Saltcote Issue No.3

The 3rd issue of our newsletter is now available.

http://issuu.com/ecosaluk/docs/saltcote_2015_no3/1

Buy a Copy of John Henry Cooke 1848-1928 'a very worthy gentleman'

A&A Fielding Ltd have published a second book through the on demand service of Blurb.
John Henry Cooke was the first clerk to the Winsford Local Board, Cheshire and was solicitor for those promoting the Brine Pumping (compensation for subsidence) Bill of 1881 and for the second Bill which became an Act in 1891.
Some years ago Andrew and Annelise Fielding bought a copy of JH Cooke's book describing the celebrations that took place in Cheshire to celebrate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in which he had written notes about his life and his work dedicated to the people of Winsford. The notes describe his life and his education as he trained to become a solicitor and the sadness from which he never really recovered following the death of two of his sons in the Great War. His library about the salt industry in Cheshire was used by Albert F Calvert while Calvert was compiling his book Salt in Cheshire published in 1915.

JH Cooke 1848 - 1928 by Andrew P Fielding, Annelise M Fielding | Make Your Own Book

Separating the Salt from the Sand

Photo sent from the Morecambe Bay Partnership of the talk 'Separating the Salt from the Sand' last Saturday at Silverdale.
A room full of people interested in the enigmatic, historic salt making process of washing salt from the sands and silts of Morecambe Bay. Hopefully the Morecambe Bay Partnership, through the Headland to Headspace programme will begin to seek out some of the sites mentioned in documents
The talk was an introduction to the process, which is little understood, and will lead to further work to understand how the process was carried out around the Bay from Barrow to Fleetwood.
Some members of the audience had already started personal research projects, making salt themselves, studying the monastic records or transcribing inventory records. Still lots to do though.
Hopefully we will be able to give a demonstration of the process during an event next summer.

Separating the Salt from the Sand

Talk to Headlands to Headspace, Morecambe Bay Partnership
Separating the Salt from the Sand
by Andrew Fielding
Saturday  3rd October
Elizabeth Gaskell Centre, Silverdale
Starts 2pm
Book through MBP

Buy a Copy of Thomas Birtles' Photographic Survey of Northwich 1891-2

http://www.blurb.co.uk/b/6449053-thomas-birtles-photographic-survey-of-northwich-ch

Thomas Birtles' Photographic Survey of Northwich, Cheshire 1891-1892 by Andrew Fielding, Annelise Fielding | Make Your Own Book

Salt Making at Holme Cultram Abbey

Salt Making Demonstration - Holme Cultram Abbey, Cumbria - 16 Sept 2015

Andrew and Annelise Fielding will be giving a demonstration of salt making at Holme Cultram Abbey, Abbeytown, Cumbria on Wednesday 16 September. Short opening talk 10am, fire lit 11am. Summary talk 3pm, close 4.30pm

The event takes place during a community excavation at Holme Cultram Abbey by Grampus Heritage for Solway Coast AONB and Solway Wetlands Landscape Partnership.

Tom Lane to Speak at the European Association of Archaeologists, Glasgow 2-5 Sept 2015

EAA Programme

This talk will take place on 5th Sept
ABSTRACT

LV4 - Maths Building 516
IMPACTS OF CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE: THE EFFECTS ON COASTAL SALTMAKING IN LINCOLNSHIRE, UK
Tom Lane ECOSAL UK

Following the results of English Heritage sponsored Surveys, chiefly in the 1980s, and subsequent investigative works, information is present about a series of past climate and environmental change events in the Fenland and coastal regions of Lincolnshire, Eastern England, covering some five millennia. These changes have resulted both in coastal erosion in places and elsewhere on the coast accretion. These altered landscapes affected not just coastal communities but those inland for up to 50km. Because of its specific natural resource requirements it is intended to view the issue through the coastal saltmaking industry, which flourished from the Bronze Age through to the end of the 16th century. The mapped west –east movement of the industry, and back again, reflects the displacement and movement of people, particularly the specialist saltmakers, and considers how such specialists may fare when the environment and resources necessary for their craft/industry is no longer available. The paper also considers human adaptability to such changes and asks what happened to people who were forced to move and become, in effect, refugees in their own country. Also touched on are issues of individual and group identity and cultural heritage of such groups.

Thomas Birtles' Photographic Survey of Northwich

A catalogue of photographs taken by Thomas Birtles between 1891 and 1892 will be published by Andrew and Annelise Fielding at the end of August. The photographs record the town as it was at the passing of the Brine Pumping (Compensation for Subsidence) Act of 1891. The town was at a point of change with brick buildings being replaced by timber-framed buildings as a form of subsidence resistance protecting structures from ground movements caused by rock salt mining and wild brine pumping.

The book is 248 pages long and includes maps showing the location of the buildings with 13 maps and all 251 photographs grouped by their location within the town. The book will retail at £15 in paperback. A&A Fielding Ltd.

Tomb of John Smith - Crosscanonby - 123Catch

A short clip put together  with 123Catch, from photographs of John Smith's tomb at St Johns Church, Crosscanonby. John Smith was a Salt Officer dealing with the salt tax

If you know of other tombs or memorials of people associated with salt please let us know.

St John the Evangelist, Crosscanonby, Cumbria - John Smith, Salt Officer

Record of the death of John Smith, Salt officer, 1730.

 St John the Evangelist at Crosscanonby, Cumbria held an Open Day on Saturday 27 June when some of the church records from the Cumbrian Record Office were made available to be viewed.
With the help of Churchwarden, Anna Bagley, we were able to find the record dated March 17th,, 1730 listing the death of John Smith of Birkby, a customs officer based in the area. A tomb in the graveyard was also erected to John Smith which includes a unique carved stone panel showing him working, at his desk. It is located close to the south door of the church.
The church is well worth a visit by anyone interested in getting close to a specific person directly involved in the local salt industry.
The Church Open Day was also an important event to draw attention to the fundraising that is needed to secure the care and maintenance of the church, which needs conservation work to its roof and stained glass windows.

Tomb of John Smith.
St John the Evangelist, Crosscanonby.

St John the Evangelist
Crosscanonby

Interior, St John the Evangelist, Crosscanonby.

Close to the church are the remains of a sea salt works. In the mid-1980s, the significance of the surviving Croscanonby salt pans was realised leading to the redevelopment of the historical monument. Between 1997 and 1998, major works were carried out to protect the salt pans from the threat of coastal erosion having realised that one or two more tides could result in the loss of the Salt pans forever.
 In order to protect the Salt pans, emergency work included building a wooden palisade around the most affected part of the site. Over 2,000 tonnes of material from nearby Crosscanonby Carr nature reserve were used in the process. Today, the site remains intact, although under constant threat from the tides.
Links
Wikipedia
Visit Cumbria
Croscannonby CofE Primary School

Natural Sea Salt from Rock Pool on Anglesey

Sea salt harvested today from a small rock pool in the north coast of Anglesey at Cemlyn, near Cemaes Bay.
The pool is above the high tide level and has evaporated greatly over the last few days, even with moderate day time temperatures of 14-18 degrees C. But no rainfall and no dilution from fresh sea water.

ERIH Meeting 10 June

Andrew Fielding gave a presentation about the Ecosal-UK Salt Network and possible links to the ERIH Themed Salt Route at the latest regional meeting organised by Jonathan Lloyd.
Hildebrand de Boer gave a presentation about the ERIH Regional Route based in Amsterdam.
The meeting took place at the Bursledon Brickworks Industrial Museum, Southampton an Anchor Point on the European Route of Industrial Heritage.

Jonathan Lloyd and Hildebrand de Boer members of ERIH
speaking at the meeting held at Bursledon Brickworks, Southampton
10 June, 2015. 

Brine in Britannia Now Available to Download

Mike Nevell has made the CBA NW publication 'Brine in Britannia' available to download.
Published in 2005.

Headland to Headspace - Salt Talk 3 October

Andrew and Annelise will be giving a talk about salt making to the Headland 2 Headspace group who are investigating the heritage of Morecambe Bay.
The talk will take place at Gaskell Memorial Hall, Silverdale. Starts at 2pm.
Title of talk - 'Separating the Salt from the Sand in Morecambe Bay'

ERIH meeting -10 June

Andrew will be giving a short talk about the UK Salt Network to the regional meeting of the European Route of Industrial Heritage on Wednesday, 10 June at Burseldon Brick Works museum, Southampton.

Salt Sunday 2015 - Blessing the Brine

Salt Sunday 2015

Photos from Salt Sunday 2015. Video to follow.

Preparations for Salt Sunday Event 17 May

Salt Sunday 2015 - marquee

Salt hearth ready to receive peat fuel and the salt pan
for Salt Sunday 2015

Salt Making Links at Lincoln Cathedral

Write up about salt making links at Lincoln Cathedral with links to the Blessing the Brine song from Nantwich, Cheshire.
Highlight of the Week section on the Lincoln Cathedral web site

Salt Sunday 2015 Poster

Poster for the 2015 Salt Sunday event
and the
Ascension Day song 'Blessing the Brine'
being revived by Nantwich Museum.

Talk to MRIAS 10 April

In a late change to their published program Andrew Fielding will be giving a talk to the Manchester Region Industrial Archaeology Society on Friday 10 April at 6pm. All things Ecosal-UK and salt heritage.
http://www.mrias.co.uk/

Blessing the Brine - a Nantwich Festival to be Revived

We have been helping Nantwich Museum to find a tune for an old, mostly forgotten song Blessing the Brine. This was reputedly sung at Ascension Day at a holiday to bless the brine well in Nantwich.
The words are recorded in Egerton Leigh's book Cheshire Ballads and Tales published in 1867. The festival was recorded by Rev Joseph Partridge in 1774 and mentioned by Thomas Pennant in his Travels written in 1784.

Our colleague in Ecosal-UK, Tom Lane, is part of a folk group in Lincolnshire and with Nigel Creasey and Teri Clarke kindly arranged a traditional folk tune to the words.

Video of Blessing the Brine recorded by Nigel Creasey and Teri Clarke.

I.

and CHORUS.

WREATHS of varied hues we bring,

Flowers of the early spring,

Hand in hand we join a ring,

Round Old Biat pit to sing, God bless the Brine.

II.

     Gather ‘Paigles,’ bring ‘Lent Lilies,’

Of ‘Sweet Nancy’ tie up posies;

Add ‘Ladies Smock’ all silver white,

‘Marsh Marygolds,’ childhood’s delight

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

III.

Bawme the Old Pit with ribbands gay,

Torn from the groves green boughs display,

Whilst we in holiday attire

Lead the fleet dance both child and sire.

Chorus, Wreaths &c

IV.

Sound the lound trimbrel, beat the drum,

Nor let the clarion’s throat be dumb,

Here let us feast, and sing, and play;

Ascension’s feast’s our holiday.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

V.

Long since, before the Roman host

In pomp of war old Cheshire crost,

This pit our fathers’ labouring saw,

The garnered hoards from earth to draw.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

VI.

We bless the author of all good,

For that which savours all our food;

Of gifts on man that showered are,

What gift to this can we compare?

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

VII.

The finny treasures of the deep,

The flocks that climb the mountain steep,

All food spread over plain and lea,

Without our salt would tasteless be?

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

VIII.

Pledge of true friendship, for its sake

Wild Arabs scorn their faith to break;

Nor will their truth e’er prove at fault

Towards him with whom they’ve eaten salt.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

IX.

We envy not climes where we’re told

The rivers run o’er sands of gold,

Nor sigh we for Golcondas’s mine

Whilst we can boast our pits of brine.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

X.

We hear in foreign lands, salt sick,

The wild herds roam in search of lick.

Who by words may dare to measure

The price of this heavenly treasure.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

XI.

So when Ascension’s morn appears,

As years succeeding follow years,

Shall ‘Hellath Wen’ her children see

United here for mirth and glee.

Chorus, Wreaths &c.

XII.

And as our Saviour on this day

Triumphant rose from earth away,

So shall our thanks to Heaven arise,

So let our praises reach the skies.

CHORUS.

Wreaths of varied hue we bring,

Flowers of the early spring,

Hand in hand we form a ring,

Round Old Biat pit to sing, God bless the Brine.

Tune:

Sea Salt Differently - Exhibition - Helston Museum

Exhibition organised by Dr Caradoc Peters.

Nantwich Museum Comic about Salt History

The latest history of Nantwich in comic book form is published by Nantwich Museum, Cheshire
Info to follow here

BBC Radio 4 two part programme - SALT 9 Feb and 16 Feb 2015

Part one of a two part series on BBC Radio 4. Broadcast 9 Feb 2015.
Available on line for 29 days.

Salt

It's easy to take salt for granted - its abundance on supermarket shelves, coupled with the development of refrigeration and freezing for our food, means we can all too readily overlook its vital and multiple role in our history. In part one of 'Salt', BBC Breakfast's Steph McGovern sets out to explain this role. She hears how it has taken root in our language, visits a chemistry class to find out about how it's produced and its importance to our physical well being, talks with history professor Peter Wallenstein about the unexpected importance of salt in military strategy right up until the 20th Century, and also Pierre Laszlo who explains how salt not only helped shape economies and cities like Salzburg, Munich and Venice, but also played a crucial role in revolutions across France, America and India. Steph also visits a graveyard and hears talk of the tradition of sin-eating at Welsh wakes, an illustration of salt's widespread place in religion and superstition across the world. Finally she talks with a commodities expert to discover just how much salt is worth today - significantly less than the days it was traded like for like with gold. 

Salt Sunday 17 May, 2015

The Salt of the Earth Network established in Cheshire by the Bishop of Birkenhead is organising its 5th Salt Sunday. His year it will be held on Sunday 17 May at Reasheath College, Nantwich as part of their Family Fund Day. More details to follow.