Brincliffe Edge Quarry

[yrab 10]

Does anyone know about the disused quarry on Brincliffe Edge Road which was next to the entrance to Chelsea Park ?

It was filled in and houses built on it many years ago, but me and my pals used to play there and in the woods.

Also, there used to be a lake at the back of Banner Cross Hall (before the road was cut through.

[heshore 10]

Brincliffe Edge quarry was a working stone quarry in 1658 - I have a will from a Thomas Shore who bequeathed all his stone to his son at that time.

[dsweetman 49]

Does anyone know about the disused quarry on Brincliffe Edge Road which was next to the entrance to Chelsea Park ?

It was filled in and houses built on it many years ago, but me and my pals used to play there and in the woods.

Also, there used to be a lake at the back of Banner Cross Hall (before the road was cut through.

 

I also used to play in the quarry and the woods.We used to have battles in the quarry throwing stones at each other!!!One occasion I ended up with a chipped bone in my elbow after protecting my face from a flying stone!!!One day on the way home we were playing in the woods and started a fire which rapidly spread!I ruined my school cap attempting to put out the fire.We used to go fishing in the lake and one day we were told off for trespass.Shortly after that they started to build the estate.All happy memories of another life!!!

[Bluesman456 10]

The Friends of Brincliffe Edge are researching the history of the wood and its surrounding quarries and fields for a local community history project which we hope to publish at the end of 2017. I am very interested in these these posts from 2010. Heshore, would you be willing to let us have a copy of this will from 1658 please? And dsweetman and yrab, what year approximately were you playing in the quarry and fishing in the lake? We'd love to hear from you both.

[IanFoBEW 10]

Hi, the writing of the history of the woods is well underway now and I and a colleague would love to hear from people who remember the pond, the farms or anything else, such as the quarries that would help with the History of the area.

IanFoBEW

[andingmen 12]

Like others on here, I too spent many hours playing in and around the Brincliffe area in the late fifties/early sixties.

As interlopers, our “crew”, who all lived in the rougher Glen/Gatefield Road area, would walk up through the posher end of Sandford Grove Road , past the stone walled circular roundabout with the tree on the middle at the junction and spent hours and hours, mainly in what we all called Needham’s Fields – the sloping land between Bannerdale Road and Brincliffe edge. We’d grass sledge down the grassy slope up behind the Allotment office shed using the usual cardboard box as a sledge or climb the trees and carve the name of our gang high up in the bark. Our secret den was in a tree just behind where the police box used to be set in the wall beside the woods along Brincliffe Edge We’d play hide and seek in the allotments and have a drink of sweet Sheffield tap water from the many outlets when they still used to have the top on because, of course, it was always sunny and hot. I also remember tadpole-ing in the “lake” in the valley at the bottom although I seem to recall it was more of a pond by the time I was around. It was just as the ground was being prepared for building of the houses and estate on the upper half of Bannerdale Road –early sixties? At that time the existing houses stopped somewhere around where the snicket now is up to the allotments.

If we wanted gentler pursuits we’d push on up and into Chelsea park and, in Autumn, go conkering, in winter, sledging ( although Meersbrook park was still the place to play the true dare devil)or in other seasons play on our bikes and the bumps and hillocks or play footy on the only patch of reasonably flat grass in the top corner, overlooked by what we called Brincliffe Towers. Only very occasional did we venture down into the quarry in the other top corner because we all thought it was too spooky and dark.

Many, many other memories in and around Chelsea park and “Needhams’ Fields” - mostly fond, some funny, some sad, some shameful and the odd one or two disturbing, but overall a wonderful, wonderful childhood.

[IanFoBEW 10]

Thanks for your reply, this is just what we are looking for. Needhams Fields is in the process of being returned to a meadow by The Friends of Brincliffe Edge Woods. We knew about the pond but not about the Police Box which will help make the History of the woods more complete. I confess now I am one of the two authors of the chapter on the woods which will be part of a book to be published by Nether Edge Neighbourhood Group later next year. Anymore remeberences will be fantastic. If you could possibly pinpoint the police box location that will be helpful and what size was it please? Was it like the Tardis in Doctor Who or was it just a plain post with a telephone in? Thank you so much.

IanFoBEW

[Michael_W 11]

Like others on here, I too spent many hours playing in and around the Brincliffe area in the late fifties/early sixties.

As interlopers, our “crew”, who all lived in the rougher Glen/Gatefield Road area, would walk up through the posher end of Sandford Grove Road , past the stone walled circular roundabout with the tree on the middle at the junction and spent hours and hours, mainly in what we all called Needham’s Fields – the sloping land between Bannerdale Road and Brincliffe edge. We’d grass sledge down the grassy slope up behind the Allotment office shed using the usual cardboard box as a sledge or climb the trees and carve the name of our gang high up in the bark. Our secret den was in a tree just behind where the police box used to be set in the wall beside the woods along Brincliffe Edge We’d play hide and seek in the allotments and have a drink of sweet Sheffield tap water from the many outlets when they still used to have the top on because, of course, it was always sunny and hot. I also remember tadpole-ing in the “lake” in the valley at the bottom although I seem to recall it was more of a pond by the time I was around. It was just as the ground was being prepared for building of the houses and estate on the upper half of Bannerdale Road –early sixties? At that time the existing houses stopped somewhere around where the snicket now is up to the allotments.

