraja villages by the Tana Toraja Regency, each Toraja village was autonomous. In a more complex situation, in which one Toraja family could not handle their problems alone, several villages formed a group; sometimes, villages would unite against other villages. Relationship between families was expressed through blood, marriage, and shared ancestral houses (tongkonan), practically signed by the exchange of water buffalo and pigs on ritual occasions. Such exchanges not only built political and cultural ties between families but defined each person's place in a social hierarchy: who poured palm wine, who wrapped a corpse and prepared offerings, where each person could or could not sit, what dishes should be used or avoided, and even what piece of meat constituted one's share.

CLASS AFFILIATION

In early Toraja society, family relationships were tied closely to social class. There were three strata: nobles, commoners, and slaves (slavery was abolished in 1909 by the Dutch East Indies government). Class was inherited through the mother. It was taboo, therefore, to marry "down" with a woman of lower class. On the other hand, marrying a woman of higher class could improve the status of the next generation. The nobility's condescending attitude toward the commoners is still maintained today for reasons of family prestige.

Nobles, who were believed to be direct descendants of the descended person from heaven, lived in tongkonans, while commoners lived in less lavish houses (bamboo shacks called banua). Slaves lived in small huts, which had to be built around their owner's tongkonan. Commoners might marry anyone, but nobles preferred to marry in-family to maintain their status. Sometimes nobles married Bugis or Makassarese nobles. Commoners and slaves were prohibited from having death feasts. Despite close kinship and status inheritance, there was some social mobility, as marriage or change in wealth could affect an individuals status. Wealth was counted by the ownership of water buffaloes.

Slaves in Toraja society were family property. Sometimes Torajans decided to become slaves when they incurred a debt, pledging to work as payment. Slaves could be taken during wars, and slave trading was common. Slaves could buy their freedom, but their children still inherited slave status. Slaves were prohibited from wearing bronze or gold, carving their houses, eating from the same dishes as their owners, or having sex with free women—a crime punishable by death.

RELIGIOUS AFFILATION

Toraja's indigenous belief system is polytheistic animism, called aluk, or "the way" (sometimes translated as "the law"). In the Toraja myth, the ancestors of Torajan people came down from heaven using stairs, which were then used by the Torajans as a communication medium with Puang Matua, the Creator. The cosmos, according to aluk, is divided into the upper world (heaven), the world of man (earth), and the underworld. At first, heaven and earth were married, then there was a darkness, a separation, and finally the light. Animals live in the underworld, which is represented by rectangular space enclosed by pillars, the earth is for mankind, and the heaven world is located above, covered with a saddle-shaped roof. Other Toraja gods include Pong Banggai di Rante (god of Earth), Indo' Ongon-Ongon (a goddess who can cause earthquakes), Pong Lalondong (god of death), and Indo' Belo Tumbang (goddess of medicine); there are many more.

The earthly authority, whose words and actions should be cleaved to both in life (agriculture) and death (funerals), is called to minaa (an aluk priest). Aluk is not just a belief system; it is a combination of law, religion, and habit. Aluk governs social life, agricultural practices, and ancestral rituals. The details of aluk may vary from one village to another. One common law is the requirement that death and life rituals be separated. Torajans believe that performing death rituals might ruin their corpses if combined with life rituals. The two rituals are equally important. During the time of the Dutch missionaries, Christian Torajans were prohibited from attending or performing life rituals, but were allowed to perform death rituals. Consequently, Toraja's death rituals are still practised today, while life rituals have diminished.

CULTURE

TONGKONAN

Tongkonan are the traditional Torajan ancestral houses. They stand high on wooden piles, topped with a layered split-bamboo roof shaped in a sweeping curved arc, and they are incised with red, black, and yellow detailed wood carvings on the exterior walls. The word "tongkonan" comes from the Torajan tongkon ("to sit").

Tongkonan are the center of Torajan social life. The rituals associated with the tongkonan are important expressions of Torajan spiritual life, and therefore all family members are impelled to participate, because symbolically the tongkonan represents links to their ancestors and to living and future kin. According to Torajan myth, the first tongkonan was built in heaven on four poles, with a roof made of Indian cloth. When the first Torajan ancestor descended to earth, he imitated the house and held a large ceremony.

The construction of a tongkonan is laborious work and is usually done with the help of the extended family. There are three types of tongkonan. The tongkonan layuk is the house of the highest authority, used as the "center of government". The tongkonan pekamberan belongs to the family members who have some authority in local traditions. Ordinary family members reside in the tongkonan batu. The exclusivity to the nobility of the tongkonan is diminishing as many Torajan commoners find lucrative employment in other parts of Indonesia. As they send back money to their families, they enable the construction of larger tongkonan.

Architecture in the style of a tongkonan is still very common. Various administration buildings were built in this style in recent years, e.g. the Kecamatan building in Rantepao.

WOOD CARVINGS

To express social and religious concepts, Torajans carve wood, calling it Pa'ssura (or "the writing"). Wood carvings are therefore Toraja's cultural manifestation.

Each carving receives a special name, and common motifs are animals and plants that symbolise some virtue. For example, water plants and animals, such as crabs, tadpoles and water weeds, are commonly found to symbolise fertility. In some areas noble elders claim these symbols refer to strength of noble family, but not everyone agrees. The overall meaning of groups of carved motifs on houses remains debated and tourism has further complicated these debates because some feel a uniform explanation must be presented to tourists. Torajan wood carvings are composed of numerous square panels, each of which can represent various things, for example buffaloes as a wish of wealth for the family; a knot and a box, symbolizing the hope that all of the family's offspring will be happy and live in harmony; aquatic animals, indicating the need for fast and hard work, just like moving on the surface of water.

Regularity and order are common features in Toraja wood carving (see table below), as well as abstracts and geometrical designs. Nature is frequently used as the basis of Toraja's ornaments, because nature is full of abstractions and geometries with regularities and ordering. Toraja's ornaments have been studied in ethnomathematics to reveal their mathematical structure, but Torajans base this art only on approximations. To create an ornament, bamboo sticks are used as a geometrical tool.

FUNERAL RITES

In Toraja society, the funeral ritual is the most elaborate and expensive event. The richer and more powerful the individual, the more expensive is the funeral. In the aluk religion, only nobles have the right to have an extensive death feast. The death feast of a nobleman is usually attended by thousands and lasts for several days. A ceremonial site, called rante, is usually prepared in a large, grassy field where shelters for audiences, rice barns, and other ceremonial funeral structures are specially made by the deceased's family. Flute music, funeral chants, songs and poems, and crying and wailing are traditional Toraja expressions of grief with the exceptions of funerals for young children, and poor, low-status adults.

The ceremony is often held weeks, months, or years after the death so that the deceased's family can raise the significant funds needed to cover funeral expenses. Torajans traditionally believe that death is not a sudden, abrupt event, but a gradual process toward Puya (the land of souls, or afterlife). During the waiting period, the body of the deceased is wrapped in several layers of cloth and kept under the tongkonan. The soul of the deceased is thought to linger around the village until the funeral ceremony is completed, after which it begins its journey to Puya.

