Dear All,
This is the sign for the main sports ground in Thurnscoe.
Love,
Mousie
The village sports ground (including the bowling green) is not far from the library, just into the Bottom End of Thurnscoe. It’s been here for over a century and there’s basketball courts, football fields and all sorts!
Dear All,
This is Thurnscoe Railway Station.
Love,
Mousie
Thurnscoe Railway Station is on the Wakefield Line that runs between Sheffield and Leeds. The railway line is the dividing line between Thurnscoe (Bottom End) and Thurnscoe East (Top End).
Originally there wasn’t a stop in Thurnscoe on this line, the nearest stops being in Frickley, a mile or so to the north and now gone, and Bolton-on-Dearne, a few more miles away to the south. This one was opened in 1988.
A day late because of computer problems, but here we go!
First off, last week sawe the public announcement for A Granted Wish’s rehoming with Fox Spirit Books [External Link]. This is (just) a novella, with a smidge over 15,000 words – and will probably be turning up on their website early next year.
The story background post published this week was for The Big, Bad Wolf, which was picked up by the now defunct Drollerie Press for an anthology of Little red Riding Hodd retellings. It’s been out of print a few years, now.
Mousie’s A-Z guide to Thurnscoe continues, as part of the A to Z Blog Tour. Last week’s and today’s posts are:
We’ve got three more posts (R to T) due tomorrow, Thursday, and Friday. For more on the A-Z blogging challenge take a look at Chris Galvin’s blog here: [External Link].
Last week’s Sunday Story was Simulacrum – and this week’s, which I managed to announce before computer problems got in the way, is Friday Night, Saturday Morning.
Dear All,
This is Queen Street
Love,
Mousie
One of the earlier areas of development following the opening of Hickleton Main Colliery is the area around Queen Street in Top End. It includes King Street and Princess Drive. Can you spot the naming theme?
Dear All,
This is one f the sculptures in Phoenix Park.
Love,
Mousie
Hickleton Main Colliery was found the Barnsley coal seam in 1894. The development of Thursncoe into the overgrown village it now is began then. However, the colliery closed in 1994, leaving behind buildings, engineering and a waste heap.
Eventually, it became a small industrial estate, a community woodland and Phoenix Park. The woodland and park are managed by the Forestry Commission [External Link].
Dear All,
This is the sign for Oak Road.
Love,
Mousie
Thurnscoe grew a lot in the last century and it got bigger by building residential areas. As with many places, themed names were used and there’s a group of streets named after trees – including Oak Road.
Dear All,
This is the Robert Ogden School, run by the National Autistic Society.
Love,
Mousie
The National Autistic Society [External Link] owns and runs the Robert Ogden School, Clayton Croft and Thurnscoe House. The first of those is the former secondary school for the village but is now a specialist residential school for children between the ages of six and nineteen who are on the Autism Spectrum.
(Volunteers welcome, see the website. Or you can donate by taking part in the Ink Plan!)
Dear All,
This sculpture in Phoenix Park has been made with local Magnesian Limestone.
Love,
Mousie
Thurnscoe sits on a ridge of “Magnesian Limestone” – more correctly known as Dolomite, these days – that runs from the Tyne area down through to Nottinghamshire.
There are no quarries in Thurnscoe’s immediate area any more but some of the older houses were built with local stone and, once upon a time, the cistercian Roche Abbey (Maltby, about ten miles to the south) used to own a lot of Bottom End and quarried the local stone.
Well, I hope the Solstice went as well as these things can (it’s all down hill form here, sorry folks).
The story background post published this week was for Nesting Instinct. This was the first story of mine picked up by Crossed Genres [External Link] in their first interation of their magazine. It’s been out of print a while.
As we’re still part way through the A to Z Blog Tour challenge, Mousie has posted four selfies / postcards for her A-Z guide to Thurnscoe. These are, in alphabetical order:
We’ve got four more posts (M to P) due next week on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. For more on the A-Z blogging challenge take a look at Chris Galvin’s blog here: [External Link].
And last week’s Sunday Story was Wake-Up Call – and this week’s is Simulacrum.
Dear All,
This is the Thurnscoe library. I made the mistake of calling on a Sunday…
Love,
Mousie
Thurnscoe library is on the corner of Houghton Road and Shepherd Lane. It’s a very unusual library in that, given recent cuts, they’ve actuall extended their opening hours!
Opening times:
Monday 9:30am-1pm, 2pm-5pm
Tuesday 9:30am-1pm, 2pm-5pm
Wednesday 9:30am-1pm
Thursday 9:30am-1pm, 2pm-4pm
Friday 9:30am-1pm, 2pm-4pm
Saturday 9:30am-12:30pm
Page on the Barnsley Council website: [External Link]