If we wanted gentler pursuits we’d push on up and into Chelsea park and, in Autumn, go conkering, in winter, sledging ( although Meersbrook park was still the place to play the true dare devil)or in other seasons play on our bikes and the bumps and hillocks or play footy on the only patch of reasonably flat grass in the top corner, overlooked by what we called Brincliffe Towers. Only very occasional did we venture down into the quarry in the other top corner because we all thought it was too spooky and dark.

Many, many other memories in and around Chelsea park and “Needhams’ Fields” - mostly fond, some funny, some sad, some shameful and the odd one or two disturbing, but overall a wonderful, wonderful childhood.

 

Your post reminds me so much of my childhood in the 70s, Needham's Fields is a forgotten term from back in my memory, I lived on the lower half of Bannerdale, I used to do the cardboard sledging in the Summer and played football on the top corner of Chelsea Park ..... happy days

[andingmen 12]

Thanks for your reply, this is just what we are looking for. Needhams Fields is in the process of being returned to a meadow by The Friends of Brincliffe Edge Woods. We knew about the pond but not about the Police Box which will help make the History of the woods more complete. I confess now I am one of the two authors of the chapter on the woods which will be part of a book to be published by Nether Edge Neighbourhood Group later next year. Anymore remeberences will be fantastic. If you could possibly pinpoint the police box location that will be helpful and what size was it please? Was it like the Tardis in Doctor Who or was it just a plain post with a telephone in? Thank you so much.

IanFoBEW

 

Hello, first of all, it's great to hear of the FoBEW. Keep up the good work. Yes, the police box was the Tardis type - similar to the one still outside Town Hall - at least in my memory. I think it was green and cream - or maybe dark blue and cream.

It was set in the wall of the woods somewhere between the top of Union Road and, I think, Edgehill road. When I visited again a couple of years ago, I think I could still make out where the 8-foot or so gap had been filled in with with not quite the same stonework. In any event, if you look along the back section of that wall, I think you can still see evidence of where the concrete base was.

As for other memories... well lots. My dad had an allotment in the upper part towards Chelsea park - now overgrown. In addition, the cottage/house at the bottom of Archer Lane, where the service track is for the Allotment Society hut is, was a little "corner" shop with the inevitable little old lady serving. And, just opposite that, where there is now a relatively new house, was spare land. On here was an abandoned wreck of a car - probably a collectors item now - where we would play for hours and in our imagination,take turns driving the crew to all the exotic places in the world - even as far as Skeggy!

As a later poster has said, it's funny how the memory gets triggered by a small thing, as things come back from years ago. I'll be back in Sheffield in mid-January and would be happy to meet up and see how your work is prgressing. And maybe get a chance to tell you about the other "goings on", innocent and otherwise less so, which I alluded to in my previous post

 

---------- Post added 30-11-2016 at 02:01 ----------

 

I’m pretty sure many others will already know this, but I’ve done a bit more on-line digging, trying to pin-point exactly where the police box was on Brincliffe Edge. As you do, I digressed and stumbled across some other snippets.

One of which was this memoirs website of David Ludlam: (not sure if I’ve embedded the link thingy properly).

http://youle.info/history-blog/nether-edge-grammar/recollections/david-ludlam-1941-46/

There are a couple of paragraphs at the beginning describing his walk to school through that very area. Amongst other things he mentions the sweet shop on Archer Lane , the reason for the spare land opposite and the location of the police box.

Also, I followed up the other thread about the Sheffield History map website being back on-line (by the way, what a great resource) and had a look at the 1950’s map of Brincliffe. Although it tantalisingly just misses out the location of the police box, it shows a host of other detail of which I certainly was not aware as a lad. For example, it shows all the other quarry workings nearby and the refuse dumps at the end of Chelsea road. If only I’d known, I could have explored even more!

 

---------- Post added 30-11-2016 at 05:02 ----------

 

I’m pretty sure many others will already know this, but I’ve done a bit more on-line digging, trying to pin-point exactly where the police box was on Brincliffe Edge. As you do, I digressed and stumbled across some other snippets.

One of which was this memoirs website of David Ludlam: (not sure if I’ve embedded the link thingy properly).

http://youle.info/history-blog/nethe...udlam-1941-46/

There are a couple of paragraphs at the beginning describing his walk to school through that very area. Amongst other things he mentions the sweet shop on Archer Lane , the reason for the spare land opposite and the location of the police box.

Also, I followed up the other thread about the Sheffield History map website being back on-line (by the way, what a great resource) and had a look at the 1950’s map of Brincliffe. Although it tantalisingly just misses out the location of the police box, it shows a host of other detail of which I certainly was not aware as a lad. For example, it shows all the other quarry workings nearby and the refuse dumps at the end of Chelsea road. If only I’d known, I could have explored even more!

[IanFoBEW 10]

This is all fantastic stuff. We are about to submit our first early draft to our Editor but we know there is more to do and include in our Brincliffe Edge Woods section, thanks to all

[Lord Lucan 10]

The police box you refer to was set into the wall directly opposite the top of Union Road alongside an old Gas lamp that Roger Moffett (Controversial Ex Radio Hallam DJ presenter) painted in various colours.

The sweet shop at the bottom of Archer Lane was called Jennings.

[vincentb 10]

The police box was set in the wall of the woods somewhere between the top of Union Road and, I think, Edgehill road. When I visited again a couple of years ago, I think I could still make out where the 8-foot or so gap had been filled in with with not quite the same stonework.

 

You can see the filled-in bit of wall on google streetview: https://goo.gl/maps/sm7RrB9yZvs