Another component of the ritual is the slaughter of water buffalo. The more powerful the person who died, the more buffalo are slaughtered at the death feast. Buffalo carcasses, including their heads, are usually lined up on a field waiting for their owner, who is in the "sleeping stage". Torajans believe that the deceased will need the buffalo to make the journey and that they will be quicker to arrive at Puya if they have many buffalo. Slaughtering tens of water buffalo and hundreds of pigs using a machete is the climax of the elaborate death feast, with dancing and music and young boys who catch spurting blood in long bamboo tubes. Some of the slaughtered animals are given by guests as "gifts", which are carefully noted because they will be considered debts of the deceased's family. However, a cockfight, known as bulangan londong, is an integral part of the ceremony. As with the sacrifice of the buffalo and the pigs, the cockfight is considered sacred because it involves the spilling of blood on the earth. In particular, the tradition requires the sacrifice of at least three chickens. However, it is common for at least 25 pairs of chickens to be set against each other in the context of the ceremony.

There are three methods of burial: the coffin may be laid in a cave or in a carved stone grave, or hung on a cliff. It contains any possessions that the deceased will need in the afterlife. The wealthy are often buried in a stone grave carved out of a rocky cliff. The grave is usually expensive and takes a few months to complete. In some areas, a stone cave may be found that is large enough to accommodate a whole family. A wood-carved effigy, called Tau tau, is usually placed in the cave looking out over the land. The coffin of a baby or child may be hung from ropes on a cliff face or from a tree. This hanging grave usually lasts for years, until the ropes rot and the coffin falls to the ground.

In the ritual called Ma'Nene, that takes place each year in August, the bodies of the deceased are exhumed to be washed, groomed and dressed in new clothes. The mummies are then walked around the village.

DANNCE AND MUSIC

Torajans perform dances on several occasions, most often during their elaborate funeral ceremonies. They dance to express their grief, and to honour and even cheer the deceased person because he is going to have a long journey in the afterlife. First, a group of men form a circle and sing a monotonous chant throughout the night to honour the deceased (a ritual called Ma'badong). This is considered by many Torajans to be the most important component of the funeral ceremony. On the second funeral day, the Ma'randing warrior dance is performed to praise the courage of the deceased during life. Several men perform the dance with a sword, a large shield made from buffalo skin, a helmet with a buffalo horn, and other ornamentation. The Ma'randing dance precedes a procession in which the deceased is carried from a rice barn to the rante, the site of the funeral ceremony. During the funeral, elder women perform the Ma'katia dance while singing a poetic song and wearing a long feathered costume. The Ma'akatia dance is performed to remind the audience of the generosity and loyalty of the deceased person. After the bloody ceremony of buffalo and pig slaughter, a group of boys and girls clap their hands while performing a cheerful dance called Ma'dondan.

As in other agricultural societies, Torajans dance and sing during harvest time. The Ma'bugi dance celebrates the thanksgiving event, and the Ma'gandangi dance is performed while Torajans are pounding rice. There are several war dances, such as the Manimbong dance performed by men, followed by the Ma'dandan dance performed by women. The aluk religion governs when and how Torajans dance. A dance called Ma'bua can be performed only once every 12 years. Ma'bua is a major Toraja ceremony in which priests wear a buffalo head and dance around a sacred tree.

A traditional musical instrument of the Toraja is a bamboo flute called a Pa'suling (suling is an Indonesian word for flute). This six-holed flute (not unique to the Toraja) is played at many dances, such as the thanksgiving dance Ma'bondensan, where the flute accompanies a group of shirtless, dancing men with long fingernails. The Toraja have indigenous musical instruments, such as the Pa'pelle (made from palm leaves) and the Pa'karombi (the Torajan version of a jaw harp). The Pa'pelle is played during harvest time and at house inauguration ceremonies.

COGENDER VIEWS

Among the Saʼadan (eastern Toraja) in the island of Sulawesi (Celebes), Indonesia, there are homosexual male toburake tambolang shamans; although among their neighbors the Mamasa (western Toraja) there are instead only heterosexual female toburake shamanesses.

LANGUAGE

The ethnic Toraja language is dominant in Tana Toraja with the main language as the Sa'dan Toraja. Although the national Indonesian language is the official language and is spoken in the community, all elementary schools in Tana Toraja teach Toraja language.

Language varieties of Toraja, including Kalumpang, Mamasa, Tae, Talondo, Toala, and Toraja-Sa'dan, belong to the Malayo-Polynesian language from the Austronesian family. At the outset, the isolated geographical nature of Tana Toraja formed many dialects between the Toraja languages themselves. After the formal administration of Tana Toraja, some Toraja dialects have been influenced by other languages through the transmigration program, introduced since the colonialism period, and it has been a major factor in the linguistic variety of Toraja languages.

A prominent attribute of Toraja language is the notion of grief. The importance of death ceremony in Toraja culture has characterised their languages to express intricate degrees of grief and mourning. The Toraja language contains many terms referring to sadness, longing, depression, and mental pain. Giving a clear expression of the psychological and physical effect of loss is a catharsis and sometimes lessens the pain of grief itself.

ECONOMY

Prior to Suharto's "New Order" administration, the Torajan economy was based on agriculture, with cultivated wet rice in terraced fields on mountain slopes, and supplemental cassava and maize crops. Much time and energy were devoted to raising water buffalo, pigs, and chickens, primarily for ceremonial sacrifices and consumption. Coffee was the first significant cash crop produced in Toraja, and was introduced in the mid 19th century, changing the local economy towards commodity production for external markets and gaining an excellent reputation for quality in the international market.

With the commencement of the New Order in 1965, Indonesia's economy developed and opened to foreign investment. In Toraja, a coffee plantation and factory was established by Key Coffee of Japan, and Torajan coffee regained a reputation for quality within the growing international specialty coffee sector Multinational oil and mining companies opened new operations in Indonesia during the 1970s and 1980s. Torajans, particularly younger ones, relocated to work for the foreign companies—to Kalimantan for timber and oil, to Papua for mining, to the cities of Sulawesi and Java, and many went to Malaysia. The out-migration of Torajans was steady until 1985. and has continued since, with remittances sent back by emigre Torajans performing an important role within the contemporary economy.

Tourism commenced in Toraja in the 1970s, and accelerated in the 1980s and 1990s. Between 1984 and 1997, a significant number of Torajans obtained their incomes from tourism, working in and owning hotels, as tour guides, drivers, or selling souvenirs. With the rise of political and economic instability in Indonesia in the late 1990s—including religious conflicts elsewhere on Sulawesi—tourism in Tana Toraja has declined dramatically. Toraja continues to be a well known origin for Indonesian coffee, grown by both smallholders and plantation estates, although migration, remittances and off-farm income is considered far more important to most households, even those in rural areas.

TOURISM AND CULTURAL CHANGE

Before the 1970s, Toraja was almost unknown to Western tourism. In 1971, about 50 Europeans visited Tana Toraja. In 1972, at least 400 visitors attended the funeral ritual of Puang of Sangalla, the highest-ranking nobleman in Tana Toraja and the so-called "last pure-blooded Toraja noble." The event was documented by National Geographic and broadcast in several European countries. In 1976, about 12,000 tourists visited the regency and in 1981, Torajan sculpture was exhibited in major North American museums. "The land of the heavenly kings of Tana Toraja", as written in the exhibition brochure, embraced the outside world.

In 1984, the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism declared Tana Toraja Regency the prima donna of South Sulawesi. Tana Toraja was heralded as "the second stop after Bali". Tourism was increasing dramatically: by 1985, a total number of 150,000 foreigners had visited the Regency (in addition to 80,000 domestic tourists), and the annual number of foreign visitors was recorded at 40,000 in 1989. Souvenir stands appeared in Rantepao, the cultural center of Toraja, roads were sealed at the most-visited tourist sites, new hotels and tourist-oriented restaurants were opened, and an airstrip was opened in the Regency in 1981.

