Saturday 16th December 2006

I have made a few cosmetic changes to the site over recent weeks and because of these changes there are quite a few new photographs to look at, to many in fact to name them all in What's New. Im sure regular visitors will soon pick them out.  There will be no updates now until the middle of January due to other commitments, but I am sure you will find plenty to keep you going until then. I would like to take this opportunity to say Thankyou to all my regular visitors here on the site and those I bump into at the Nat for all the kind emails and words of encouragement. To new visitors a warm welcome and please don't hesitate to ask for help. If I can give it I will. Hoping you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Saturday 23rd September 2006

The new Lecture syllabus for the Bacup Natural History Museum is now out and uploaded onto the Bacup Nat pages.

If you have any photographs of Britannia School and pupils or any other schools in the Bacup Stacksteads area which you would like added to the site please feel free to email me with them. There are a couple of new additions to the Surnames list on the Researching in Bacup page. If you have emailed me  and I have not added you Surname please send me a reminder, I have a mind like a sieve at the moment. Alternative to the Surname list send me a photograph of your ancestor and some details and I will add them to the Rogues Gallery.

Saturday 12th August 2006

Well things have been pretty hectic round here in recent weeks so please accept my apologises for a small update. Hopefully much more will be added next month. If you recognise any of the world war 1 pictures please please please email me. In the meantime I will try to identify the soldiers using the Bacup Times for the war years 1914 - 1919.

SAFE ARRIVAL OF CALLUM RAY 24TH JUNE WEIGHING 6LB 50Z.

Saturday 27 May 2006

Even though what happened to Pte Rourke took place 90 years ago I was still moved by his story. Whilst I was typing it I was thinking about his mother and how terrible it must have been to her to see her son suffering so much, knowing she also had another son who was out in France fighting and who could also be killed at any time. On a lighter note there will be no update of the site now until July, the next few weeks being taken up with preparations for the arrival of my first grandchild who is due to arrive on the 26th June.

Saturday 22 April 2006

I hope you enjoyed the Video clips of the Railway last month, a friend of my brothers very kindly cleaned up the video for me and put it onto a disc which has enabled me to upload the other sections of the video, so you can now view the train running right through from Bury to Bacup. Please make sure you Right Click and Save to your own computer when you go to view the clips.

Saturday 18th March 2006

I was quite excited this week to come across some old footage of a train travelling from Bury to Bacup. Due to the limitations of  web space etc  I have only uploaded the section which shows the train travelling from Waterfoot to Bacup. I have to say the quality is not brilliant but I still think  it was worth uploading, if only to show what a sad day it was when we lost our Railway.

It is said we all have a skeleton or two in our family history closets, but how would you feel if you had a  family of sheep stealers and highwaymen.? Personally  I would be thrilled to bits. Indeed when I came across the story of  "Bill O' Rogers" otherwise known as William Heyworth and his sons who's story you can read about on the Bacup People page I was really excited about sharing the story. Bill and his sons were hung at Lancaster Assizes in 1827. On looking for further information I came across this website which is very informative with regards to Lancaster Castle and other Hangings etc. http://www.richard.clark32.btinternet.co.uk/lancast.htm

Saturday 18th February 2006

Do you have a photograph of a Ancestor that you can't identify?

I did and it was what started me of on my Family History hunt back in 2004.

The story about the man in the photograph and how I traced him is on a new page

Famhistphotos. If you have a similar story that you would like to tell why not email me.

Saturday 14th January 2006

Im sure many of the older inhabitants of Bacup will remember " Felix", I know my mother did when I mentioned him. Felix or Sgt Martin to give him correct title was

one of Bacup's better known Police officers. My Mums comment was " You didn't get no truck with him, we could do with him back today, he would soon sort out Bacup".

Well he is back today albeit only through  these pages, Thank you Clive for emailing me the photographs of your Dad.

I recently had a email from a lady looking for information on her ancestors and over various emails that passed between us we chatted about how hard life must have been for the Quarrymen. Then whilst reading through the Bacup Times of 1896 I kept coming across court reports involving quarrymen who had been fined for drinking or fighting, I decided to make a little change then to the quarry pages and besides now covering the accidents that many quarryman suffered it will also contain

court reports that I come across hopefully giving a better view of what life was like for a quarryman in Stacksteads and his family. I have also  included some photographs and information on the areas that were generally inhabited by the many Irish families whose men worked at the various quarries in the area.

I have added a new page to the site called Other Work, this is somewhere I will be putting photographs and information I come across covering other areas of work such as the coachmen of Rockliffe House, or the Postmen of Bacup. I hope to be able to add some names to the photographs in the near future.