Another hazy evening in Sheffield - St Paul's Place as seen from Meersbrook.
Our weather didn't quite hit the extremes of some places today (Wimbledon hit 31°C today), we only managed 24-25°C but the humidity has really been up there again. As i walked home with my son today (too hot to get my camera out of my bag) I looked back and noticed how hazy it looked in the city centre and it summed up exactly how the weather felt. I went out and took this shot later on once he was in bed, and it hadn't lost it's haze.
Another scorcher in Sheffield today, and walking home I saw many convertible cars. This one was the best by far though. This gentleman was just driving off as I noticed it and so didn't get the chance to find out what type it is, so if you know please comment.
The sad news on a newspaper stand.
Michael Jackson was one of my first heroes as a child. Over the years this has become forgotten because of all the negative hype that's grown with him. When I heard the news of his death, at around 12am GMT this morning, childhood thoughts came back to me and I remembered feelings that I've not felt since then.
Regardless of what has really happened (or not) with regards to allegations made towards him, there's no doubt that he was one of the world's greatest musicians, a legend. I doubt if there will be anyone that will literally be as much of a 'superstar' as Michael Jackson was.
The mannequin in position.
Since doing this blog I have found myself looking up more as I walk about. It's great because you can notice things that have always been there but you've never noticed, and you can also see things that you just wouldn't expect.
Just along side Decathlon Sport on Eyre Street I looked up at the City Walk Apartments on Sylvester Street and saw this mannequin/statue.
It was quite a dismal morning, first thing, so the gold of this 'man' really stood out (as you can see in this pic, left).
There is some art studio/gallery space across the road (www.sylvesterspace.com), so I wondered if it was something to do with that, or was just a nice 'find' that someone has stuck outside?
The view from Cole Brothers (John Lewis) car park.
I had a little more time on the walk to work today so I thought I'd try something different. I had actually taken photo of St Paul's Parade the other day (I will post link here later, keep checking), as it's one of my favourite stretches of the city centre, but favoured a different shot for the blog instead.
As I came round the corner I noticed the Cole Brothers (John Lewis) car park and thought I'd try and get to the top and take some shots. I went to the top but the walls are too high up there, so i dropped down a level.
I thought I'd have a play with this 'tilt-shift' effect as when I've seen it before I've always thought it looked great. With all the re-generation that's going to be happening around there I thought I'd try and make it look a bit like an architect's model.
You can see the original here (left), notice the fantastic red stone front buildings running down to St Paul's Place, you don't get many more of this style in Sheffield. I can't find any quick info on the history of these buildings, so please do comment if you know anything, I will update if/when i find out anything.
UPDATE: I've just noticed, on viewing the published post, that the building in the front-left of the photo is the Salvation Army building from yesterday's post. You can see the turret style tops to the wall. In fact it's almost an unintentional complete reversal of the previous post :)
The old Salvation Army Citadel on Cross Burgess Street.
Built in 1890, the Salvation Army Citadel on Cross Burgess Street was the headquarters for the Sheffield Salvation Army right up until 1999 when it moved to Psalter Lane.
Many stories have been circulated about it's future use, main one being as a Buffalo Joe's restaurant, but it now seems to have been settled that it's in Sheffield's plans to further develop the surrounding area as a 'retail quarter'. A selection of minutes from a council meeting can be seen here.
I used to work very close to this building and have seen it slowly deteriorate, I'm glad it will eventually be saved as it's a marvellous looking building from all sides.
The wild shrub behind Gresham's Timber.
Whilst walking behind Gresham's Timber on Chesterfield Rd noticed the red of their sign but then noticed this crop of what I could only think were wild roses (please comment if you know their correct name). There was tons of them, and once I'd seen them I couldn't see anything but them.
The plumber's little reminder outside his house on Chesterfield Rd.
This little sign is outside a house on Chesterfield Road. The house belongs to Stanley Wraith, retired plumber. I think it's hilarious while still being very conscientious.
The surviving side of Jessop Hospital as seen from Broad Lane.
After work today I was walking up to see my sister-in-law, brother and my new nephew, he had been born this morning at the Jessop Wing of the Royal Hallamshire Hospital. Funnily enough I had to walk past the remains of that hospital wing's namesake - the old Jessop Hospital for Women. This is where I was born, my brother was born and my sister-in-law was born.