Tourism developers have marketed Tana Toraja as an exotic adventure—an area rich in culture and off the beaten track. Western tourists expected to see stone-age villages and pagan funerals. Toraja is for tourists who have gone as far as Bali and are willing to see more of the wild, "untouched" islands. However, they were more likely to see a Torajan wearing a hat and denim, living in a Christian society. Tourists felt that the tongkonan and other Torajan rituals had been preconceived to make profits, and complained that the destination was too commercialised. This has resulted in several clashes between Torajans and tourism developers, whom Torajans see as outsiders.

A clash between local Torajan leaders and the South Sulawesi provincial government (as a tourist developer) broke out in 1985. The government designated 18 Toraja villages and burial sites as traditional tourist attractions. Consequently, zoning restrictions were applied to these areas, such that Torajans themselves were barred from changing their tongkonans and burial sites. The plan was opposed by some Torajan leaders, as they felt that their rituals and traditions were being determined by outsiders. As a result, in 1987, the Torajan village of Kété Kesú and several other designated tourist attractions closed their doors to tourists. This closure lasted only a few days, as the villagers found it too difficult to survive without the income from selling souvenirs.

Tourism has also transformed Toraja society. Originally, there was a ritual which allowed commoners to marry nobles (puang) and thereby gain nobility for their children. However, the image of Torajan society created for the tourists, often by "lower-ranking" guides, has eroded its traditional strict hierarchy. High status is not as esteemed in Tana Toraja as it once was. Many low-ranking men can declare themselves and their children nobles by gaining enough wealth through work outside the region and then marrying a noble woman.

WIKIPEDIA

given the focal length, the landscape, and the fact that we obviously was in a moving, just, I might add, vehicle, if it hadn`t been for that I caught a glimpse of her white tail-tip, never in a thousand years would I`ve spotted her in the vegetation of this dry riverbed. These are masters of their environment! This young, just independent, leopardess was stalking some female nyalas, with no luck that time sadly..

The east window is a Jesse window commemorating the direct descent of Christ from David through Jesse to Joseph. In the Bible 42 names of the genealogies are given in St. Matthew's gospel, it is possible that all were originally placed in windows round the church.

This window shows 25 figures in random order, including David with harp, Abraham and Joseph.

It is likely to have been made by John Prudde, the King's Glazier, around 1460. Prudde was also responsible for work at Westminster and Shene Palaces in 1442 and c.1445, Eton College (1445–50), All Souls’ College Oxford (1441), and Fromond’s Chantry in Winchester College (1443–4).

The representation of a Jesse tree shows a symbolic tree or vine with spreading branches to represent the genealogies in accordance with Isaiah's prophecy.

Jesse is shown reclining at the base of the window and from him springs the trunk of a tree or vine which ascends, ratcheting either side. On the branches, usually surrounded by scrolling tendrils of foliage, are figures representing the ancestors of Christ. The trunk ascends vertically to Mary and Christ at the top.

Underneath to the left is Jacob and Joseph, and to the right on the same level Abiud and Zorobabel, lower down is Zadok and Nathan, David and Solomon, Obed and Nasson and Abraham and Methusela plus others, some of which are depicted in stained glass at Canterbury.

The magnificent keep at Conisbrough Castle is one of South Yorkshire’s most striking landmarks. The castle was the centre of a great Norman lordship, given by William the Conqueror to William de Warenne. The keep was probably built in the 1170s or 1180s. Escaping damage in the Civil War, it became a picturesque ruin in the 18th and 19th centuries, and inspired Sir Walter Scott's most famous novel, Ivanhoe, published in 1819.

With floors and roof restored in the lofty circular keep you can fully appreciate the magnificence of the original 12th century building. Delve into the medieval world of Lord and Lady de Warenne. Hamelin was the illegitimate son of Geoffrey of Anjou (father of the Plantagenet dynasty) and half-brother of Henry II. Isabel was the 4th Countess of Surrey, and the wealthiest heiress in the land.

‘Conisbrough’ comes from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘Cyningesburh’, meaning ‘the king’s borough’. Little is known of the site before the Norman Conquest, but Conisbrough town was certainly important long before then: a major Anglian church, now the church of St Peter, stood here, probably as early as the 8th century, and is the oldest standing building in South Yorkshire.

Conisbrough may have been a royal estate and minster of the Anglian kings of Northumbria: throughout the Anglo-Saxon and Viking periods, it seems to have been the most important place in South Yorkshire.

In 1086 Domesday Book recorded that the estate included 28 townships, stretching east to the Lincolnshire border and south to Harthill, and so covering most of the south-east corner of the West Riding. Before the Norman Conquest the estates were in the hands of King Harold. www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/conisbrough-castle/

From the handout given at the park:

O’Leno State Park and River Rise Preserve State Park Fact Sheet

•Together the parks number 6212 acres. 4,500 in River Rise Preserve and the remainder in the older O’Leno State Park.

•There are 18 different natural communities within the parks boundaries.

•Both parks contain the 3 mile “natural bridge” where the Santa Fe River flows into the sink and returns to the surface at the rise.

•Hernando De Soto traveled through these parks in 1539 while exploring the interior of Florida. Here he met members of local Timucan speaking tribes the Utina and Potano.

•The Park occupies property in both Alachua and Columbia Counties.

•We have 55 listed Cultural sites on park property.

•There are 19 miles of equestrian trails at River Rise Preserve State Park. With a 20 horse stall barn and primitive campsites.

•There are 61 family campsites with water and electric. Two primitive Youth Camps for 25 people apiece and one up to 10 person “hike in/hike out” primitive campsite.

•A town existed here first called Keno and later Ken that lasted from the 1840’s until the mid 1890’s. Hence the origin of the park’s name “Old Leno” becoming O’Leno.

•1935-36 the Civilian Conservation Corps Company 418 Camp P-67 constructed Camp O’Leno to be used as a park/forestry training area. Some of the CCC buildings are still being used today by the park.

•The camp became a park in 1940, and is one of the older state parks. River Rise was purchased as a Preserve in 1974.

•Florida’s First Federal Roadway, the Bellamy Road traveled through the park in the 1820’s. It originated from an earlier Indian trail and later the Camino Real which connected missions in the interior of Florida with St Augustine.

•There are 6 miles of hiking trails.

•There are 17 cabins and 8 support buildings in our Group Camp.

•Both parks receive about 65,000 visitors annually that spend over 2 million dollars annually in the local economy. 67 local jobs are generated because of the parks.

•The park creates over $230,000 in local sales tax revenue.

History of O’Leno State Park

O’Leno State Park occupies an historic crossroads area, unique compared to all of north Florida. The Santa Fe River along with its geologically unique disappearance into the ground and aquifer (River Sink) and its reappearance 3 miles to the south (River Rise) creating a natural land bridge, has the first basis of this land being a crossroads. Before the Spanish arrived in the 1500’s, Native Indian presence and villages were abundant in north Florida. Villages were close by. Research has also shown that the Santa Fe River was a boundary line between the Utina and Potano tribes of the Timucua Indians.

