Tag: Oakwood

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Blue Plaque at Tesco Supermarket Oakwood, Leeds

This Leeds civic trust blue plaque mark the life of Robert Blackburn and his company Blackburn Aircraft.

Robert Blackburn, OBE, FRAeS (March 26, 1885 – September 10, 1955) was an English aviation pioneer and the founder of Blackburn Aircraft who was born in Kirkstall, Leeds.

The Leeds civic trust blue plaque reads:

The Olympia Works

Robert Blackburn – aviation pioneer
built aircraft here including over 100 BE2C
army and navy biplanes and the famous
Kangaroo, Swift and Sopwith Baby planes.
He test flew the BE2Cs on Soldiers’ Field
and from there, in 1919, operated passenger
flights to London and Amsterdam.

1914 – 1932

The factory shut when Blackburns moved production out to Brough, but re-opened prior to world war 2 and worked on the planes needed to fight the Nazis and closed finally in 1946.

I used to live behind the clock at Oakwood, quite close to this site but never knew the history. To think that the famous Swordfish aircraft of the Fleet air arm were built and flown from here in north Leeds. Although designed by Fairey the majority of Swordfish aircraft were built by Blackburns.

Today this site is now home to a Tesco supermarket and also Homebase.

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Oakwood Clock Leeds, Yorkshire

Picture of Oakwood Clock Leeds.

This tall and ornate clock tower by Leeds clock-makers Wm Potts and sons was built for Kirkgate Market in Leeds, was rejected as unsuitable for the market and later erected here in the Leeds district of Oakwood in 1912.

Standing atop the clock tower is the symbol of the city of Leeds, an owl.

I took this photo on one of those cloudy days with occasional bright sunshine coming through the clouds.

Sailor said…
Thats a beautiful clock tower.

MARCH 26, 2011 10:59 PM

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Oakwood Farmers Market 3rd Birthday 3

This picture is another from the Oakwood Farmers Market and is from a stall there selling preserves. The photo shows jars of Greengage Jam, Quince Jelly and Champagne Rhubarb from the local people at Perfectly Preserved who make chutney, jam, ketchup and relish.

I have always liked those varieties of fruit now rather less common than they once were, like greengages and rhubarb and even quince. Whilst I had heard of quince I was not even sure what it looked like, so looked it up, quince belongs to same family of fruit as apples and pears and looks a bit like a pear.

The Oakwood farmers market is held on the 3rd Saturday of the month at the Oakwood Clock in Oakwood, North Leeds.

Sailor said…
Beautiful picture!

MARCH 26, 2011 9:38 AM
Dave Williams of Hyde, Cheshire said…
Like the thought of Quince Jelly. Do they sell a runcible spoon with which to eat it?

MARCH 26, 2011 12:01 PM
Dianne said…
Very classy marketing- I’d part with my money for the Champagne rhubarb jam – sound delish!

MARCH 27, 2011 5:51 AM
Joan Elizabeth said…
My husband can’t resist stalls that have preserves like that

MARCH 29, 2011 10:38 AM

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Woodland Flowers Oakwood Leeds

Picture of Celandine Flowers Leeds. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 2011

I spotted these little yellow celandine flowers in some woodland in Oakwood in North Leeds. You can see part of acorns in the photo also, so there are oaks in Oakwood. I was in this part of North Leeds for the Oakwood farmers market.

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Ft and In at Oakwood, Leeds

Picture of cast iron marker at Oakwood, Leeds

I passed by this old cast iron marker whilst walking through Oakwood recently and thought, interesting and old too.

So here in this photo is an old cast iron marker, marked with ft and in for feet and inches and also the crown for I think possibly King George V. The broad arrow was a marking used on crown property and also I think Ordnance Survey used it, so I am guessing something to do with map making.

I am open to suggestions, any ideas?

Dave Williams of Hyde, Cheshire said…
My first thought was that it was a Ordnance Survey trigpoint as they do have an arrow at the bottom and a horizontal line above that which denotes a known elevation, but they usually have a trig point reference number on them. Perhaps it’s an early version of one. As for the ‘GR’ one would have thought that if it were for any of the Georges from II to VI it would include the appropriate number – thus suggesting that it’s for George the First, but Wikipedia tells me he reigned from 1714 to 1727 which is too early for any trig point marker. Trig points were first used in 1935 so your guess that it’s George V is probably correct.
APRIL 3, 2011 12:20 PM