Wyken Slough

The depth of a mine has little or no impact of its profitability. The Warwicksire coal field outcrops a few miles south of Coventry and its just not worth mining. Further south there was the Forest of Dean mine and Betshanger in Kent otherwise there is no known coal available to the south. The Warwickshire coal was an average of about 750 yards deep then gradually rose till it surfaced to the south of Burton on Trent, about 60% of this coal was never mined. Warwickshire mines were not really all that deep compared to some northern and Welsh mines, I believe that some of the northern mines were three times the depth of our local mines. Norman

morgana. P 20 the long lane you mentioned led to the cottages before the war, halfway up there was a hedgerow that led to A.G Rd, just above the hedgerow was a pond, being on a slope the ground below was always soggy, Large golden patches of kingcups, wild iris and all the company of marsh-loving plants, the field in spring and early summer, the wild primrose was abundant, walk where you will about the area, a joy to the eye. But the Army came, demanded two fields higher than the pond. Hen huts had to be moved, cattle crowded into that field. When the guns fired the cattle stampeded, within six months the pond was a quagmire, great clods of earth dislodged in the field, roots torn up. The cattle were moved onto the football pitch, a calf-pen built on the tennis court, but the field and pond never fully recovered, another part of the slough lost. About two years before then, one of the cottagers was clipping a yew tree, he threw a few sprays over the hedge into the field where the horses were grazing, they ate the sprays and within a few hours they were dead. When the meadows, went under the plough for food crops, most of the birds left the area, lack of seed.

Thank you Kaga Simpson for explaining where the long lane led to. A sight to behold and all gone with the marsh plants, all because of tanks, terrible shame. Such a shame we lost the birds too. Yes certain trees are deadly to animals like the laburnum tree as well, sorry for the horses

Morgana, Just looked at your pictures of the slough, thought they were great, thank you. it does seem to have got itself back to a place to relax and enjoy. missed them earlier, still learning this computer. Kaga.

So pleased you enjoyed them. I know how you feel learning I was like that once

Kaga. Does my memory serve me right? After going up the path by the Slough at the top was there a row of cottages on the right and if so who occupied them? As we both lived in neighbouring districts and pretty much the same age our paths must have crossed at times. Did you know May Mitten who lived opposite the Bird in Hand? She was my mothers half sister but I know very little about her except that she frightened me rigid. Norman.

Norman, hi. My, she frightened everybody, dressed in dark trousers, long coat, looked like a witch, had horses in a corrugated shed in field opposite Threadgolds sweet shop down Jackers Road, the house she lived in was frightening too, all ivy, big trees, dark and dismal. There was a pathway ran from almost next to Bird in Hand over to Foxford School. No, no cottages, the pathway led to the top, turned right alongside railway then led into a square, four houses surrounded the square, I delivered papers and milk to them for about ten years, the only name I remember was Bond. But the scout master from A.G Rd went with one of the daughters from up there. The scout hut was directly opposite the lane down to the slough, but behind the row of houses. Did you go to Foxford? Cook, headmaster. Branson, Coleman, and a guy we called Blackbat, teachers. I used to go to school hoping it had vanished with the bombs so I could go down the slough or the farm. Can you tell me the nearest pub to you way back in the forties, then I will know if you know me. kaga.

Wow Norman, that brought back a lost childhood memory of May Mitten. We used to run past the house on the way home from school more down to the local myth I guess as we actually rarely saw her but the image described by kaga lived on and the house was certainly a bit creepy for us young 'uns I believe the house was pulled down while I was still at AG school, so late 60's? Trying to think what was built in its place

Now let me make myself totally clear. May was half sister of my STEP MOTHER. During the war she was a distribution centre for black market goods, my brother, sister and I were her main couriers. We lived in the cottage next door to the Bell Hotel, been tarted up since we lived there. In the same terrace was a butchers, think name was Chapman. Most Saturday mornings we three kids would ferry meat over to Mays house but we were told to go Skinners Yard way then across the fields to the Slough, Through a couple of hedges and we were in Mays back yard. On the return journey we would carry bags of other rationed food. May had the dress sense of Darth Vader but at heart I suppose she wasn't as bad as she was painted. Her house was a bit dark and dismal partly because she had no electricity but used two very ornate Victorian oil lamps for lighting. Cooking was done on a black range fuelled by coal from Franklin's in Windmill Rd. We went to Windmill Rd school. A walk down Pearson Ave then across the big field that took us to the school. Metal and woodwork was done at Foxford school, so two afternoons a week we were sent off unsupervised to walk over there, few of us arrived. Norman

Pixrobin, hi, yes it was Cartwrights but I remember little else about the place, a few of us ordered sandwiches and pies etc for lunch from a place down by the old gas showrooms, the van driver did the deliveries, think someone told me it got burnt down late fifties.

Hey Norman, didn't mean to offend, just a kids impression. Now about that lane by the side of the slough, if you look at the map of Lady's Lane, top right hand corner the line that runs parallel and underneath the railway line is 'the' lane, it joins a white circle, that was another pond full of reeds, the dark kind of 'u' where the houses, where it has a 'p' was a garden, at that time the basin was unused and fenced off. Nearly every field held a pond. The lane to the top was used regular from 39 by the army, at the top it swung slightly left, crossed the railway through a field and I believe it was a pom-pom gun they built there, damn noisy. Now the path that Greg used to go to S Stop, where he crossed over the railway just before the little brook bridge they placed a huge A.A. gun, that really shook the windows, even shook the ground. They even made people take in soldiers for a time, We had a crowded house, three boys in one bedroom, parents in one room and sister in a box room, but still we housed two soldiers.

I'm sure my mother said she skated on the Slough some winters. She lived on the Ansty Road. If you all knew the Slough, did you all also know Sowe Mill? My mother nearly drowned in the Mill race, it was owned by Eli Smith at the turn of the century who was her great uncle, and then by Ralph Bennett, Eli's son-in-law, who charged for swimming in the Mill pool.

There was a flour mill bottom of Aldermans Green Rd on the river Sowe. Norman

Hey! Kaga, No problems here. Always find your posts interesting and informative. There were two entrances to the mill. One was opposite the closed Rose in June pub, the other where the traffic lights now are in Aldermans Green Rd. I thought the millers name, like the coalman, was also Franklin but could be wrong there. There was a sluice gate where the miller would hold back the water 'til it was almost overflowing into what is now called Longford Park. Enough water backed up and he would open the gate and start milling. Although we boys did swim in the millpool it always looked a bit dark and forbidding to me but could never admit to being chicken. Norman

Norman, hi. I worked at main pit farm for a time, visited both farms, Taylors and the one on Bell Green slope, but visited the mill twice a week for animal feed. At the top was a large milk depot, across the road the stile to the slough. Now the name Franklin does not ring a bell with me either as miller or coalman, the only Franklin I knew built the houses from the power station down almost to the brook bridge A G Rd. There was a coalman right on the bend there, name of Neal, he being the guy that took me down Exhall Pit. Now I drove a pony and float and one day the pony decided to stop right on the junction of Hall G Rd-Windmill Rd and A G Rd, nothing would move her, a large car started to get noisy, when we did move and the car passed it was the Mayor, one mare holding up another mayor. Amused me at the time. The pub at that time was the Green Man, did it change name? Now around 1940 time the boys from Foxford went to Windmill Lane school for woodwork once a week. Winter time was the time when the slough was used and enjoyed most, I've seen thirty or forty kids on there, and real good ice-skaters too, when we had the hard winters. There must be loads of photo's about somewhere if we could find them.