The first European to pass through the area was the Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto in 1539. In the Spanish mission period of the 1600’s, the Spanish used the Indian trail for their road running from St. Augustine, through the Santa Fe land bridge, to Tallahassee and Pensacola, calling it the El Camino Real.

About two hundred years later, when Florida was a U.S. territory, the federal government contracted with John Bellamy, a plantation owner, in 1824 to build the first federally-funded major road from St. Augustine to Tallahassee. This road followed the El Camino Real and also passed through the Santa Fe land bridge. This road became known as the Bellamy Road, now referred to today as the Old Bellamy Road.

Just a quarter mile of the River Sink and 2 miles north of the Old Bellamy Road was a fitting place for a town. A town was established on the west bank of the river in 1840 by a man named Henry Matier. The town as “Keno,” a popular bingo-type gambling game in those days. Later, in 1876, the General Store manager, Col. Whetstone, applied for a post office from the U.S. government. It is reported that the request was denied due to the name of the town being associated with gambling. Therefore, the town’s name was changed to Leno, and a post office was granted. Several years later, Col. Whetstone moved the post office to his seat of residence in Mikesville, three miles to the north.

In the latter 1800’s the town of Keno/Leno grew by the hard work defeating the odds of nature, establishing grist mills, saw mills, and cotton gins along the river by first creating a couple dams and channeling the river into the shoots, where the mills were strategically built. The dams were created by embedding cedar slats across the river, backed by barriers of large rocks to direct the river flow. Remnants of these dams, mill sites, and cedar slats and shoots can be seen today when the river is down low. Due to the grinding capability from the two grist mills and six cotton gins and circular saw mill, Leno became and agricultural hub for the area.

In the days of Keno/Leno, criss-crossing the Bellamy Road was the north-south “Alligator Road,” passing Keno/Leno, and heading north up to the city of Alligator, now Lake City. When the town heard in 1894 of a railroad coming through the area, they were hopeful. But the train bypassed Leno, going to Fort White instead. This struck a major blow to the town, and many of the residents moved to neighboring communities. A major freeze then occurred in 1896 killing the major crops in that day, oranges, cotton, and tobacco, which sealed a final blow to the once thriving town of Leno.

27/08/2020. Ladies European Tour 2020. Tipsport Czech Ladies Open. Golf Club Beroun, Czech Republic. August 20-30 2020 Eleanor Givens of England during a practice round. Credit: Tristan Jones.

From the handout given at the park:

O’Leno State Park and River Rise Preserve State Park Fact Sheet

•Together the parks number 6212 acres. 4,500 in River Rise Preserve and the remainder in the older O’Leno State Park.

•There are 18 different natural communities within the parks boundaries.

•Both parks contain the 3 mile “natural bridge” where the Santa Fe River flows into the sink and returns to the surface at the rise.

•Hernando De Soto traveled through these parks in 1539 while exploring the interior of Florida. Here he met members of local Timucan speaking tribes the Utina and Potano.

•The Park occupies property in both Alachua and Columbia Counties.

•We have 55 listed Cultural sites on park property.

•There are 19 miles of equestrian trails at River Rise Preserve State Park. With a 20 horse stall barn and primitive campsites.

•There are 61 family campsites with water and electric. Two primitive Youth Camps for 25 people apiece and one up to 10 person “hike in/hike out” primitive campsite.

•A town existed here first called Keno and later Ken that lasted from the 1840’s until the mid 1890’s. Hence the origin of the park’s name “Old Leno” becoming O’Leno.

•1935-36 the Civilian Conservation Corps Company 418 Camp P-67 constructed Camp O’Leno to be used as a park/forestry training area. Some of the CCC buildings are still being used today by the park.

•The camp became a park in 1940, and is one of the older state parks. River Rise was purchased as a Preserve in 1974.

•Florida’s First Federal Roadway, the Bellamy Road traveled through the park in the 1820’s. It originated from an earlier Indian trail and later the Camino Real which connected missions in the interior of Florida with St Augustine.

•There are 6 miles of hiking trails.

•There are 17 cabins and 8 support buildings in our Group Camp.

•Both parks receive about 65,000 visitors annually that spend over 2 million dollars annually in the local economy. 67 local jobs are generated because of the parks.

•The park creates over $230,000 in local sales tax revenue.

History of O’Leno State Park

O’Leno State Park occupies an historic crossroads area, unique compared to all of north Florida. The Santa Fe River along with its geologically unique disappearance into the ground and aquifer (River Sink) and its reappearance 3 miles to the south (River Rise) creating a natural land bridge, has the first basis of this land being a crossroads. Before the Spanish arrived in the 1500’s, Native Indian presence and villages were abundant in north Florida. Villages were close by. Research has also shown that the Santa Fe River was a boundary line between the Utina and Potano tribes of the Timucua Indians.

The first European to pass through the area was the Spanish explorer Hernando De Soto in 1539. In the Spanish mission period of the 1600’s, the Spanish used the Indian trail for their road running from St. Augustine, through the Santa Fe land bridge, to Tallahassee and Pensacola, calling it the El Camino Real.

About two hundred years later, when Florida was a U.S. territory, the federal government contracted with John Bellamy, a plantation owner, in 1824 to build the first federally-funded major road from St. Augustine to Tallahassee. This road followed the El Camino Real and also passed through the Santa Fe land bridge. This road became known as the Bellamy Road, now referred to today as the Old Bellamy Road.

Just a quarter mile of the River Sink and 2 miles north of the Old Bellamy Road was a fitting place for a town. A town was established on the west bank of the river in 1840 by a man named Henry Matier. The town as “Keno,” a popular bingo-type gambling game in those days. Later, in 1876, the General Store manager, Col. Whetstone, applied for a post office from the U.S. government. It is reported that the request was denied due to the name of the town being associated with gambling. Therefore, the town’s name was changed to Leno, and a post office was granted. Several years later, Col. Whetstone moved the post office to his seat of residence in Mikesville, three miles to the north.

In the latter 1800’s the town of Keno/Leno grew by the hard work defeating the odds of nature, establishing grist mills, saw mills, and cotton gins along the river by first creating a couple dams and channeling the river into the shoots, where the mills were strategically built. The dams were created by embedding cedar slats across the river, backed by barriers of large rocks to direct the river flow. Remnants of these dams, mill sites, and cedar slats and shoots can be seen today when the river is down low. Due to the grinding capability from the two grist mills and six cotton gins and circular saw mill, Leno became and agricultural hub for the area.

In the days of Keno/Leno, criss-crossing the Bellamy Road was the north-south “Alligator Road,” passing Keno/Leno, and heading north up to the city of Alligator, now Lake City. When the town heard in 1894 of a railroad coming through the area, they were hopeful. But the train bypassed Leno, going to Fort White instead. This struck a major blow to the town, and many of the residents moved to neighboring communities. A major freeze then occurred in 1896 killing the major crops in that day, oranges, cotton, and tobacco, which sealed a final blow to the once thriving town of Leno.

This card was given to me in late 1986 by an ex-Royal. He went to Von Steuben in the mid 70s, so that's probably a good estimation for how old the card is. I don't know how long the Royals held sway at Pulaski-Peterson, but by the early 80s they had resettled themselves a block away at Keystone-Glenlake. This was a judicious move. At Pulaski-Peterson they did have the benefit of scoping out the chicks from the girls' high school that used to be on the corner, but the intersection proved to be too congested and noisy for gang members to operate. On the other hand, Keystone-Glenlake was the ideal refuge. Surrounded by wholesale companies and blue-collar businesses that closed by 5PM, it was the perfect shelter for the world-weary thug looking to get away from the pressures of daily gangbanging life. With no nearby rivals whatsoever to distract them, they could congregate by the railroad track and drink their beer and smoke their weed in almost total isolation. In fact, aside from a few visible streetside tags, it was almost impossible for anyone passing by on either Pulaski or Peterson to ever know they were there.

