St Bartholomew Church

Brinklow Road, Coventry

 

The photograph above is a view from the main road

on a very snowy day in December, 2017. 

Below is the main entrance.  The third photograph

is looking back to the main road from the church.

It is has been a while since I have posted here.  Don't give up on me :). 

Hope this finds you all well.

Please follow the link HERE for a little about the

church history and more.

If you would like to see a little of the interior

click on the link HERE.

* * * * * * * 

With Fond Memories of Elizabeth Anne Bailey Hall

Glazier 1742...

Collegiate Church of St Mary's

Warwick

I love it when something like this

is pointed out to me.  The windows above and below

show signatures with dates.

The pains of glass are located in the window below.

St Mary's a huge church located right in the center of Warwick -

a short distance from Warwick Castle.

Participating in Our World Tuesday

The Circular Tower

Easenhall, Warwickshire

Easenhall Lodge (Grade II listed estate house, circa 1871)

 and Easenhall Cricket Club

Oh how I wish the sun was out when we drove

through Easenhall Village earlier today.

What do you think about that house?

It is described as 'a good example of High Victorian Gothic estate house'.

Fantastic, isn't it.

(Below) is the village cricket ground located next to the house.

 No lawnmowers necessary here.  I'm guessing 

those sheep will keep the grass neatly trimmed :).

These photos were taken with my iPhone this afternoon.

View From The Bus

Gosford Street and Far Gosford Street

I am on the top deck of a bus leaving Coventry City Centre

heading down Gosford Street (above) towards Far Gosford Street (below).

Next trip I'm going to jump off the bus and have a closer look

at these old buildings currently being restored.

The modern buildings in the first photograph are

student accommodation.

Have a good weekend :).

Monks Kirby - Benchmark

Church of St Edith, Monks Kirby

I take great delight in finding a

'benchmark'.  See the cut mark in the stone 

of the church tower (below)?  This serves as

an elevation reference point. 

Below are a few more photographs around the church.

The view behind the church is a fine example of

why I love living in Coventry.  It only takes me

5 minutes by car from my home to be out in countryside like this.

Below is a view of the church across the fields.

It looks a big church and I can assure you - it is!

For more about benchmarks, please click the link HERE

For more about the Church of St Edith, please click the link HERE

Also, please click on the 'labels' below for other benchmarks I

have photographed, pictures of St Edith and/or Monks Kirby.

Time Capsule

Friargate

Under the plaque is a sealed canister. The canister contains a collection of

2016 Coventry memorabilia. The plan is to open the 'time capsule' in 2066.

The building under construction (below) will house Coventry City Council offices.

Friargate is a £100 million regeneration project 

between the Coventry Railway Station and the City Centre. 

We are told there will be new office buildings, hotels, residential and leisure space.

And, I see, there is a 'time capsule' too :).

PS:  The plaque is in the middle of the walkway.  

That couple have just walked by it.

Happy Birthday, Nadine xx

Thatched Roof Thursday #90 - Peatling Parva

Long Folly Cottage

Main Street

This is the second of three thatched cottages

I photographed in the village of Peatling Parva. 

Almost missed it...it is set back from the road.

This village is just a few miles from the old 

RAF airbase at Bruntingthorpe which was used by
the American Air Force during and after WWII. 

 The airbase then became a vehicle testing

ground for Chrysler in the mid 1970/80's.

Thatched Roof Thursday #89 - Peatling Parva

Rookery Nook

Main Street

Grade II Listed and thought to date back to the late 16th Century.

I found more than one thatched cottage in this

lovely Leicestershire village

located about 40 minutes from Coventry.

Coombe - Benchmark

Entrance to Coombe Abbey Hotel

as well as Coombe Country Park

Brinklow Road

When you drive down the Brinklow Road,

just outside Coventry, you can't help but notice

these two pillars and the magnificent Coombe Abbey Hotel beyond.

My interest today is the curious mark on the

left pillar noted by an arrow in the photo below.

Have a closer look below.

The white arrow is pointing at a

benchmark at the base of the pillar.

The benchmark is that 'line' with (what looks

like) an arrow pointing up to it.

The benchmark serves as an elevation reference point.

This one no longer appears on Ordnance Survey maps.

When the reference point was chiseled in the stone,

 these pillars were located just down the road, 

presumably at a different elevation.  

