Rural Buildings

Photographic stile record to be created in Gloucestershire

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Fabulous stuff –  I’m going to add rural buildings to my ongoing theme of rural mega-fauna on the strength of this article, which tells us:

A man is attempting to create a photographic record of every stone stile in Gloucestershire after becoming “alarmed” at how fast they are disappearing.

Peter Wilson, from Inchbrook, said each stile had a story attached to it.

“They’re a record of ancient rights of way, or even a route to the nearest ale house,” he said.

Mr Wilson is working with the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) to create an online map of every stile.

Stiles are structures built into fences of animal enclosures which allow walkers to cross them safely.

Ramblers are invited to submit photos of stiles they encounter, with over 150 submissions to date.

“Some of them date back to the 13th Century, but they seemed to go out of use around 1800 and very few have been built since then,” said Mr Wilson.

“Stiles have always been part of our heritage and we should have a record of where they were.”

Many of these structures are now being replaced to meet accessibility requirements for ramblers.

Eastbourne Pier fire: Blaze at Victorian attraction believed to have started in games arcade paneling

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My LEADER (EU funding) work at the moment, helping one or two places prepare bids, has thrown up some significant enthusiasm for vernacular buildings. I think when we conceive rural places we all too often miss this important aspect of their character until we reflect a bit more deeply. This is perhaps, albeit Eastbourne is no small town, why this story pulled at the heart strings as soon as I read it. It tells us

A fire broke out at the 144-year-old pier in the East Sussex seaside town of Eastbourne on Wednesday afternoon – gutting its largest dome.

Thick black smoke was seen rising from the roof of the two-storey dome on Eastbourne Pier on Wednesday evening, which the leader of the council said was “badly damaged”.

At around 7pm on Wednesday, leader of Eastbourne Borough Council, David Tutt, added that the pier was still alight, but “contained”. He added it did not look as though it would spread further down the pier, following fears that the stiff sea breeze would fan the flames.

“That is good news, and the really good news is that it doesn’t look as if there’s been any injury at all.

“The building which has been affected is the largest dome on the pier, and it has been badly damaged – but further down it looks as it’s always looked.”

Around 60 firefighters – including personnel from neighbouring towns – had tackled the blaze from around 3pm, but the severity of the situation saw the number rise to 80 at around 6:30pm. Firefighters would remain on the shoreline for “several hours”, according to fire officials.

Barns are our rural cathedrals

Brilliant article this – it explains:

“John Betjeman called it the Cathedral of Middlesex, and the romantic old poet wasn’t using poetic licence. Grade I-listed Manor Farm Barn in Harmondsworth – which English Heritage has just saved from collapse – is one of the great buildings of Britain, one of the biggest, best, oak-framed barns in the country. And, until now, one of the most ignored.

We British are admirably deferential to our grand buildings – to our country houses, our royal palaces, churches and genuine cathedrals. No other country in the world has an architectural preservation body as popular as the National Trust, which has just recruited its four millionth member.

But we neglect the buildings which produced the medieval wealth behind those country houses and cathedrals. Until the Industrial Revolution, it was farming that financed Britain. And the barn was the farm’s much-valued treasury – Harmondsworth Barn was built in 1426 to store the grain that paid for the upkeep of Winchester College, still one of the country’s most famous schools.

What interests me is the idea that a Greater London based building is deemded a “rural cathedral” all goes to show that “rural” is as much how you feel as where you sit!