One of the more prominent KGst soldiers was Stone, who must have joined after this card was made. His prolific artwork could be found in the early to mid 80s along the train tracks in the manufacturing district that stretched all the way down to Bryn Mawr, as well as up around the old Zayre retail store on McCormick and Lincoln. (There was a 500-foot gangway between the Zayre and the postal office that was full of Royals' graffiti...and a lot of broken bottles too. Once in a while other Folk gangs like the IGs and SCs would come by and help the Royals with their "exterior decorating".)

As a result of all the Royals' activity, two satellite sections sprang up near KGst. One was a half mile down Pulaski at Brynford Park (BPRs). This was mainly just midgets with markers, and managed to last a year or two. The other was a half mile down Peterson at Central Park (PCPst). This offshoot was a little more successful, lasting from around 1984 to 1986. These Royals painted many black-and-blue masterpieces in the alleys on either side of Peterson, and usually hung out in Peterson Park.

By the early 1990s the original Royals had vacated Keystone-Glenlake. Although they are long gone and the neighborhood's been relatively quiet ever since, it's apparently still considered a violent and crime-ridden area because there's a "pig eye" right on the corner.

I remember I had asked the guy who gave me this card how he got into the gang, and he gave me a cryptic answer: "You gotta ask around."

The Marrabel Roman Catholic was built on land given by one of Marrabel’s first settlers, Mr Garrett Hannan.

There was already a temporary pine and pug Chapel. Tenders were called for in February 1867: by July the foundation stone was laid, and the church opened on 5 July 1868. Wright, Woods & Hamilton were the architects.

*The Very Rev John Smyth, VG, assisted by the Rev Joseph Tappeiner and the pastor of the district, laid on Sunday, 7th instant, the foundation stone of a Catholic Church, under the title of St Agnes the Martyr. Though the constant and heavy rains during the week had rendered the roads in many places almost impassable, and the day itself was unsettled and showery, yet no fewer than about 400 persons came to see laid the first stone of their church.

At 10 o'clock am the Rev Joseph Tappeiner celebrated mass, after which the priests and laity walked in procession from the small and unsightly building hitherto used as a chapel to the site of the new church.

The Vicar-General having laid the foundation stone, according to the Roman Ritual, preached an excellent sermon

The handsome sum of £84 14s 10d was then laid upon the stone. The building will be Gothic: the nave will measure 60 by 25 feet, besides chancel, sacristies, and porch. The plinth, quoins, and buttresses will be cut stone; and as the site is elevated, with a background of fine old gumtrees, the building will greatly contribute to the beauty of the young and rising township of Marrabel. [Ref: Express and Telegraph 11-7-1867]

Catholic Church, Marrabel,—

*The Very Rev John Smyth VG, assisted by the Rev Messrs Polk and Huger SJ, solemnly blessed and opened the Church of St Agnes, at Marrabel on Sunday, the 5th instant.

The very rev gentlemen preached an eloquent sermon on the occasion, and the handsome sum of £170 was received towards the liquidation of the debt, which is only a little over £400. When it is borne in mind that the building cost £1,000 independently of the stones, which were given and carted free of charge, the liberality of the congregation and friends will be more clearly understood. [Ref: Adelaide Observer from the Kapunda Herald 18-7-1868]

*The Rev Chas Van der Heyden – We are requested to inform our readers that this gentleman has removed from Riverton, and is now living in the new presbytery at Marrabel, recently erected by the Catholics of the district. [Ref: Irish Harp and Farmers’ Herald 12-3-1870]

*S. Agnes, Marrabel — A bazaar in aid of the church and new presbytery at Marrabel was held in S. Joseph's schoolroom on Wednesday, the 15th instant and following days. There was a large, effective and artistic display of useful and ornamental articles…praise is due to the ladies of the community for their enthusiastic zeal and persevering endeavours to make the Bazaar a success. [Ref: Irish Harp and Farmers’ Herald 25-3-1871]

*Presentations to Rev Michael Kennedy of Marrabel.

On Friday evening, April 30, many of the parishioners of the Mission of Marrabel met at Tothill's Creek to present an address and a purse of sovereigns to the Rev Michael Kennedy, in acknowledgment of the many services which had been done them by the rev gentleman during his long sojourn among them.

The residents of the parish of Marrabel, thought it our duty to assemble here this evening for the purpose of tendering our thanks for the able and cheerful manner in which you have for the last five years forwarded our interests … especially for the great efforts which you made to liquidate the debt which had been incurred some years ago for the purpose of building our church and parochial residence at Marrabel.

Independent of the outlay of £120 on the interior of the church, and some smaller sums spent in various other improvements, he had collected towards the debt on the church and presbytery £631 in the space of five years. [Ref: South Australian Advertiser 17-5-1877]

*The annual picnic in connection the with St Agnes Church, Marrabel, was held on Easter Monday. There was good attendance, notwithstanding that the weather was cold and wet.

In the evening the Rev W O’Dowling delivered an interesting lecture on the life of Dan O’Connell. The lecture was followed by a ball, which wound up a very enjoyable day. [Ref: Kapunda Herald 20-4-1900]

*The tender of Mr S H Roberts, of Saddleworth, has been accepted for building a sanctuary and vestry at St Agnes Church, Marrabel.

The price of the tender was £563. [Ref: Kapunda Herald 18-9-1914]

*Mr O Colmer of Riverton has obtained the contract for extensive repairs to the Catholic Church at Marrabel, including the putting in of a new ceiling. It is anticipated that he will start during this week. [Ref: Kapunda Herald 7-8-1936]

In posting shots on other social media last year, it seemed that my shots at Ruckinge were not as complete as they should have been.

I did call in last year, but due to COVID, the church was locked.

On Saturday, we were in Ham Street so I could hunt butterflies, and surprisingly, Ham Street has no church within the village, instead there is Ruckinge and Orelestone to the north and east.

Orelestone I only visited last year, so have not been inside, but Ruckinge I last saw inside in 2014.

Saturday mornings there is a regular coffee morning in the shop, and I arrived just after midday as the refreshments were being packed away. Another role into which parish churches step into as other civic buildings are sold off up and down the country.

The tall, squat dower is visible from half a mile away, towering over the mature trees between. Clearly an ancient construction, Norman for sure, and topped by a wee little steeple.

Being a glorious day, I walked round the outside of the church, recording some of the finer details, like the tympanums over the west and south doors.

Inside, I soon realised the reason for not having recorded any monuments or memorials inside was that there were none. But I did go and take more shots, some repeats, as I have a new and better camera, and there is always details I would have missed.

I asked about the coffee morning, and was explained that some weeks it is in aid of a charity, like this week, so I gave a fiver to help the lady's relative who is seriously ill. Please take cake, would you like a tea?

They asked.

But I was good.

Just wanted to help.

