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Work Houses


julie leach

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It looks to be the waterworks,

it can be seen on OS map #70,

there is link in my post (14) above.

I thought it was the water works but welcome the second opinion on it so that we can exclude it from further investigation into either Hurlfield House or the original Myrtle Springs school.

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I thought it was the water works but welcome the second opinion on it so that we can exclude it from further investigation into either Hurlfield House or the original Myrtle Springs school.
Here you go Dave,

Hurlfield House or part of Hurlfield House is still standing.

Left to right ...

Hurlfield Farm

Hurlfield House

Myrtle Springs

Un-named?

Myrtle Hill House

Water Works

All are shown on the 1951 OS map and the 1931 map,

they can also be seen on 1903 maps.

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Here you go Dave,

Hurlfield House or part of Hurlfield House is still standing.

Left to right ...

Hurlfield Farm

Hurlfield House

Myrtle Springs

Un-named?

Myrtle Hill House

Water Works

All are shown on the 1951 OS map and the 1931 map,

they can also be seen on 1903 maps.

Your map and Google image show exactly the site of "old foudations" I was refering to in post #21, so that clears up what they were, -part of Hurlfield House.

Still leaves the exact site of that school a bit vague though.

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Took a bit of an exploratory walk over Myrtle Springs, first time in 27 years, to try and clear this Myrtle Springs School in the 19th century mystery up a bit.

The place seems to have changed out of all recognition due to the removal of most of the rural features (the Orchard for example) and replacing it with modern very expensive looking housing.

My walk started on Hurlfield Road at the school which is currently called "Springs Academy", no connection with the school in the title of this thread, this school was previously Myrtle Springs and before that Hurlfield, and even further back Hurlfield boys school, which until recently all had their main entrances on East Bank Road.

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Almost opposite the school on the other side of Hurlfield Road is the old water works building, although there is no visible evidence of the "Hagg Lane Tanks", the water tanks which once stood here at the highest point. They are long gone and replaced with new housing.

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The site of Hurlfield girls school / Ashleigh lower school has been redeveloped since the schools demolition in 1988. There is now a new road, Ashleigh Drive and a small new housing estate on it.

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Behind this wall on the left hand side of Hurlfield Road are now houses, at one time it was Hurlfield girls / Ashleigh lower school

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The junction of Hurlfield Road with Arbourthorne Road (which is the main road which swings around to the right) and Toll Bar Road (a narrower road which continues straight on).

The unidentified buildings on SteveHB's labelled Google map would appear to be that row of 3 cottages in the left of centre of the picture.

Since this picture was taken just before I went on my holidays the road junction has already been altered, A give way and junction at the top of Arbourthorne Road, with Hurlfield Road now doing what it did originally as Hagg Lane, continuing on along Toll Bar Road into Myrtle Springs. At least this gets rid of a very nasty blind bend which many motorists went round far too fast without a thought of what could have been around the corner.

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The last thing on Hurlfield Road before Toll Bar Road starts is this entrance. It was an entrance to Ashleigh school and its extensive playing fields just off Gleadless Common. Old students of Ashleigh (myself included) will remember it as the smelly muddy path which went past a pig sty as it connected the upper and lower school buildings. The path actually skirts around the edge of what was Myrtle Springs, to the right of the picture.

Just beyond the entrance, facing the top of Arbourthorne Road, is this sign

It indicates that Toll Bar Road is a dead end, which it was for many years but I am sure there is a way through to Gleadless Road.

There is certainly no evidence of any toll bar barrier or payment booth like a Checkpoint Charlie and to my memory there never has been so the name must date back a long way.

This road sign also lacks its 6 digit MYSTERY NUMBER (see mysterious numbers thread)

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The junction of Myrtle Springs Drive and Toll Bar Road.

Toll Bar Road does appear to be blocked off with a row of traffic cones (at one time there were concrete bollards) to prevent vehicle access, although Myrtle Springs Drive appears to be open to traffic.