* * * * * 

In preparing for today's post, I was interested to read that

at some point in the 1960s these pillars were originally sited about 60 yards

to the east.  The pillars supported wrought iron gates

 known as the Griffin Gate. I have read further that these gates were

removed for safekeeping when the pillars were moved to their present

location.   I wonder where the gates are now.

In the photo below I am looking towards what was the 

carriage entrance (next to red car behind the trees).
The main entrance is behind me.

(Below) The Griffin Gate was originally here

at the carriage entrance to Coombe Abbey.

This road runs parallel to the main entrance driveway.  

Participating in Skywatch Friday

Brinklow - Benchmark

Church of St. John the Baptist

Broad Street, Brinklow Village

(near to Coventry)

In the photograph above, you will see a white arrow

that shows the location of a chiseled horizontal

mark that surveyors have made in the stone

to serve as an elevation reference.

It is difficult to see above - it looks like an

arrow pointing up to a line and I believe it dates back to 1856. 

The church is much older than that.

Below is the benchmark at the Council House, Coventry.

When I noticed the benchmark on the 

Council House, Coventry,  I hoped wondered if I had

discovered a secret coded message of sorts.  Of course, it was

nothing like that.  This benchmark in Brinklow is the 

second one I have found.  I'll show you the 3rd tomorrow.

In the meantime, enjoy the view from the churchyard

(similar to the one I shared on 1st April.)

Interestingly, this church isn't the only church around

here to have a blue door.

"We Saved It"

Starley Road Mural

I have included more detail about the story 

behind this mural (further down the page).

(Below) are some of the late Victorian houses that

line Starley Road close to Coventry City Centre.

The road was named after James Starley,

father of the bicycle industry.

The story goes something like this:  

The bombs that fell on Coventry during the Blitz

in WW2 missed Starley Road leaving this road in tact.

In 1970s the Council came up with an unpopular plan 

to demolish this inner-city terraced street

and replace it with a tower block. 

The local residents had other ideas.  

A mural was painted (not the one you see here)

on this end terraced house.  It was a picture of a tower block

 with an X through it and the words 'Starley Road - Save It'.

By September, 1978, the residents did just that.  

They formed the City's first ever housing cooperative

and replaced the mural with the one shown here today.

Below is the full size mural declaring

'We Saved It'.

There is a small children's park next to this building.

Participating in Monday Mural

CDP Theme Day - The Beauty of Simplicity

Church of St. John the Baptist

Broad Street, Brinklow Village

(near to Coventry)

Today is theme day for members of the

City Daily Photo group.  The topic is

'The Beauty of Simplicity'.

My photograph is of a quiet moment in a

picturesque English village.

For other interpretations of the theme 

from around the world, please follow the link

HERE.

PS. I'll be back to this church next week,

I want to show you a 'benchmark' near that door.

Mixed Messages

William Morris Building

Gosford Street

The message above seems straight forward

until you see the sign on the wall opposite (below).

Spot the difference between these two ghost signs :).

The William Morris Building, now part of Coventry University,

has a most interesting history.  The University added

two floors in early 2000.  Before that in early 1900's 

ARNO cars and motorcycles were built here. 

After that HOTCHKISS ET CIE produced 50,000 machine guns

during WWI and then produced engines for Morris cars.

 Morris took over and the premises became MORRIS ENGINES LIMITED in 1923.

By 1930 NUFFIELD MECHANISATIONS produced armaments during WW2.

After the war it became the 

Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance.

If you would like more detail, follow the link HERE.

The arrows (below) show where

the two ghost signs are located (with their conflicting information).

I enjoyed trooping out in cold today searching

for the sign below.  I was really surprised when

my husband spotted a second sign.  Well done, that man!

Participating in Monday Mural

Snapshots of Coventry Cathedral

Following on from my blog posts on Wednesday and Thursday,  

I am concluding with a few more images

that stood out during my recent visit.  

Ceiling

The rib vaulted ceiling hides the natural roof.

Chapels

There are four small chapels within the Cathedral.  

Below are the entrances to two of them.

Chapel of Christ the Servant

Chapel of Christ in Gethsemane

Windows 

The placement and design of the windows is breathtaking.

The West Screen (below) is enormous.

Below - The Nave Stained-Glass Windows left

and The West Screen to the right.

The Baptistry Window (below)

Coventry Cathedral is a modern building

that I really didn't appreciate to the full

until I put together this collection of photographs

over the last 3 days.

Have a good weekend :).