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A large church of Norman origins, the west door being a much-weathered example of twelfth-century work. The south doorway is also Norman and has the remains of two mass dials carved into its dressed stonework. The masonry inside the church shows clear signs of fire damage, and a nice crownpost roof of the fourteenth century probably marks the date of the rebuilding after the fire. Of the same period are the returned stalls on the south side of the chancel - the fronts being little more than a series of plain upright planks, with some spectacularly proportioned poppy-heads at each end. Outside, the upper stage of the tower dates from the thirteenth century and has a small pyramidal roof with needle spire.

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Ruckinge

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RUCKING

LIES the next parish westward from Bilsington, for the most part upon the clay-hills. It is written in Domesday, Rochinges, and now usually called and written Ruckinge. Part of it, in which the church stands, is in the hundred of Newchurch, and another part in the hundred of Ham. That part of it which is below the hill southward is in the level of Romney Marsh, and within the liberty and jurisdiction of the justices of it, and the residue is within that of the justices of the county, and within the district of the Weald.

The PARISH lies so obscurely as to be but little known, it is a dreary unpleasant place, the roads are very narrow and miry, as bad as any in the Weald, the soil being a deep miry clay; that from Limne, through Bilsington, Ham-street, and Warehorne, crosses this parish on the side of the clay-hill, inclining nearer to the Marsh. The church stands on the side of the hill, overlooking the Marsh, which lies at the foot of it southward. The upper or northern side of it is mostly coppice wood. It contains about 930 acres of upland, and as many of marsh-land. There is no village, the houses being dispersed about the parish, and are mostly inhabited by poorer sort of people.

IN THE YEAR 791 king Offa gave to Christ-church, in Canterbury, fifteen plough-lands in Kent, among which was this estate of Roching, together with several dennes, for the feed of hogs, in the Weald; (fn. 1) but it was afterwards wrested from the church, during the Danish wars, and it continued in lay hands at the time of the conquest, soon after which it appears to have been in the possession of Hugo de Montfort, from whom archbishop Lanfranc recovered it again to his church, in the solemn assembly, held on this occasion by the king's command, at Pinenden-heath, in the year 1076. This estate coming thus into the hands of the church, on the division made of the revenues of it between the archbishop and his monks, was allotted by him to the latter, and the possession of it was confirmed to them by king Henry I. and II. In Somner's Gavelkind, is a transcript of a release anno 17 Edward I. of the base services of several of the tenants of this manor (gavelkind men) who brought them out, and consequently it was a mere change from service into money, by the mutual consent of lord and tenant. King Edward II. in his 10th year, granted to the prior and convent of Christ-church, free-warren in all their demesne lands in Rucking, among other places. In which state this manor continued till the suppression of the priory, anno 31 Henry VIII. when it came into the king's hands, where it did not remain long, for the king settled it by his dotation charter, in his 33d year, on his new-erected dean and chapter of Canterbury, part of whose possessions it still remains. The heirs of the Rev. Dr. James Andrews, lately deceased, are now entitled to the lease of it. There is no court held for this manor.

The OTHER PART of this parish, not included in the above grant of king Offa, seems to be that which Cuthred, king of Kent, in the year 805, with the consent and leave of Cœnulf, king of Mercia, gave to Aldbertht his servant, and Seledrythe the abbot, being two plough-lands in Hrocing, situated on both sides of the river Limene, to hold in perpetual inheritance, free from all regal tribute, &c. (fn. 2) Soon after the Norman conquest Hugo de Montfort was become possessed of lands in this parish, some of which were those which had been given by king Offa, as above-mentioned, to the priory of Christ-church, which were again recovered from him by archbishop Lanfranc, at the great meeting held at Pinenden. The residue continued in his possession, and are accordingly entered in the survey of Domesday, under the general title of the lands of Hugo de Montfort:

Ralph, son of Richard, holds of Hugo half a suling in Rochinges, which Leuret held of king Edward. It was taxed at half a suling. The arable land is two carucates. There are now twelve villeins having one carucate and an half. Of wood the pannage for one hog. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth fifty shillings, and afterwards thirty shillings, now fifty shillings.

IN THIS PART was the MANOR OF WESTBEREIS, alias Rokinges, which seems to have been once accounted as a moiety of the manor of Rucking. The former of these names it appears to have taken from the antient owners of it. After this name was extinct here, which was before the reign of king Henry IV. this manor was come into the name of Prisot, and in the 21st year of king Henry VI. was owned by John Prisot, who was that year made a sergeant-at-law, and in the 27th year of it knighted, and made chief justice of the common pleas, (fn. 3) in whose descendants it continued till the 8th year of king Henry VIII. when Thomas Prisot passed it away by sale to George Hount, in which name it continued till the 9th year of queen Elizabeth, when it was sold to Reginald Stroughill, usually called Struggle, who was in the commission of the peace in king Edward VI.'s reign, a name of antient extraction in Romney Marsh, where there were lands so called, and there they continued in good esteem at Lyd, of which town they were jurats, and possessed lands for many years afterwards. From this name this manor of Westberies, alias Rokinges, went by sale to Pearse, and anno 23 Elizabeth John Pearse, alienated it, being held in capite, to Richard Guildford and Bennet his wife, but he being indicted for not taking the oath of supremacy, they fled the realm, and were attainted of treason, and his lands became forfeited to the crown, where this manor seems to have remained till the death of the latter in 1597, anno 39 Elizabeth, when the queen granted the fee of it to Walter Moyle, gent. who sold it soon afterwards to Francis Bourne, esq. of Sharsted, and his grandson James Bourne owned it at the latter end of king Charles I.'s reign, and in his descendants it continued till it was at length sold to Parker, in which name it remained till John Parker, of London, alienated it in 1706 to Edward Andrews, of Hinxhill, and his daughter Susanna, who married George I'anns, of this parish, and left a daughter of her own name, who afterwards married first John Gray, M. D. of Canterbury, and secondly Tho. Ibbott, clerk, and entit led each of her husbands in turn respectively to the possession of this manor. On her death without issue, her heirs on her mother's side became entitled to it, and in them, to the number of more than thirty, the inheritance of it is at this time vested.

The MANOR OF BARDINDEN, or Barbodindenne, was likewise most probably situated in this part of Rucking, and was antiently so called from a family of the same name, who were possessors of it, one of whom, William de Barbodindenne, held it at his death, which was in the 9th year of king Edward III. and in his descendants it continued till at length it was alienated to Sir Robert Belknap, chief justice of the common pleas, who being attainted and banished in the 11th year of king Richard II. his estates became forfeited to the crown. Notwithstanding which, the king, who considered him as a martyr to his interest, granted him his estates again, and among others this manor, which he died possessed of in the 2d year of king Henry IV. His grandson John Belknap, in the beginning of king Henry VI.'s reign, alienated it to Engham, in which name it continued till king Henry VIII.'s reign, when it was sold to Sir Matthew Browne, of Beechworth, who held it in capite at his death, anno 4 and 5 Philip and Mary. His grandson Sir Thomas Browne passed it away by sale, in the 7th year of queen Elizabeth, to Thomas Lovelace, esq. whose cousin and heir William Lovelace, of Bethesden, sergeant-at-law, succeeded him in the possession of it, which afterwards descended down to Col. Richard Lovelace, who, soon after the death of king Charles I. alienated it, with his estates at Bethersden, to Mr. Richard Hulse, afterwards of Lovelace-place, in that parish, but whereabouts this manor is precisely situated, or who have been the proprietors of it since, I have not as yet been able to gain any discovery of.

