Prestwich Wood was now occupied by Rev Nathaniel Milne. Clough Lane 1844, The route from Prestwich Wood to Prestwich Clough was Clough Lane
In the distance (click to enlarge) photo you can make out the curved edge of the third lodge. However the family vault shows that in 1873 they lost a son Edward, aged just 2 days. John Travis slab (dates from 1824)
Back on track in 1911, the census lists James (aged 65) Bleacher Of Cotton And Linen Goods, with his wife Ada, and sister in law. Countess Wilton
1850
There has also been some management of the stream as it enters the works with a water channel (leet) constructed to the North of the stream (circled - still visible today).
John, aged 57, was a widow, living with his 4 children (Mary, Anne, Edmund and Hannah) and Mary Shawcross, his niece, with 2 servants to help them out. In 1876 John was summoned for charges of employing young children. By 1891 James was living with his wife and 3 children.
For more WW2 sites around Prestwich see this map
Family Vault
There has also been some management of the stream as it enters the works with a water channel (leet) constructed to the North of the stream (circled - still visible today). During the 1940s Prestwich Clough was our playground in an around the area where Grimshaw's Cafe use to be - the clough was wonderful in those days, although we never saw anyone looking after it, not like today when it looks very uncared for. However the family vault shows that in 1873 they lost a son Edward, aged just 2 days.
However the family vault shows that in 1873 they lost a son Edward, aged just 2 days.
The census of 1851 lists the following families as resident in Prestwich Clough:
In 1866, John complained about the state of the path coming down from Ramsbottom Row (at Green Gate) serving the dye works. [There was a Joseph born 1843 listed in Prestwich Asylum in the 1871 census]
It also shows how the garden area of Prestwich Clough house stretched over the covered stream, giving the water feature you see in the photo of the house (top of page). These earthworks are regionally significant to the understanding of early industry, however have been damaged by recent flood repair works(2012). The route from Prestwich Wood to Prestwich Clough was Clough Lane
1891
In the distance (click to enlarge) photo you can make out the curved edge of the third lodge.
Most of the culvert has been dismantled/washed away and the down-stream section is littered with brick and stone work as a result.
[There was a Joseph born 1843 listed in Prestwich Asylum in the 1871 census]
Family Vault
The Prestwich Archaeological group investigated the site of Prestwich Clough house, and the water feature was found to have included some carved stonework which, although out of context, is thought to be of medieval period, and possibly from older stages of St Mary's Church.
1953
WWII Sites of Prestwich
John was also listed as a Whitster at the baptism of his son John in 1754. The cortege formed at Heaton Hall and lead to St Mary's where she was placed in the family vault with great mourning shown throughout the local community.
1953
Bleachworks
Next to the broken slab from 1779 is a further Travis plot, recording Richard's son, also Richard, along with the children of Richard's other son, John. A further stone dates from 1787, and seems to belong to another branch of the family descended from John & Esther Travis of Prestwich Wood. The area was used as a landfill tip in the 20th century so bears little resemblance today. By 1871 James Buckley (born 1846) and now master bleacher was head of the household, living with his wife, 2 sisters, 1 cousin, and 2 servants.
By the 1939 census young James had become Company Director living at Prestwich Clough house, with the Grimshaw's still at the cafe.
1950 - ridge up towards Wellbank in the background
[In 1871 an Edward Buckley, a bleacher dyer and finisher lived at Beech Wood House on Bury New Road - near Sedgley Mount]
Chair Prestwich Clough Day.
The Buckley Vault in St Mary's graveyard records the death of John's son, Joseph in 1881, aged 38. Next to the broken slab from 1779 is a further Travis plot, recording Richard's son, also Richard, along with the children of Richard's other son, John. The gravestone of the John Travis mentioned in 1850 above, lies not far away, having been cut & reused into the pathway near the tower John and his son John, both died in 1824. Travis Stone from 1787
This is a Property with an estimated value of 158,683. However the family vault shows that in 1873 they lost a son Edward, aged just 2 days. (with no reference to Prestwich Clough house)
WWII Sites of Prestwich
WWII Sites of Prestwich
A much older gravestone, shows a John Travis, who died 1675, unfortunately it gives no clues of other family relatives, as the rest of the stone lists the Bowker family.