Most of it (the later additions from the 40s and the 70s) has now been torn down, since it's closure in 2001, to make way for new University development. Below are two more images, the first is round the back as seen from Gell Street, the other is the patch of land left since the destruction.
The entrance now makes way for the Sainsbury's supermarket on the corner of London Rd and Boston St.
Until about a year ago I'd never seen the original fascade of this building. My memory of it is pretty black and white, literally. I remember it painted white in my earlier years, and then since, painted black.
This corner has been home to the same entrance way since 1914, it's only behind it that's changed recently. Cinematreasures.org reads:
The Lansdowne Picture Palace was designed by architect Walter Gerard Buck of Campo Lane, Sheffield. It stands at the junction of London Road and Boston Street and opened on 18th December 1914. Brick built, it had a marble terracotta facade in white and green with a Chinese pagoda style entrance with arched windows on the side elevation.
It served as a 'Picture Palace' until the air raids in 1940 when it closed abruptly. It's next use was as a Marks and Spencer's store after the City Centre branch was destroyed during the blitz. In 1950 it became the Locarno Ball Room. After that it stayed as a dancing venue, next as Tiffany's Night Club followed by The Palais, The Music Factory, Club Generation and then finally ending it's dancing days as Bed (on Citysnapper.org a photo can be seen in it's state after Bed closed).
The auditorium/club has now been flattened to make way for student accomodation and shops but the entrance has been restored to it's former glory and been put to use as the entrance to the 'Sainsbury's Local' supermarket.
Checking bikes outside the Townhall .
On my way passed the Town Hall this morning I spotted this 'Cycle Safety Check' set up. It is a free council-led initiative called Pedalready and I think it's a great idea. I've seen one before closer to where I work, and they seem to operate most of the day from the same spot, so you can go back at a time that suits you. More info can be found at their website.
A typical sight in Sheffield today.
While I was on my holidays in sun-drenched Scotland (yes - really!) last week, Sheffield was having a bit of a re-enactment of June 2007 when low-lying parts of the city flooded with fatal consequences, fortunately it wasn't nearly as bad this time. Sheffield's not a stranger to floods though, on 11th March 1864 it was hit with the worst floods in it's history when the Dale Dyke Dam broke it's walls. It was named The Great Sheffield Flood, or The Great Inundation, as it took the lives of 270 people and ruined countless buildings.
Anyway, today was just heavy rain and few rumbles of thunder, but I had walked to work in shorts! As I was at work during the worst of it, I didn't get any pics, (and then got a lift home) so took some pics when i got home.
Unfortunately I missed a brilliant sunset that would have been a perfect contrast to such a wet day.
The classic Ford in a yard off Matilda Street.
I'm not sure what made me take a photo of this car, I think maybe my Dad had one? But I just love the look of Ford Anglias, and to see them about is pretty good, they stopped making them in 1967. So this one is in pretty good nick all things considered.
The art work with another layer added by me, on Eyre Lane.
Some bright (creative) spark has added a bit of clever artwork to a non-descript, normal Sheffield back street. In the place of advertising billboard they have put up a print of a repeated photo of the street view, more work than it at first looks. Best to see it for yourself, it's behind the new Fire Station.
The mural as seen from Asline Rd.
I see this house as I walk to work everyday on Holland Rd, just off Asline Rd. It's not the best mural in the world and it needs a bit of a re-touch but it does brighten up the end of the road.
The sculpture and apartments as seen from below.
Next to my work on Tenter Street there is a tall apartment block called Metis It's not the best looking building but as I walked under the sculpture outside I thought the view was interesting.
Steel floor plate in entrance to John Watts Ltd.
This was some sort of huge steel doormat in the entrance way of John Watts steel product manufacturers on Lambert Street. They were manufacturers and suppliers razors, scissors and cutlery.
I'm not going to be in Sheffield next week but will be posting some other images taken last week. Everything will be back to normal for the 15th. Thanks
An old Leyland PD3 at the top of Fargate.
I was just going into town on my lunch break and saw these big ol' buses at the top of Fargate. I'm by no means a bus spotter but as they're not usually there I thought I'd use them as today's photo.
There was a sign in the window that said the following about this particular bus:
This is a Roe bodied Leyland PD3 and was delivered to the Sheffield Transport Department in 1959, this vehicle mainly working on city suburban routes.
