Wyken Slough

Nothing could live in these chemicals flowing into the slough, not even the large reed beds, the slough died for me. More was to come. From AG Road down to the slough the field on the left, from a third of the way down the field was a good way lower than the road, so was marshland, got flooded often, was reeds, tall grasses, bog flowers water fowl even a snipe or two, but suddenly some one dumped industrial waste on it, lorry loads of the stuff, spread it out, now the slough had lost more of its wildlife, but got more poisons and waste. Clinkers and ash was spread over, a scrap metal dealer put a hut on it, lived there for a while with family, lorry, graded metal heaps every where, later moved off, bought land in Longford, built bungalow, but the waste was left to rot. Walrus, was that the burning path? Now let's go back nearly 80 years, the field on the right past the slough, leading up to the 'Main'. Lush green bullrush, marsh flowers etc. Clean water trickled through the reeds. I'm in the field with the farmer, harrowing, pulled by large very powerful shire horse, horse stops, we looked in front, small hollow with a clutch of peewits eggs, we move the harrows to one side, and carry on, no way horse was going to destroy nest. Happened often. Man, horse, birds, peaceful harmony. This was my slough.

Well Kaga Simpson, the reed beds are alive now

I believe the Slough was man made. As I posted earlier there is a man made weir downstream from the pool. It was certainly there pre 1880. Without the weir there would be just marshy land, not the Slough. As Kaga said, below the weir there was more marsh land at the bottom of Lady Lane with bull rushes and marsh marigolds. We called this area the Old Slough. Some old maps show this as open water. From Bell Green if you walked down Skinners yard then followed the path across the field toward Deedmore Road you would have been faced with an elevated board walk. This must have been built to span more swamp land, a continuation of the Old Slough. In 1937 that area was dry. Norman.

Where exactly was Lady Lane then as now Lady Lane is in Longford Norman, as a member here thought Lady Lane was named after Godiva as she had a house with a moat around it, I was wondering if the old marshy ground the old Slough was the moat of Lady Godiva's house.

Hi Morgana. Lady Lane was a strange place, it wasn't really a lane at all, it was just what everyone called it. The lane was two rows of hedges and mature trees about 30 ft apart and about 1/4 mile long that went uphill from the Old Slough to join a public footpath near Deedmore Rd. It must have been deliberately constructed but when and why I have no idea. I once saw it marked on an old map, much to my surprise. Tomorrow when I have more time I will troll through the internet maps to see if I can find it again. I know the Lady Lane in Longford but it was nowhere near there. Norman.

Thank you Norman Conquest, I shall look forward to seeing the map if you can find it.

Bingo. In map above the slough is at top left of centre. Lady Lane is just about centre and the old Slough is the odd shape at bottom of Lady Lane. Manor House bottom left was Taylors farm in my day, that was in Hall Green Rd. Norman

Thank you would be interesting if an aerial view could be taken to see what lied beneath the ground around that area. Interesting that the old slough was further down towards Manor House/Taylors farm. Does the slough get fed by the little stream that flows along Aldermans Green Road by Bell Green, was that there back then.

That`s the one but it is the section across the canal. The section over the road was destroyed by fire some years ago and can be seen in the link I previously posted. The Slough is fed by two streams, one flows past the old Courtaulds tip and goes under the motorway and crosses Aldermans Green Road just south of Canberra Road. The other rises north of Lentons Lane and goes under LL, alongside the village green, under the canal and the M6.

Kaga, I notice you mentioned about dumping of rubbish around the reedbeds and I`m sure one of the locals told me that a lot of rubble was dumped there as a result of the blitz.

Morgana. Hi. No, that stream came from between Longford and the old gasworks, came across park, past the mill under bridge Windmill Lane, AG Road. Led to the river Sowe. Now map, left and top corner, chapel near Bird in hand, next to the old Co-op, about twenty houses farther on was footpath clearly marked on map, did actually cross over the little bridge on slough up to railway, P is the five houses I mentioned prev, four in a 'U' one on side of track, right side of path field with small circle a (pond) 14 acre, then marsh ground with small brook, dried out as Norman said late 30s, never knew the other side. One or two cottages in dip, pathway ran up to Deedmore Road, here cottage where the hole appeared, twisting turning old canal from there to Woodway Lane. Greg, when I was a boy, no houses from power station to brook bridge, just a field. From brook large hedge to stile you crossed to S.S. Gap in hedge shallow water (ford) we crossed to Jackers Rd (short cut) to school. No, Canberra Rd had to look on map. Now chapel, still there, I'm amazed, right back to the 30s never saw it used, or door open, but right outside was telegraph pole, lorry driver hit, Greg if you had a pound for every time I went through that brook tunnel you would be a millionaire. Questions about the area in the thirties/forties anyone.

Thank you for that Kaga Simpson I might have guessed it was the River Sowe

Morgana, Norman, I thought it went back to olden times when ladies walked, rode and talked to a gentleman with 'chaperon' in tow. But it was definitely the boundary between the Taylor farm and the Colledge farm, the Taylor farm swept from there to A.G Rd, Hall Green Rd, and Bell Green. The Colledge farm from the railway embankment, Ladies Lane, the slough, A.G Rd, this side. From basin, Oxford Canal to A.G Rd the other side. It was known only as the 'Main Pit Farm' way back to 1900 I did not know much about Bell Green, so have no idea where the entrance was to Skinners yard. Norman, the trees by the huts at the slough were quite large in the late thirties, looked magnificent, can't remember if they were Silver Birch, any ideas. We had a good number of stage artists from the Hippodrome come fishing every year, seemed as if there were some kind of advertisement somewhere, struck me as odd. On one of the Link photo's, there's a Joe Skinner, he was the last trading boat on the Oxford Canal. Morgana, wife just told me off for not listening or remembering, your father was her g,p. way back, thought he was a good man.

Hi Kaga. Picture above is top of Bell Green, junction of Hall Green Rd, Henley Rd and Bell Green Rd. The gap between these shops was entrance to Skinners Yard. The white shop was Cottons Off Licence when I was a child. Behind the red brick shop was once an animal skinners, hence the name. My father remembered the business being closed down because of the smell but it was before my time. Beyond Skinners was a footpath that went up to Deedmore Rd. Near the top of the hill in HG Rd was another farm, Kays. It went down to the brook and extended some way back from the road. There was a cluster of silver birch trees near the Slough and I think a couple of beech trees. Norman