For more WW2 sites around Prestwich see this map
For more WW2 sites around Prestwich see this map
We finally see the Buckley family present in the census of 1861, with John (born Cheshire, 1803), listed as a cotton manufacturer and bleacher. [you can also make out the WWII shelter with blast wall along the footpath to the south - still standing today]
Bleachworks Ruins
There has also been some management of the stream as it enters the works with a water channel (leet) constructed to the North of the stream (circled - still visible today).
The 1901 census then refers to Prestwich Clough house as being occupied by Thomas Grimshaw, a caterer, but shows it as a refreshment/coffee house so is clearly the Clough Tea Rooms further up the Clough. His son Oswald Milne, in 1847 sold Prestwich Wood and 59 acres of land to allow the construction of what became Prestwich Hospital.
By 1845 the Prestwich Clough Dye Works was owned by Richard Travis, great grandson of John & Esther of Prestwich Wood. You can explore the ruined foundations and cobbled pathways of the Buckley Bleach & Dye works.
stonework
[you can also make out the WWII shelter with blast wall along the footpath to the south - still standing today]
The Buckley Vault in St Mary's graveyard records the death of John's son, Joseph in 1881, aged 38.
Learn to ID some of the park's trees and find the fairy doors tucked away at the base of each tree trunk. 1891
1950 - ridge up towards Wellbank in the background
Clough Lane 1844
The stream itself had been culverted and re-routed in front of Prestwich Clough house some time earlier. [In 1871 an Edward Buckley, a bleacher dyer and finisher lived at Beech Wood House on Bury New Road - near Sedgley Mount]
Prior to its taming, the stream would have followed its general direction Westwards down past the dyeworks and the water treatment plant which was constructed in the late 19th century, and on into the river Irwell.
Of Clough House itself a curve cellar wall and garden steps remain visible amongst piles of bricks and slates. It consisted of six lodges filled with water diverted from the stream in Prestwich Clough. [you can also make out the WWII shelter with blast wall along the footpath to the south - still standing today]
Their first project was The Coffee Sack - a thriving caf bar in Prestwich. Album: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Z5mrBxboQJtMMUiz5
WWII Sites of Prestwich
Along the path South of the ruins you can still find a WWII shelter with blast wall to the front. Buckleys works
You can explore the ruined foundations and cobbled pathways of the Buckley Bleach & Dye works.
Prestwich Clough House Ruins
A whitster, or whitner, removed the impurities such as seeds shell and waxes from cloth by dipping and stirring the cloth in large containers of alkali, a mix of potash and lime ((bowking).
This photo shows the works looking down towards Waterdale, with a large shed (circled) now added on the right just before the stream, and a row of the original works buildings, that were shown on the 1845 map, along the left hand side of the track. 1950 - ridge up towards Wellbank in the background
1850
Water channel to the lodges
Other features to spot on the North side of the stream are the retaining walls that made up some of the the water reservoirs used by the works and the feeder channel that captured water from the stream into the reservoirs.
John Travis died:1788, but the stone dates from 1779. 1915
You can explore the ruined foundations and cobbled pathways of the Buckley Bleach & Dye works. He also had 2 servants and a coachman. [There was a Joseph born 1843 listed in Prestwich Asylum in the 1871 census]
Bleachworks
The census of 1851 lists the following families as resident in Prestwich Clough:
In 1876 John was summoned for charges of employing young children. This photo looks back up the clough from the dye works, you can make out the shadow of the shed on the left, and a brick wall to the right which would have blocked off access to the rear of Prestwich Clough house.
1861, We finally see the Buckley family present in the census of 1861, with John (born Cheshire, 1803), listed as a cotton manufacturer and bleacher. Of Clough House itself a curve cellar wall and garden steps remain visible amongst piles of bricks and slates. In 1830 Esther, the daughter of John & Esther Travis married John Consterdine, yeoman of Prestwich at St Mary's church.
In 1854, there is a registration of the burial of Fredrick son of John Buckley, and John is also listed as Churchwarden from 1855 to 1862. 1861
The Prestwich Archaeological group investigated the site of Prestwich Clough house, and the water feature was found to have included some carved stonework which, although out of context, is thought to be of medieval period, and possibly from older stages of St Mary's Church. The Prestwich Archaeological group investigated the site of Prestwich Clough house, and the water feature was found to have included some carved stonework which, although out of context, is thought to be of medieval period, and possibly from older stages of St Mary's Church.