Author Topic: Local History  (Read 25406 times)

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Offline Nemesis

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Re: Local History
« Reply #15 on: May 14, 2011, 04:11:05 pm »
This has fascinated me for years--I would love to see it. The Queen's Market always has a faintly dank smell, I bet the water is pretty iffy by now if it is still there !
I had also heard that the only surviving photo is in Rhyl Library !
Wonder if we could get in there somehow?
Mad, Bad and Dangerous to know.

Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #16 on: May 14, 2011, 04:17:11 pm »
The Rogark Manufacturing Company was founded in the 1950s by a local Penmaenmawr gentleman called Mr G. Rogers.  When he died in 1955 his wife Mrs G E Rogers took over the business.  My Nain used to dress these little dolls in traditional Welsh costume.  She would sit for hours gluing bits of felt and sewing tiny clothes for them.  I remember once going to meet her from a disused church on the Esplanade where she carried out this work.  Boxes of half finished dolls everywhere and little bits of cloth.  I only ever saw the Welsh Ladies and so wonder if the other dolls were dressed at different locations?

Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley


Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #17 on: May 14, 2011, 04:19:49 pm »
This is the only photo I could find Nem.
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline DaveR

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Re: Local History
« Reply #18 on: May 14, 2011, 04:23:54 pm »
I've looked for the entrance to Little Venice a few times and never found it. I believe it must be somewhere on this corridor linking the Prom with the Market:


Entrance Arcade - Queens Market, Rhyl by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr

The whole Queens Building is a fascinating place, like going back in time many years. Naturally, a building with such character is currently threatened with demolition!


Queen's Building, Rhyl (former Queen's Palace) by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr


Ornate Plasterwork - Queens Building, Rhyl by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr


Interior - Queens Market, Rhyl (formerly Queens Ballroom) by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr


Inside Queen's Market, Rhyl by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr


Offline Nemesis

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Re: Local History
« Reply #19 on: May 14, 2011, 04:35:36 pm »
http://www.flickr.com/photos/davellandudno/sets/72157594317884963/show/

I have had this on my Favorites list for a long time-- presume it must be you Dave !!
Mad, Bad and Dangerous to know.

Offline DaveR

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Re: Local History
« Reply #20 on: May 14, 2011, 04:41:55 pm »
http://www.flickr.com/photos/davellandudno/sets/72157594317884963/show/

I have had this on my Favorites list for a long time-- presume it must be you Dave !!
Guilty as charged! ;D


Queen's Building, Rhyl (former Queen's Palace) by davidrobertsphotography, on Flickr

The Queen's Palace opened on the 1st August 1902 and contained a ballroom with room for 2,000 couples, a theatre, a winter garden, 40 shops, a zoo, a waxworks, a native village and 'under the ballroom, an imitation Venice with real canals, gondolas and Italians'. The Queen's Palace burnt down in 1907 and was replaced by the present Queen's Building, with the Queen's Hotel, Theatre etc.

Nowadays, the Queen's Building is filled with a large indoor market (in the former Ballroom), amusement arcades, cafes, shops and bars/clubs. Compare this exterior shot with the one in this postcard from 1906:
www.flickr.com/photos/davellandudno/259957737/
The left-hand portion of the building is unchanged, however the right-hand portion was completely rebuilt following the fire in a more bland style. The section with the raised roofline to the right housed the Queen's Theatre, which closed in 1960. Laurel & Hardy played the Queens Theatre in the 1950s!

Offline Fester

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Re: Local History
« Reply #21 on: May 14, 2011, 07:48:16 pm »
Rhyl Eh?

I was taken on holiday to Rhyl in the 1970's and I thought it was great.
Fountains to play in on the sea front, good quality hotels...lots to do.
But I didn't go back until 2007, and when I did I was appalled.  I never venture there now.

Attractions such as Little Venice should be cherished and preserved, all over Britain, wherever they exist.
You see it would give such a focal point for a town such as Rhyl, and a pleasant place to visit and talk about for people from far and wide.

I believe that Colwyn Bay Pier falls into this category.... once they are gone...they are GONE FOREVER.
Fester...
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Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #22 on: May 14, 2011, 08:08:57 pm »
This is a photo of a Cursing Pot found in Holyhead in 1871. (pic 1) The pot is called a Pipkin and the piece of slate is inscribed with the words NANNY ROBERTS, you can also see pins in the picture.   If you wanted to curse someone you’d take a live frog, stick some pins in it, place it in the Pipkin and having scratched the name of your intended victim on a piece of slate you would bury it somewhere, the curse was said to last until the Pipkin was found.  Some even burnt the frog as a sign the curse could never be broken.

