Drill halls Options

[Ste]

Graeme,

further to previous posts about the St Helens Volunteer Hall, it struck me that the nearby contemporary pubs are of interest, as they probably provided refuge and refreshment to the boys back in the day.

Closest was The Volunteer, just along Mill St, on the corner where it meets Duke St. My Dad had his first ever pint in there, but it was knocked down a long time ago.

Next, on Duke St - perhaps 150 yards from the Hall - is The Rifle Hotel, formerly known as The Rifle Corps:



Also on Duke St - again, within a couple of hundred yards - is The Duke of Cambridge, named for the C-in-C of the Army at the time the Volunteers were formed:



So we have three contemporary pubs that stood / stand very close to the Drill Hall, all with names related to the Volunteers. The streets speak to us, they really do.

Best regards,

Ste

[Graeme Fisher]

Now then, Ste, should we be introducing pubs into this thread?
OF COURSE!!!

Curiously, in a village (Wall, Staffs) near where I grew up, there was a pub called the Trooper.

And whilst researching my project, came across the fact that the HQ of the Staffordshire Yeomanry was, at one time, in Wall.

So pubs with a military name are very often related to local military locations. If nothing else, it provides

a) a pointer to the locale of a long demolished drill hall

an opportunity to test the local brew.

Nice one, Ste.

Graeme

[NeilH]

Hi Graeme,

I haven't been through all the pages of this thread so I apologise if I'm repeating information!

The East Riding of Yorkshire Imperial Yeomanry had a Riding School & Gymnasium build on Walton Street in Hull (opposite the fairground) in 1904/5; it was opened by the Colonel, Lord Wenlock, on 11th March 1905.

The actual riding school part was demolished many years ago, but the barrack complex was 'L' shaped I believe and part of that remains today as Wenlock Barracks (fronting onto Anlaby Road), still used by the TA (B (250 Hull) Squadron, 5 Medical GS Regiment) and Cadets.

I haven't any photos of the barracks today, but I have some scanned images of the original Riding School taken from the Souvenir Brochure for the Bazaar held to help pay for it, printed in 1906, if you'd be interested.

Hope that is of some help/interest!

Regards,

Neil

[Graeme Fisher]

Fab info, Neil.

I'd love a copy of the pictures, and indeed, copies of the brochure.

The task of paying for the new premises was faced by many units, and fetes and bazaars were common means of raising funds.

Thanks!

Graeme

[NeilH]

Graeme,

Unfortunately the brochure is at home in the UK (I'm in Milan most of the time) so that will have to wait for another time. However here are the shots of the Riding School.

Neil.

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[DaveNich]

For Information


The drill hall of the 2nd Battalion, The Monmouthshire Regiment at Pontypool was knocked down about a month ago.


Regards


David

[John Hartley]

Now then, Ste, should we be introducing pubs into this thread?

As confirmed by the Guiness Book of Records, Britain's longest pub name is fairly near to me on Astley Street, Stalybridge. It's the "The Old Thirteenth Cheshire Astley Volunteer Rifleman Corps Inn".

Piccie here. Clickety click.

[Graeme Fisher]

Graeme,

Unfortunately the brochure is at home in the UK (I'm in Milan most of the time) so that will have to wait for another time. However here are the shots of the Riding School.

Neil.

Thanks, Neil.

Great inside and outside shots of premises that allowed recruits to become proficient on horseback.

Thanks

Graeme

[Graeme Fisher]

For Information
The drill hall of the 2nd Battalion, The Monmouthshire Regiment at Pontypool was knocked down about a month ago.
Regards
David

Thanks for the info, David.

This just underlines the point of my project, as these places are being turned into 'brownfield' sites on a weekly basis.

Don't suppose anyone's got any pictures of the now-gone drill hall?

Graeme

[Graeme Fisher]

As confirmed by the Guiness Book of Records, Britain's longest pub name is fairly near to me on Astley Street, Stalybridge. It's the "The Old Thirteenth Cheshire Astley Volunteer Rifleman Corps Inn".

John

Just reading the name has made me thirsty!

Do they keep a nice pint?

Graeme

[John Hartley]

Graeme - no idea, mate. I'm not even sure where the pub is. My knowledge of StalyVegas (as it is known since the council put some lights along the canal) is limited to the Library (which used to house the Manc. Regt. Archives), a non-too shabby chippy and the Buffet at the Railway Station (which DOES keep a very nice pint and is a mecca for the real ale enthusiast)

Gwyn - any ideas from your old OS maps of how the boozer might have got its name? Google is unhelpful.

John

[Dragon]

Hello John

D'you mean the pub in Stalybridge?

I don't actually possess many old OS maps, but sometimes helpful contacts copy and post me their own, or extracts from them, or I go into local libraries. You could try putting the location into the seach facility on old-maps.co.uk then enlarging and enlarging till you can read the small details. (There's an enhanced enlargement facility box, too.)



Gwyn

I've corrected the URL for old-maps.co.uk (with hyphen). The hyphen is important; oldmaps.co.uk (no hyphen) is defunct.