POUNDHURST is a manor, situated about a mile north-west from the church. It belonged in 1651 to Richard Watts, who sold it to Gadsley, from which name it passed to Hatch, and then to Read, who passed it away to Clarke, of Ashford, and Grace Clarke carried it in marriage to the Rev. Thomas Gellibrand, and at her death in 1782, gave it by will to her son the Rev. Joseph Gellibrand, of Edmonton, the present possessor of it.

The MANOR OF MORE was antiently held by owners of the same name, one of whom, Matthew at More, held it by knight's service in the 20th year of king Edward III. after which this manor of More came into the possession of the family of Brent, who were possessed of it in king Henry VII.'s reign. At length Thomas Brent, esq. of Wilsborough, dying in 1612, s. p. by his will gave this manor to his nephew Richard Dering, esq. of Pluckley, in whose descendants it continued down to Sir Edward Dering, bart. now of Surrenden, the present possessor of it.

Charities.

A PERSON UNKNOWN gave to this parish an annuity of 20s. paid out of lands in Romney Marsh, occupied by Mr. Stone, of Great Chart, which is yearly distributed on New Year's day to the poor, who receive no parish relief.

The poor constantly relieved are about twenty, casually forty.

THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Limne.

The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary Magdalen, is a very small building, having at the west end a pointed tower, out of which rises a small slender spire. In the tower there are five bells. It has a middle isle, and two narrow ones coving to it on each side. It has one chancel, and another building at the east end of the south isle, built of flint, with two handsome gothic windows on the south side, and seems to have been a chantry or oratory. It is now made use of to lay the materials in for the repairs of the church. There is a white stone in the north isle, having once had the figures of a man and woman in brass. There are no other memorials or gravestones in the church. On the outside of the steeple, on the west side, there is a very antient Saxon arched door-way, with carved capitals and zig-zag ornaments round it, and some sculpture under the arch. And there is such another smaller one on the middle of the south side of the south isle.

The church of Rucking seems to have been esteemed part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury ever since the restoring of it to that church, by the means of archbishop Lanfranc as above mentioned, when, on the allotment of the manor to the priory and monks of Christ-church, the archbishop most probably retained the advowson of this church to himself. His grace the archbishop is the present patron of it.

It is a rectory, valued in the king's books at 14l. 13s. 4d. and the yearly tenths at 1l. 9s. 4d. In 1588 it was valued at one hundred pounds, communicants one hundred. In 1640 it was valued at eightyfive pounds, communicants the same as before. There are about eighteen acres of glebe.

In the petition of the clergy, beneficed in Romney Marsh, in 1635, for setting aside the custom of twopence an acre, in lieu of tithe-wool and pasturage, a full account of which has been given before, under Burmarsh, the rector of Rucking was one of those who met on this occasion; when it was agreed on all sides, that wool in the Marsh had never been known to have been paid in specie, the other tithes being paid or compounded for.

¶There is a modus of one shilling per acre on all grafs lands in this parish within the Marsh, and by custom, all the upland pays four-pence per acre for pasturage, and one shilling per acre when mowed, no hay having ever been taken in kind, the other tithes are either taken in kind, or compounded for. Formerly the woods of this parish paid tithes, after the rate of two shillings in the pound, according to the money paid for the fellets of them; but in a suit in the exchequer for tithe of wood, anno 1713, brought by Lodge, rector, against Sir Philip Boteler, it was decreed against the rector, that this parish was within the bounds of the Weald, and the woods in it consequently freed from tithes. Which decree has been acquiesced in ever since.

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol8/pp352-360

Well, vanity corner again, I've scraped over a million hits. Given many of my pics either weren't taken by me (hospitals, some of the trains), or anyone can get a decent image (old pots and tiles), I can't claim a lot of credit. And don't bother commenting that Flickr hits aren't what they used to be, and/or I am terminally sad for counting hits, of course you're right.

But thanks everyone. Here are some sorts of stats, given my photostream contains pics of 'all those bloody trains' as someone said; pots and tiles; old hospitals; wildlife; and a few odds and ends. Of the roughly 4500 public images:-

Top image, unsurprisingly is about sex. A love struck couple who've lost all sense of time during prolonged intercourse, trapped on the railway main line, rescued by yours truly in a feat of derring do just before being squished by a flying express train, warts and all. I hope it disappoints all the prurient searchers!

Second highest, Portmeirion Pottery (Monte Sol - not a particularly rare pattern)

Highest tile by (William Morris) (number 3)

Highest hospital, Halifax War Hosptial (number 24)

Daw Mill under demolition, number 29. Suggest look at the pictures of it in action!

Highest wildlife, crane in France, number 39. Though I must say my wildlife pictures are relatively low quality and get low hits, most feature well down the list. Will be trying harder.

Highest railway image from me, number 40, D70 at Etruria in 1972, gratifyingly one of the first railway pics I ever took.

Highest modern railway image, D1015 on the Wellingborough - Mountsorrel stone, one of the days it didn't break down and block the MML.

Highest modern loco, at number 53, 60049 at Daw Mill.

Highest butterfly, number 62, a Purple Emperor.

Highest class 66, number 841 - come on like Black 5's and 47's, you'll love them one day!

Sort by Flickr's 'interestingness', and the top 30 are all trains, such is the input and community that made my leave railphotoarchive for all your knowledge and enthusiasm! Thanks enormously.

One of the things being online has given me, is an appreciation of the wonders that surrounded me as I was growing up, but was ignorant of. Such a shame then that I only get to see bits and pieces when we go back to visit my Mother, of like this weekend, when I returned home for a school reunion.

Fritton is a small village on the A143 between Yarmouth and Beccles, and we used to go as we liked the local pub, The Decoy. It was run by an ex-RAF dentist, Eric. Nice bloke, hope he and his wife are still OK.

Looking through my friend's website on Suffolk churches last week, I came across the entry for Fritton, and I was intrigued: so, the first stop out of Lowestoft was Fritton.

Set down a quiet country lane, a simple round-towered church, but then like so many churches, the exterior does not hint at the delights and wonders inside.

I thought the round chancel similar to Wissington, but inside the chancel is revealed as Norman and many-arched. But let Simon describe it:

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Norfolk now has two Frittons, but this one used to be in Suffolk. Here we are out in the wilds of the Lothingland Peninsula, and in 1974 the border was moved a few miles south so that Great Yarmouth's dreary suburbia could all be taken into Norfolk. Unfortunately for Suffolk, the new border line was taken down to Fritton Lakes, putting this little jewel of a church and its pretty village into the northern county.

Perhaps it was compensation of a kind for also having to take on the awful town of Hopton to the east. In this case, Suffolk's loss was very much Norfolk's gain, for this is that rare thing in East Anglia, a Norman church with an apse. They are thin on the ground in the region, and the three best are now all within a few miles on the same side of the border. Hales and Heckingham are on the far bank of the Waveney; St Edmund is similarly round-towered and thatched, and if it is not quite as pretty as its two cousins, it is at least as interesting, and perhaps even more of a treasure house than they are.

