The Belfry of Bruges is a medieval bell tower built around 1240. The city at the time of construction was an important trading centre and the tower was home to the city archives, these however were lost when a fire swept through the tower in 1280. The belfry has suffered from fire damage on at least another 2 occasions and is lower than it's historic height due to these fires destroying the wooden spires that sat atop the tower. The Belfry has housed the municipal archives, a treasury, and acted as an observation post throughout its history. The Belfry also formally hosted a market hall and has an enclosed courtyard to the rear. The observation platform giving outstanding views of the city at a height of approx 272feet is reached by a narrow staircase 366 steps.
Since 1999 the Belfry has been a UNESCO world site and featured in the IN Bruges film staring Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson and Ralph Fiennes.
The pictures were taken in November 2015 using a polaroid is2132 bridge camera, clicking any image should open a link in another window to the higher resolution, un-watermarked version on Clickasnap.
In July 2014 whilst on a trip to Portinatx, Ibiza I had the opportunity of a boat trip along the coast to San Miguel bay, I've previously posted the pictures taken on the Portinatx - San Miguel part of the journey, the following pictures were taken on the return part of the journey which took approx 1 hour skirting the northern coastline.
There are a total of 16 pictures which can be viewed below or alternatively on Clickasnap full resolution and un-watermarked. They were taken on the 12 July 2014 using a Polaroid is2132 bridge camera.
These pictures of the Methodist church and St Nicholas were taken on the 10th September 2015. I was at the nearby air field to collect a load in my job as a HGV driver and upon arrival was informed I would be unable to load until the following morning, so with time to pass and nothing to do I went to explore the local area.
Dunkeswell Methodist Church
The first church I passed whilst walking towards the village was the Dunkeswell Methodist Church, located a short walk from the airfield at the top of Abbey Road the small church overlooks the village. Other than service information there isn't much available online regarding the history of the church. The pictures below were taken using a Polaroid is2132 bridge camera and can also be seen full size, resolution and un-watermarked on Clickasnap.
St Nicholas Church
The church of St Nicholas was rebuilt on the same site as an earlier structure between 1865-68, with the tower being replaced in 1953. The tower had been urgently demolished after World War II due to being seriously weakened and in danger of collapse. This structural damage had been caused by the engine vibration of the bombers taking off from the nearby air field which was home to the US Air Force and then the US Navy who have a plaque and book of remembrance in the church. The church still holds regular services today and has a number of references inside to the US forces that were stationed nearby.
The church was open when I passed so I got pictures of both the exterior and interior, they were taken using a Polaroid is2132 bridge camera. They can be seen below or alternatively on Clickasnap full size, resolution and un-watermarked.
Thanks for looking and please take a moment to share, all the pictures remain the copyright of Colin Green.
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Clicking any image should open a link in another window to my Clickasnap profile.
All the images remain the copyright of Colin Green.
2013 was the year I started to take an interest in photography whilst on a holiday to Lanzarote, and upon my return I started to venture around the area I live, this meant a lot of pictures of Sowerby Bridge as this is the place I called home.
Sowerby Bridge is a medium sized market town in Calderdale, West Yorkshire. The town grew around the confluence of the Rivers Calder and Ryburn where a fording point crossed the much larger River Calder and was eventually replaced by a bridge of which the town takes it's name. The towns largest growth was during the industrial revolution when the Rivers and the many streams, cloughs and water inlets helped power the textile and engineering mills which grew up along the banks. The town became an urban district in 1894 and was merged with Brighouse, Elland, Halifax, Hebden Bridge, and Todmorden to form the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in 1974.
Sowerby Bridge which grew around the Rivers Calder and Ryburn is also the junction point of the Calder and Hebble Navigation Canal which opened in 1770 and the Rochdale Canal, opened in 1804. The Calder and Hebble has remained open since completion, however the Rochdale Canal hasn't with closure of the canal in 1952, the last full journey from Sowerby Bridge having taken place in 1937. The section from Wharf Street to Bridge 1a Tower Hill was infilled and turned in to a new road, Tuel Lane and car park for the town. This section was reopened in 1996.
The railway reached Sowerby Bridge in 1840 when the first station to serve the town opened near to the present day Tesco superstore. This closed in 1876 when the current station opened it's present location. The stations move was in anticipation of the new Rishworth Branch Line opening.
The town declined when the textile and engineering companies left the area as the hilly nature and lack of flat land made it unsuitable for development. By the late 1970's the town was in serious decline with many industries, shops and business leaving, this led to various attempts at regeneration including a canoe club on the River Calder, restoration of the Rochdale Canal and canal wharf area, and large scale conversion of the former mills in to apartments or small industrial units more suitable for the area.
Sowerby Bridge whilst much improved since the 1980's still suffers from a lack of investment from Calderdale Council, the town suffering large traffic congestion problems, and a lack of shops that entice people to visit. The canals form a large centrepiece of the town and the annual Rushbearing festival brings much needed tourism to the town but these have been on the decline in recent years.
The pictures below were all taken around the town in 2013 and put together to form a YouTube video, they were taken using a Samsung Galaxy Tablet.
The pictures below all feature in the video and can be purchased from Clickasnap or Ebay.
Famous Scots is a set of 2 videos I put together recently with a set of 50 cigarette trading cards I had in my possession from 1933. I was in the process of listing them for sale so took the time to scan and create 2 videos of 25 images each for YouTube.
The images feature poets, playwrights, inventors, politicians, royalty and much more. They can be seen below and on YouTube. please take a moment to subscribe to my channel.
and part 2,
The cards were released in packs of Mitchells Cigarettes which was a Scottish tobacco company based in Linlithgow, the company had merged with Imperial Tobacco by 1901 although the cards were released with Mitchells branding.
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