The buses were owned and maintained by the South Yorkshire Preservation Group, they keep the group going by donating money from their wages every week and hiring out the vehicles for weddings, day trips etc.
The old Johnson & Appleyard plaque at 2 Barkers Pool.
The Ward's branded window on the Shakespeare pub on West Bar.
Had an early start this morning, and when I left for work there was already people heading for the polling stations to cast their vote in the UK local elections 2009. My local station was situated on Derbyshire Lane inside Meersbrook Bank School.
The results will be made even more interesting after last night's news of the resignation of James Purnell, one of the leading members of cabinet, following the walk-out of two other cabinet ministers earlier this week. Mr Purnell has also called for the resignation of the PM himself, to try and stop the impending Labour Party defeat in the elections.
The Ward's branded window on the Shakespeare pub on West Bar.
My memories of Ward's Ales are only from the last 3 decades, but the Sheffield brewers' history dates back to 1837 (although not named 'Ward's' until 1868 when Septimus Henry Ward joined the company to help financially). The brewery closed in 1999 when Vaux (Ward's Brewery's owner) was broken up by financiers. Founders of Vaux did propose a buy-out but there bid was rejected.
My Dad used to drink Ward's Best Bitter in cans and in the pub when I was a youth, and I used to skateboard in the Safeway Supermarket car park that was shadowed by the (Ward's) Sheaf Brewery on Ecclesall Rd. I still miss the smell of malt in the air when I walk passed, although not everyone shares my fondness of that memory.
Ward's is still available from the Maxim Brewery (who operate out of Robinson's, Stockport) who make it to the same recipe and to the same methods, but surely without 'Sheaf' water it will never be the same.
The brewery land and buildings were sold to developers who used them to build apartments. Many of them still lay vacant, but even more annoying is the fact that the money made from the sale of the brewery was less than the bid made to save the brewery that was loved by so many.
The factory has been on Saxon Road since 1934.
This place always sticks out to me as I walk the cycle path behind Chesterfield Rd and then along Saxon Road. The 'River Sheaf walk' also runs along this section of my route to work. At one of the junctions of the walk I noticed a 
plaque which mentioned Wolf Safety Lamps (see thumbnail) and so had a little dig about them.
The Wolf website outlines their existence on the Saxon Road site.
The Wolf Safety Lamp Company was established in Leeds in the 1880's as a distributor for a German mining lamp manufacturer. In 1913 the Leeds company was bought and moved to South Yorkshire where it began to develop safety lamps more suited to British methods and regulations of mining and quarrying.
The company was incorporated in 1916 and in 1934 moved to the larger Saxon Road Works, where it is still sited today. Throughout the following decade many new developments were carried out in order to meet new safety regulations and demands for better lighting, the most significant was the development and the introduction of compressed air operated lamps. These are still manufactured today, though much improved due to modern light source and control technology.
The factory is normally closed when I walk past (morning and evening) and so I've never seen any goings on, although this morning I did catch a glimpse inside and it seems massive, a real 'tardis'.
The Town Hall eclipsed by the Peace Garden perimeter waterfalls.
As another scorcher of a day was starting in Sheffield I was thinking that I'd take a picture of the Peace Gardens, but later on on my way home at about half 5. This way I could capture the mass hysteria that is the fountains, and all who play in them, surrounded by all the afternoon sunbathers on the lawns. As I looked to see what time it was on the Town Hall clock, I saw this view and decided to snap this as well.
I did walk past later as all the kids were playing and the non-kids were lounging, but I just preferred the view in the morning. Even though I walk passed it everyday when it's not busy, it just seemed even more peaceful this morning, knowing how hectic it would be later on.
The woods just inside the Woodseats entrance to Graves Park.
Went for an adventure with my son on Sunday, and in choosing an easy route to walk to a park, I chose to go to Graves Park via the Woodseats entrance. It was great. I'd not been in that entrance before and the woods that you enter if you keep to the main path are amazing. The footpath is in the bottom of a mini valley with trees growing on each bank. This adds to their already great height and it really gave off a rainforest feel to the place. I'm sure this was helped by the midday heat, the vociferous birds and the fact that there was no-one else to be seen.
All photos © 2009 - 2016 Sheffield Daily Photo
Please leave a comment if you'd like to use any of them, thanks.
Posts