I think the road was blocked at this end because the "posh" residents wanted to cut themselves off a bit from the Arbourthorne estate and associate themselves more with the Gleadless end of Myrtle Springs.

Between the tree and the back of that black parked car is the entrance to the public footpath I have mentioned previously.

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Problem number one on my exploratory tour.

The public footpath I wanted to use appears to be closed and blocked off, however, it is clearly the path to Hurlfield House.

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The other path I thought may go to the ruins of the old Myrtle school turned out to be this path across a field which runs down the back of Arbourthorne Road and Paddock Crescent.

Didn't have time to explore this one, and I can't honestly remember where it goes.

When I was a kid I don't know if it went to a farm or just went into Buck Wood.

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A short walk down Myrtle Springs Drive soon located the old Myrtle Pond, complete with its own decoy Heron and well astocked with fish.

It's all still there but now surrounded by posh housing in a very nice setting.

No wonder they want to close the road into the Arbourthorne, - they want to keep yobs, vandals and criminals out.

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Walking a little further on soon reveals the other pond in Myrtle Springs.

The large pond in the previous post was always called "Myrtle Pond" but the small pond was "Orchard Pond" because it was in a small orchard.

Houses have been built either side of Orchard pond, so that it creates a gap in the row of houses down the street.

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The footpath through Myrtle Springs still exists.

But it now has a proper surface to walk on (not fjust mud and puddles) but is heavily fenced off from the new housing.

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A very rough, treacherous and overgrown public footpath (signposted as such) then leads back behind Toll bar towards the site of Hurlfield House.

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The path eventually emerges high up above an old quarry (marked as a brickworks on the maps earlier in this thread) with a good view down to Gleadless Road and over the Gleadless Valley.

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This path finally end right in front of Hurlfield House on the lane which was blocked off to traffic.

Hurlfield House is guarded by a pack of dogs behind its gates which bark fiercely every time anyone walks along the path.

Got a photo of the house but from a safe distance (notice the dogs).

Wasn't brave enough to go snooping around for any old school ruins.

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Sequel to my journey

On my way back up the path to to the point where the public footpath is closed to vehicles there was a car waiting at the barrier to come down.

Thinking I was going to get done for trespass I made polite conversation with the driver who turned out to be the son of the owner of Hurlfield House.

He was waiting for his dad to drive up behind me to open the barrier to let him down to the house.

He assured me that the public footpath was still open and in use, they had no objection to walkers and ramblers using the path at all but had put the barriers there to stop rough youths from the Arbourthorne tearing about on motorbikes and abondoning and setting fire to stolen cars, - seems fair enough.

He confirmed there were some "old foundations" (rather than ruins) at the house but had no idea what they were or any knowledge of an old school in the 19th century.

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My Conclusions

From this trip i would say that in all likelyhood either, -

1]

The ruins around Hurlfield House could well be the site of the old myrtle school

2]

There is so much new housing in the Myrtle springs area it is possible that the evidence of any school being there over a hundred years ago is probably long gone if it is not at the hurlfield house site.

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Guest Tollbar  Jay

Would be interesting to find the exact site of this school.

Well i found it :D i live on tollbar and part of my land is no3 Myrtle springs i have the key stone for the bording school built into my porch and also the tops of the gate posts are still here :D after 6 years i have found this thread by accident as the key stone is worn and i thort it was flury not flory

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Guest Tollbar  Jay

Well i found it :D i live on tollbar and part of my land is no3 Myrtle springs i have the key stone for the bording school built into my porch and also the tops of the gate posts are still here :D after 6 years i have found this thread by accident as the key stone is worn and i thort it was flury not flory

I also had a lot off building work done here last year and dug up the old foundations of the cottages my house still uses the old victorian drains from those houses . would anyone be able to send me the links for the Dr Flory Cuttings so i could print them out in full ?

Jay

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