There is a little trapdoor on the south side of the chancel, the purpose of which is not immediately clear. Inevitably in this traditionally lawless area not far from the sea, it has become known as the Smugglers' Loft. The churches of this area are all in the Norwich Diocese, even the Suffolk ones, and while the churches near to Yarmouth and Lowestoft have a reputation for being kept locked, Fritton St Edmund is, thankfully, open everyday, and you step into a pleasantly Victorianised rustic interior. The view to the east is unusual, with the little, low chancel hemmed in up one corner behind a screen which doesn't really seem to fit, and the royal arms high above on top of the eastern wall of the 14th Century rebuilt nave. When the nave was widened, the original north wall was retained and the other wall rebuilt about three metres further south, thus the curious juxtaposition between nave and chancel. In the splay of a window on this south side the rebuilders painted an image of a Saint, possibly St John the Baptist holding an agnus dei, while on the north wall opposite the south doorway is a massive St Christopher of about the same date. Otherwise, the nave is rather austere, the recut square font at the west end lending a note of gravitas.

This plainness and simplicity offset the fabulous jewel-like interior of the chancel, which you step down into as if into a quite different church. It is a remarkable survival. The tunnel-vaulting is an extraordinary thing to find. The trapdoor outside lets into the space above it, but more interestingly vaulting of this kind is often associated with there having been a tower above. Not only the vaulting of the apse has survived, but in 1967 a sequence of wall-paintings depicting the martyrdom of St Edmund were uncovered in the eastern end of the apse. It is one of the most complete sequences of the subject in England. The Saint himself appears crowned and shot through with arrows in the central panel, and other panels depict Danish bowmen, possibly St Peter and a donor. There is a little panel of Victorian glass depicting St Edmund at the centre, a happy accident because they could not have known about the wall paintings.

The chancel windows are furnished with some excellent early 20th century glass depicting a sequence of East Anglian Saints. They include St Walstan, St Olaf, St William of Norwich, St Felix, Fursey, St Wendreda, St Etheldreda and the more international seafaring Saint, St Nicholas. It is a perfect setting for them.

The screen has obviously been restored, perhaps more than once, but it almost certainly dates from the time that the nave was widened. There is said to be another which is almost identical, only better, in the now-closed church at Belton a few miles off, where it awaits an uncertain fate. No such fears here; I compared St Edmund with the churches of Hales and Heckingham near the start of this piece, but it is worth adding that this is the only one of those three apsed Norman churches which has not been declared redundant, and is still home to an Anglican faith community.

Arthur Mee, in his 1940s Kings England: Suffolk, waxes so lyrically about Fritton that you might be forgiven for thinking that he is actually writing a spoof, or a parody of himself. Here is heart's delight, he begins, for painter, poet and naturalist; great waters, spreading woodland, nursery of multitudes of water-fowl, and nightingales which sing in chorus the livelong day and night of their minstrel season. Mee also recalls the inconsequential but fascinating detail from the registers that on the 17th day of August 1816, Hannah Freeman did penance in the church for defaming the character of Mary Hanham, spinster. There is a good story behind that, no doubt.

Today, most visitors to this parish are here on holiday, because around the great Fritton Lake, which is the longest in East Anglia, spreads Fritton Country Park and its associated camping sites. Part of the lake is Fritton Decoy, a long, narrow stretch into which ducks were attracted to be shot in their hundreds by 19th century worthies. There is something pleasingly old-fashioned about the setting, as if the Famous Five might even now be in a tent nearby, awaiting an adventure.

Simon Knott, July 2008

www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/frittonedmund/frittonedmund.htm

Given to me by NCAA Champ and Hodge Trophy winner David Taylor

"Christ Church, His Majesty's Chapel Royal of the Mohawk is located on the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Deseronto, Ontario, Canada. It is owned by the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation and is associated with the Anglican Parish of Tyendinaga, Diocese of Ontario. It was designated as a National Historic Site in 1995 and is one of only three Chapels Royal in Canada, elevated by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.

The history of the chapel begins with the forced relocation by American revolutionaries of the Tyendinaga Mohawks from their indigenous lands in what is now upper New York State to lands provided by George III in recognition to their service to the British during the revolutionary war. They settled in land that would eventually become the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory on the shores of the Bay of Quinte in 1784.

The Royal chapel is in regular use as a parish church of the Anglican Diocese of Ontario. While not housed in the chapel, on special occasions, a silver Communion set given by Queen Anne in 1711 as a symbol of the alliance between the Crown and the Mohawks, is displayed and used. Also, there is a triptych in the Mohawk language and a bell given by George III, a Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom given by George V, and a bible given by Queen Victoria.

Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory is the main First Nation reserve of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte First Nation. The territory is located in Ontario east of Belleville on the Bay of Quinte. Tyendinaga is located near the site of the former Mohawk village of Ganneious." - info from Wikipedia.

Late June to early July, 2024 I did my 4th major cycling tour. I cycled from Ottawa to London, Ontario on a convoluted route that passed by Niagara Falls. during this journey I cycled 1,876.26 km and took 21,413 photos. As with my other tours a major focus was old architecture.

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©All photographs on this site are copyright: ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2021 & GETTY IMAGES ®

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams). No image may be used as source material for paintings, drawings, sculptures, or any other art form without permission and/or compensation to ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

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I would like to say a huge and heartfelt 'THANK YOU' to GETTY IMAGES, and the 47.057+ Million visitors to my FLICKR site.

***** Selected for sale in the GETTY IMAGES COLLECTION on Thursday 20th July 2023

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This photograph became my 6,257th frame to be selected for sale in the Getty Images collection and I am very grateful to them for this wonderful opportunity.

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Photograph taken at an altitude of Two metres (Sea level) at 19:39pm on Wednesday 17th May 2023 looking towards an eagles nest on unnamed and uninhabited by mankind wilderness, some distance from Dawley Passage Provincial Park and Meares Island in the Alberni-Clayoquot region of British Columbia in Canada.

The Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus Leucocephalus), derives it's name from the Greek for 'Sea eagle', and the 'bald' denotation actually derives from an older meaning of 'white headed'.Bald Eagles can be up to forty inches in length with a wingspan up to seven and a half feet and can weigh up to 6.3kgs. The females are generally 25% larger than the males.

I was stationed in a seventy year old house I was renting in Campbell Street, Tofino in British Columbia in Canada. In this image I was seated at the front of a twenty three feet long Zodiac inflatable in full life saving gear.

Nikon D850 Single-lens reflex digital camera F Mount with FX CMOS 35.9mm x 23.9mm Image sensor 46.89 Million total pixels Focal length 600mm Shutter speed: 1/400s (Mechanical shutter) Aperture f/13.0 iso160 Image area Full Frame FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L 45.4Million pixels (8256 x 5504) 14 Bit uncompressed Hand held with Tamron VC control enabled AF-C Priority Selection: Release Nikon Back button focusing enabled 3D Tracking watch area: Normal 55 Tracking points Exposure mode: Manual mode Metering mode: Matrix metering White balance on: Auto1, A1.00, M0.25 (4980k) Colour space: Adobe RGB Picture control: (A) Auto (Sharpening A+1.00/Clarity A+1.00)

Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup. Black Rapid Curve Breathe strap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag. Nikon EN-EL15a battery.

LATITUDE: N 49d 11m 15.0s

LONGITUDE: W 125d 46m 54.20s

ALTITUDE: 6.0m

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 93.9MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 36.40MB

PROCESSING POWER:

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.21 (8/12/2022) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (16/01/20) LF 1.00 Nikon Codec Full version 1.31.2 (09/11/2021)

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with Windows 10 Home edition AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. My Passport USB 3.0 2TB portable desktop hard drive. Nikon NX STUDIO 64bit Version 1.2.2 (08/12/2022). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.16.0 (08/12/2022). Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.