This stone was found in (Eilian's Well) Llaneilian (pic 2) also believed to be a cursing stone.  In this example a wax effigy is nailed to a piece of stone with a lattice pattern scratched round the sides and RF written in the middle, RF being the initials of the person to be cursed.  This Cursing Stone was found in a Well.  Some Wells were said to have healing powers others were said to be Cursing Wells. How handy would that be, there you are on your way to work someones peeved you, simple... scratch their name on a piece of slate and hurl it down the Cursing Well.  Brilliant, bring them back I say.


Note to self.....................find frog
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #23 on: May 14, 2011, 08:26:19 pm »
Here's a scary looking group of women the Llandudno Women's Temperance Society, c.1890s.  Is it me or do they look like they could do with a large sherry.
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline Fester

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Re: Local History
« Reply #24 on: May 14, 2011, 08:42:47 pm »
While these meetings were on, I bet their husbands were all out having a jar!    L0L  ZXZ ZXZ
Fester...
- Semper in Excretum, Sole Profundum Variat -

Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #25 on: May 14, 2011, 09:14:19 pm »
Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf ('Llywelyn, Our Last Leader') was the first Welsh speaking play licensed by the Lord Chamberlain and was performed at the Princes Theatre Llandudno on the 28th May 1903.  Beriah G Evans was the producer of the show.

Dear Mr Ballinger,

You may be interested to learn - if you are not already aware of the fact - that my Llewelyn Ein Llyw Olaf is the first Play written in the Welsh language ever licensed as a Stage Play by the Lord Chamberlain. Some difficulty was experienced in getting the license for this reason. I have had photos taken of three of the Chief tableaux in the play, and enclose herewith a reproduction of one of them. I do not know whether, having regard for the fact that this is absolutely the first Welsh Play ever licensed you would care to have for the Free Library a set of the original photographs. In years to come they might prove interesting. Should you care to have them I shall have much pleasure in presenting the Free Library with a set - the only condition I would make being that each photo should have attached to it by you a notice ...' giving the name of the Play & the scene & stating the fact that it is the first of its kind ever licensed as a stage play. I should add that the particular photo from which the enclosed was reproduced does NOT do justice to the actual scene. For photographic purposes the actors had to be crowded together. With very kind regards, Ever faithfully yours,

Beriah G. Evans.'
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline Nemesis

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Re: Local History
« Reply #26 on: May 14, 2011, 09:28:15 pm »
Here's a scary looking group of women the Landmine Women's Temperance Society, c.1890s.  Is it me or do they look like they could do with a large sherry.

Now you have set me off again !
This photo has been back and forth across the pond like a you ! The archive dept have a few names on the back of the original, but not the two ladies I was looking for . Two of these ladies are the spinster sisters who lived in our house for a very long time at the turn of the last century. Myself and a lady from America have been tracing her family tree and the history of our house and have been unable to ascertain which two are her relations!
Mad, Bad and Dangerous to know.

Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #27 on: July 25, 2012, 04:19:30 pm »
A few weeks ago I took a look around the Cockpit (up the ginnel by Alfedos) The Cockpit was purpose  built in 1760 as cock fighting was very popular 300 years ago, this example remains the only standing Cockpit in Wales apart from one in a South Wales Museum.
I stood on a barrel placed on a chair (not safe I know and I wouldn't mind but I was still too vertically challenged to see in myself) and put my camera through the window.  It's basically held together by scaffolding such a shame.  This could be another tourist attraction in Conwy but there are calls to demolish it now.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/01/17/call-to-save-last-cockpit-in-conwy-as-its-falls-into-decline-91466-27998186/

I took a few more photos round the back....I didn't realise it was so big.
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline Pendragon

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Re: Local History
« Reply #28 on: July 25, 2012, 04:20:41 pm »
The rear of the Cockpit.  Only boards cover the roof now.
Only hindsight has 20/20 vision
Angiegram - A romantic notion derived from the more mundane truth.

Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for." -Bob Marley

Offline Blodyn

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Re: Local History
« Reply #29 on: July 25, 2012, 10:30:38 pm »
Pendragon, well done for your daring and dedication to get those photos of the cockpit.   :o

I didn't know anything about it before but what a shame that it's in such a state.  :(   I do hope that it gets rescued.