Wigan Album

Another wonderful photograph, Veronica. Thanks for posting it!
This is looking down Coppull Lane and the man is approximately opposite the last house in the one row of terraced houses, which are still there and on the left side as you go down Coppull Lane.
When I was a very young boy, that fence was a series of concrete posts with round metal bars, I think that there were only two bars between the concrete posts and the bars were painted. Therefore, this is before I was born.
Also, I do not recall any structure at the bottom of Coppull Lane (to the left), next to the River Douglas, as there is in this photograph. But, I seem to recall that there was a brick structure, which can be seen lower down from the man.
Additionally, there was a pavement at the side of the fence. In the above photograph, it seems to be just dirt and stones.
I wonder when they changed some things?
Also, what is that structure at the bottom of Coppull Lane, to the left?
I do remember Coppull Lane being cobbled, but I cannot remember from which point. The first section (from Wigan Lane) was tarmacked, but not all of Coppull Lane. I think that it was tarmacked to the terraced houses.

We used to walk the path to the woods mainly in the school holidays from the cobbled path and steps at the side of the Duggy. We would play on the Camel’s hump many a time. We used to jump over the yellow brook and walk to Haigh Hall. Loads of energy in those days Ian. I do remember the cobbled road of Coppull Lane but our gang never advanced up there…plenty fresh air then and always starving when we got home.

No idea where this is but it looks like a kids paradise to have played in.

Nice to see the ''football pitch'' we used to play on from St Marys, not one level part, when we upgraded to Ashfield we thought it was Wembley.

“ The Bloody Mountains get their name from the fierce Battle of Wigan Lane during the English Civil War in August 1651”.

Good find Veronica, thanks for 'avin a gud root throo em'
We owe a thanks too to ever it was who initially decided to do an ordnance record with photos around Wigan and other areas, and a bigger thanks to the woman who found the photos before they got to be taken to a dump.

Ian, sadly all of the Coppull Lane cobbles or setts got to be covered over with tarmacadam when the dam to be constructed, as they said the tyres on the lorries wouldn't be able to get a grip when going up the broo.
My nephews and nieces would, when it snowed, sledge down that hill to the man's left, and end up to where the rugby and football field was, you can see the poles for the goal, wonder how many balls ended up in the river? I doubt anyone going in for them, as at the time it would still have been an open sewer and be stinking to mons height.

"I doubt anyone going in for them, as at the time it would still have been an open sewer and be stinking to mons height."
It did, Cyril. And! I remember the water (River Douglas) being different colours: yellow, blue or red. This was due to the works further up stream.
Cyril, I sledged (when there was snow) down Coppull Lane. I sledged from near to the top of the slope, which was around the entrance road to Swinley Bowling Green/Club (the old one and not the newer building which is now known as The Swinley) down to the bottom of Coppull Lane, which was a relatively flat area.
Also, I used to sledge down the two slopes in the Plantations, which were near to the steps that went up to Bottling Wood houses. My friends and I would sledge down the first slope, across the car-wide path, then on to the lower slope, ending up at the bottom at a frozen (if lucky) pond, close to the River Douglas.

davey, when I was in St George's junior school, our football pitch was on the part of Camel's Hump which backed on to Pyke St. Couldn't imagine a worse site to play football on - not level anywhere!!

played for st georges 1951 on camels hump then onto whelley played rl for them on ben turners.

Hi Tom,
Where was Ben Turners. My dad worked for Ben Turner.

Nice one Veronica, strange though that the old ordinance survey maps has the Bloody Mountains on the other side of the valley closer to the town (no where near where the battle took place).

I’m not really well up with the Battle of Wigan Lane Bill but it makes you wonder if there’s many old bones buried in that area and weapons maybe.

Ian, all around that area then was a natural and superb children's play area.

Veronica, some time ago I remember reading that musket balls and shot were found at what it was then said, may well have been an encampment close to the battle, this was near Thornhill off Wigan Lane, though a lot of housing has been built down there since, also the land down Coppull Lane had landscape machines all over it, and later bulldozers for the dam, and the land they called the Bloody Mountains looked to have been covered in pit spoil along with red shale, though that too was bulldozed when housing was built nearby, so any evidence could be long gone, though you never know what could turn up.

Jim Latham, Ben Turners butchers was on Scholes on the left hand side going towards Scholes Crossing and the Scholes cinema was slightly further down on the other side of the road.. As lads, my mate's dad drove a delivery van for Ben Turner - can't remember his first name but Quinlan was his surname.

jim
ben turners was were whelley scho0l rugby played it was near st stephens church its were the bungalows are are going into the plantations it was owned by a slaughter house called ben turners who used for putting cattle on the name stuck

Interesting story Cyril. All the buried history we have in Wigan from Roman times to the Civil War. They won’t find much in the future from our era….I would love for the Boer War Soldier to be found. It seems there’s nothing sacred. Imagine a few centuries in the future and the ‘Face’ buried beneath Millgate discovered amongst broken glass. They wouldn't ‘believe’ what they were seeing unearthed.

Ian the structure visible bottom left was a ladies public convenience and just below it you can make out the railings on the road bridge over the Douglas, this was the location for the photograph see 29986

We used to get our "two legs" for our catapults of what was known as the Little Jungle when we were kids. That is the land on the left of the footpath as you go up Maloneys brew. The Little Jungle was densely overgrown with trees and bushes and it stretched all the way to the steps that lead up to Bottling Wood. The were was also a small cave in it, we used to call it the devils cave.

Thanks! Graham. :-)
Rich. I did, too! Also, as a very young kid, I went to the end of Devil's Cave.

Spent many happy hours playing there in the 50's. I well remember one half of the brook being blue & the other yellow, as we jumped it my cousin dressed head to toe in white fell in, her mum was not pleased with the result. We found a beautiful silver sifter spoon ( deep bowl with slots) no idea what happened to it after. Happy days.