I've reinserted the URL yet again. For some reason, it was pointing at oldmaps.com even though I amended it. This one works.

This post has been edited by Dragon: Apr 2 2006, 12:58 AM

[John Hartley]

D'you mean the pub in Stalybridge?

I did. I've had a look on the old-maps site - it's never heard of Stalybridge.

No probs - an excuse to go and find it sometime

[Dragon]

It has, though it spells it Stayley Bridge. As I've never been to Stalybridge, I don't know where to start looking for this pub. I'll try the link you gave as a starter.

Gwyn

Edited:

Key in Stalybridge and ask it to search on ‘place’. Do a maximum zoom with Holy Trinity church virtually at the centre. Then click on Enlarged view. Scroll around and find High Street which runs into Grosvenor Street, which veers off to the right. Under Grosvenor Street is a block of streets. I can’t read them all but Grasscroft Street is clear, and this is shown on Streetmap as being four streets north of and running parallel to Astley Street.

I can find this area on the enlarged map but not anything specifically military. Not yet, anyway. Am tired of peering. Am off for a cappuccino.

Edited this morning:

However, there is a rifle range just south of the municipal boundary close to that block of streets. On the enlarged image, it's south of Gorse Hall, which is just north of the E in STALYBRIDGE, which is north east of the T in STOCKPORT, and north east of the second D in DUKINFIELD, and they appear to be firing at Hough Hill.

Gwyn

John - the problem finding Stalybridge wasn't your fault. I checked the URL and it was pointing at another site, even though I'd corrected it.

This post has been edited by Dragon: Feb 2 2006, 09:12 AM

[John Hartley]

Gwyn

Thanks. Intersting site. As you say, no sign of anything military - might have an "outing" tomorrow to see.

John

[Dragon]

Graeme's database lists the drill hall at Walmsley Street. I have no idea where that was cos I don't know the place.

There are images of the drill hall at Stalydridge on the Tameside Archives site Images section. Search on Drill hall. One is a poignant photo of men not far out of adolescence lined up for training. When I think what I was doing when I was their age, or more relevantly what the lads I knew were doing, and the biggest question of an evening was whether to go to the Vine or the Bird In Hand.....

Gwyn

[John Hartley]

Right then. Stalybridge - sorted!

A bit of research last night tells me that the drill hall of the Stalybridge Company of 6/Cheshires was at Vaudrey Street. This is, literally, round the corner from Astley Street where the Rifleman pub is. So, connection sorted.

I had a trip out this morning - hoping to visit aforementioned decent chippy. Alas, it is no more. And neither is the drill hall. The piccie on the link provided by Gwyn shows the building on Vaudrey Street (going uphill to Astley Street - out of shot).

The site is now generally occupied by 1960/70s housing but one clue as to its existance remains. On the left-hand side of the site, there is what is clearly the "back entrance" to the old drill hall yard. The archway (dated 1877) now only provides access to the back yard of one of the row of terraced houses.

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[Graeme Fisher]

Nice one, John.

I take it that you didn't make it to the chippie - how 'bout the pub?

Seriously, you've provided a number of bits of info here, all mightily valuable.

Most grateful

Graeme

[John Hartley]

how 'bout the pub?

'fraid I'm on the wagon these days, but I did look at it longingly.

Wilson's beer - not too common round north east Cheshire.

J

[harribobs]

here is an architects drawing of the drill hall (courtesy of Robert Bonner, Volunteer Infantry of Ashton)

here's another pic for you, the proposed Drill Hall, pictured in a fund raising bazaar leaflet

[Dragon]

WOW! That's amazing, Chris. It's quite different in tone from that lovely architectural drawing, but equally characterful.

Would you be able to scan and share what the rest of the leaflet said, and the programme of events? Please.

For anyone who doesn't know Ashton, the final built result was not very different from the concept shown in these drawings.

Gwyn

[Graeme Fisher]

Brilliant, Chris.

As Gwyn rightly points out, it's not too far removed from the reality of what exists.

The scale in the leaflet is a bit odd, though... Makes the troops in the foreground look like toy soldiers.

Curious, though, that these places were often built, then the money raised afterwards.

Graeme

[John Hartley]

Chris

Is the leaflet dated?

Reason for asking is that all of the foreground including upto where the troops are, has had buildings on it for obviously a long while (late 19th century terraced properties)

John

[Dragon]

Yes, I was wondering that sort of thing myself, because although I hardly know Ashton, the aerial photos on the Tameside Archives website show the drill hall surrounded by terraced housing, in c.1920.

Image here, plus others - found by searching on 'armoury'.

The actual drawing struck me as a nineteenth century version of a rather fanciful architect's fly-thru of how wonderfully improved one's countryside is going to look after remodelling with Hy-mac! Even so, they built it like that...

(Modern picture Post #448. Drill hall built 1886.)

Gwyn

[geoff501]

At Bromsgrove, don't know what the future is:



A close up of the badge, 8th Worcesters: