This type of blog is rather new to me and so far I've been enjoying sharing my cards with you.
I would like it to a bit more interactive though so I'm giving you the opportunity to ask some questions or comment on what I've written about up to now.
I don't want the blog to be structured in such a way that I'm tied to writing about a particular thing on a particular day but I will be making Wednesdays question days.
Hit the comments with any question you may have and I'll answer them next Wednesday. I regret I won't be able to answer and valuation queries, I don't know too much about that but I'm happy to answer other questions (within reason)
I'm going to be away for a couple of weeks so next question and answer post will be 5th July.
Before I go here a few blog posts you can look forward to on my return.
The hotel frequented by Al Capone's rivals.
The Ukrainian city which has undergone 7 name changes.
One of the most isolated and precarious ghost towns in the world.
Plus many more.
Wednesday 15 June 2016
Monday 13 June 2016
Gilman, Colorado
Gilman, Colorado as with Centralia is a former mining town, also in common with Centralia it was abandoned relatively recently but it doesn't seem to be as famous as Centralia.
Now on private property it is strictly out of bounds without permission though some photographs of the town in its abandoned and sadly vandalised state do exist.
It was founded in 1886 during the Colorado Silver Boom and centred on the now flooded Eagle Mine. The boom ended in 1893 and many towns became ghost towns in the period immediately afterwards. However, Gilman survived until 1984 even though it was nearly destroyed by a fire in 1899. As with Centralia, Gilman was quite a thriving town in its heyday with theatres, shops, hotels and schools.
The abandonment of the town was ordered by the Environmental Protection Agency due to toxic pollutions and contaminated water, but by this point the mines were not profitable either.
Now on private property it is strictly out of bounds without permission though some photographs of the town in its abandoned and sadly vandalised state do exist.
It was founded in 1886 during the Colorado Silver Boom and centred on the now flooded Eagle Mine. The boom ended in 1893 and many towns became ghost towns in the period immediately afterwards. However, Gilman survived until 1984 even though it was nearly destroyed by a fire in 1899. As with Centralia, Gilman was quite a thriving town in its heyday with theatres, shops, hotels and schools.
The abandonment of the town was ordered by the Environmental Protection Agency due to toxic pollutions and contaminated water, but by this point the mines were not profitable either.
As you can see from the card (undated but from the 1907-1914 period) the town is rather high up. It sits at an elevation of 2,700 metres on a cliff of around 180 metres high.
The town today is relatively well preserved and includes cars and trucks left behind by their owners.
For photographs of the town today, as well as information on other ghost towns I recommend the below link.
http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/co/gilman.html
For a detailed history and some really cool photos check out the below.
http://substreet.org/gilman-colorado/
Sunday 12 June 2016
The Hotel Majestic
As another TT draws to a close this will be my last Manx related post for a while, though do expect more in the future. I have a lot of Isle of Man postcards.
We've looked at some tourist attractions, but all those tourists had to stay somewhere so I'll be looking at one of the many sadly now defunct hotels on the island - The Majestic.
Although there is still a request stop in Onchan called the Majestic Halt, the hotel is long gone having been razed to build apartments .
The hotel started life as a mansion in 1893 and was sold in 1920 to a couple looking to build a hotel to cater to tourists who wanted to take advantage of the attractions of Douglas and not have to travel from the South of the island to do so.
Tho hotel open in 1922 and boasted a ball rooms, billiard room and bar. The swimming was not added until 1935 and the same year the hotel changed its name to the Majestic Lido Hotel. In the following decades the hotel became a popular place for wedding receptions and was increasingly used by non-residents.
The decline of the hotel is a familiar one. As foreign holidays become more available, domestic based holidays fall out of favour and the local tourist industry suffers and so it was the case with the Majestic. It ceased functioning as a hotel in 1987 but the building remained for a few years as an auction house before, as stated earlier,it was razed to build apartments.
We've looked at some tourist attractions, but all those tourists had to stay somewhere so I'll be looking at one of the many sadly now defunct hotels on the island - The Majestic.
Although there is still a request stop in Onchan called the Majestic Halt, the hotel is long gone having been razed to build apartments .
The hotel started life as a mansion in 1893 and was sold in 1920 to a couple looking to build a hotel to cater to tourists who wanted to take advantage of the attractions of Douglas and not have to travel from the South of the island to do so.
Tho hotel open in 1922 and boasted a ball rooms, billiard room and bar. The swimming was not added until 1935 and the same year the hotel changed its name to the Majestic Lido Hotel. In the following decades the hotel became a popular place for wedding receptions and was increasingly used by non-residents.
The decline of the hotel is a familiar one. As foreign holidays become more available, domestic based holidays fall out of favour and the local tourist industry suffers and so it was the case with the Majestic. It ceased functioning as a hotel in 1987 but the building remained for a few years as an auction house before, as stated earlier,it was razed to build apartments.
I'm not sure when the above postcard is from, it's not dated, but I've seen similar pictures used on adverts for the hotel from the early 1970s so that seems about right.
Thursday 9 June 2016
Open Air Bathing Manx style : Port Skillion and Peel
Some of my postcards I'd really like to be able to dive right into and with the hot weather we've been having recently I wish I could dive right into the pools depicted on the following couple of cards.
The fist post card shows Port Skillion bathing creek near Douglas Head. Built in 1874 by Mr Robert Archer , they were possibly the first open air baths in the British Isles.
Initially they were for men only though women used to enjoy watching the men which was considered quite scandalous at the time with people writing letters to newspapers about the moral decline of the island.
I imagine the scene would have looked like this card sent in 1908 and written in what I think is Welsh.
The people who wrote the card below do not seem too bothered about any lowering of moral standards as they state they are having a great time.
There had been an open air pool in Peel since 1900 but this was closed in the 1950s due to cliff erosion. Those above replaced it and remained open until the 1970s. They are now filled in and there are currently no public outdoor swimming pools in the Isle of Man which I think is a shame.
The fist post card shows Port Skillion bathing creek near Douglas Head. Built in 1874 by Mr Robert Archer , they were possibly the first open air baths in the British Isles.
Initially they were for men only though women used to enjoy watching the men which was considered quite scandalous at the time with people writing letters to newspapers about the moral decline of the island.
I imagine the scene would have looked like this card sent in 1908 and written in what I think is Welsh.
The people who wrote the card below do not seem too bothered about any lowering of moral standards as they state they are having a great time.
The card is published by Valentines and research indicates it's from 1909 but other research conflicts that as guides published in 1910 state the cove was for gentleman only. The card is not dated but the stamp is of George V SG 338 so 1911 seems about right.
The creek stopped being used in 1932 after the surrounding walls were storm damaged.
The second postcard is more up to date and shows the outdoor pool in Peel. It was published by Bamforth is one of the Color (sic) Gloss Series and is likely from 1969.
Tuesday 7 June 2016
Cambrian Airlines
It's not just places which disappear from the map. Companies can also cease to exist for a variety of reasons and it is one such company I'd like to look at today.
While the bikers who visit during the TT will arrive via the ferry, I'm sure some of the crowds will have flown in to Ronaldsway. However, they won't have done so by Cambrian Airlines.
Cambrian Airways was a UK based airline which operated between 1935 and 1974 before being incorporated into British Airways in April of that year. The Isle of Man was one of 16 destinations flown to by the airline. The company used several types of aircraft including the now retired Viscount Vickers 701 which is shown on the card below. These types of craft were last flown commercially in 2008.
For the full story and for information on other Viscount Vickers planes please see below.
http://www.vickersviscount.net/Index/VickersViscount028History.aspx
While the bikers who visit during the TT will arrive via the ferry, I'm sure some of the crowds will have flown in to Ronaldsway. However, they won't have done so by Cambrian Airlines.
Cambrian Airways was a UK based airline which operated between 1935 and 1974 before being incorporated into British Airways in April of that year. The Isle of Man was one of 16 destinations flown to by the airline. The company used several types of aircraft including the now retired Viscount Vickers 701 which is shown on the card below. These types of craft were last flown commercially in 2008.
The plane on the card above G-AMOO was scrapped long before then.
The website below gives precise information about this particular plane. I won't go into details here other than to say that it was built in Bournemouth in 1953 and sold to Cambrian Airways in 1966 and it remained with them until 1970 when it was withdrawn from service on 19th December that year. It sold for scrap in October the following year and broken up.
The card above is not dated but form the colours we can tell it's from 1969 as this was the year it was painted in the Cambrian Airways 'BAS - British Air Services' livery. So, the airline, the aircraft type and the aeroplane all no longer exist. It really is a postcard from a vanished world.
For the full story and for information on other Viscount Vickers planes please see below.
http://www.vickersviscount.net/Index/VickersViscount028History.aspx
Monday 6 June 2016
Calvary Glen
I have to admit to not knowing an awful lot about this glen. I hand not heard of it until I was looking through my postcards.
What I can tell you is that the glen was created in the 1960s by Father McGrath of St Anthony's church in Onchan.
The statues were made in Lourdes and set up in "The Way of the Cross". They were also illuminated and could be seen from Douglas Head. I have tried finding photos which illustrate this but no luck so far.
I also know that the statues, which were nearly four foot high, are now in the grounds of St Anthony's church in Onchan which was built on the site of the former internment camp.
They were moved there sometime in the 1980s.
What I haven't been able to find out is when the glen was closed to the public, but I do know that it was purchased from the Diocese of Liverpool in 2013 and there are plans to renovate it though it is still in a state of disrepair.
The card dates from the mid 1960s probably from around the time the glen was first created.
Source http://www.isleofman.com/places-to-visit/countryside/glens/calvary-glen/
What I can tell you is that the glen was created in the 1960s by Father McGrath of St Anthony's church in Onchan.
The statues were made in Lourdes and set up in "The Way of the Cross". They were also illuminated and could be seen from Douglas Head. I have tried finding photos which illustrate this but no luck so far.
I also know that the statues, which were nearly four foot high, are now in the grounds of St Anthony's church in Onchan which was built on the site of the former internment camp.
They were moved there sometime in the 1980s.
What I haven't been able to find out is when the glen was closed to the public, but I do know that it was purchased from the Diocese of Liverpool in 2013 and there are plans to renovate it though it is still in a state of disrepair.
The card dates from the mid 1960s probably from around the time the glen was first created.
Source http://www.isleofman.com/places-to-visit/countryside/glens/calvary-glen/
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