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Slides & Notes
“ The history & background of the garden... and beyond. ”
This sequence of images is designed to introduce the garden at Langley – particularly to give some information about its history. By asking whether things have got better over time it touches on the concept of fallenness. At the end it takes the history right back to the beginning of time – a theme that will be touch on in the last of the four picture sequences, ‘Spring’.
As teachers and pupils are probably not familiar either with the Allendale area, with the lead mining industry which once dominated the area, the following notes go into more detail about the background of the pictures than in subsequent sequences.
“ The garden at Langley today. Look carefully at the picture for clues – can you guess what this place used to be? ”
Clues about the original function of the building can be found in its general style – note also the clock on the wall and the platform running along in front of it. The house that can be seen behind once belonged to the stationmaster. The colours of the building are much brighter than they were originally!
“ Yes – it was once a railway station! This photograph was taken about 100 years ago. ”
The 13½ mile Hexham & Allendale Railway was built in the 1860s. Its purpose was to collect lead ore from the mines at the head of the valley. The ore was taken to Langley to be smelted and, once the lead had been extracted, it could be shipped on to be sold. Langley station opened in 1867. Unfortunately, by the 1890s Britain’s lead mining industry was in terminal decline, out-competed by cheaper imports from America and Spain. Passenger trains stopped in 1930. Goods trains stopped in 1950.
“ A party of ladies and girls at the station. When do you think this picture was taken? Where do you think they were going? Where are their husbands, brothers and fathers? ”
Perhaps the ladies standing by the stationmaster are members of his family? Perhaps it shows an outing of the local Woman’s Institute or a Methodist Ladies group? The Methodist church was very popular with miners and their families.
“ Their husbands and fathers were almost certainly lead miners. In the nineteenth century everyone around here worked in the lead industry. ”
Working in a lead mine was, of course, a hard and dangerous job. Miners also often had to lodge away from their families as the mines were in isolated locations. They lived in communal dormitories, which were often dirty and noisy. On the other hand, lead miners had more independence than coalminers. They worked in partnerships of two to twelve men, who contracted with the mine owner to produce a certain amount of lead ore. They had much more control than coal miners over how many hours they worked each day. In the nineteenth century boys began working as labourers at the age of 12 and could become full partners at around 18 years.
“ Lead was mined in the surrounding hills. This is the Wolfcleugh mine near Rookhope – all around here there were mine shafts and pit heaps. ”
A ‘cleugh’ is a northern English/southern Scottish dialect word for a narrow rocky valley. There have been no wolves in this valley for hundreds of years, but it is still a wild and desolate place – you can easily imagine wolves being there!
“ All of the lead has long since gone. This is the Wolfcleugh mine today – preserved for tourists to visit. It is a wild and beautiful place – grass has grown over the pit heaps. ”
There were lead workings here at various different times, starting in the Middle Ages. This shaft was open in the early nineteenth century, but closed in 1846. It was reopened in 1901-1912 and two more shafts sunk. In 1946 it was briefly reopened, but without much result.
“ At Langley the lead was brought to be smelted. It must have been a filthy and noisy place. ”
Nothing substantial remains of these buildings, although there are still large reservoirs (now used for fishing, as well as being the home of otters – which causes a certain amount of friction!). Smelting involved washing, crushing and roasting the ore. It was a skilled job and smelters were well paid, although they risked serious damage to their health from the poisonous chemicals produced – lead, antimony, arsenic and sulphuric acid. The construction of the mill at Langley provoked furious opposition from local farmers who complained of damage caused to land and cattle from the mill reek. The owners had to pay compensation and farming was then prohibited on about 12 acres around the mill and a high wall constricted to enclose this land.
“ This is the remains of a chimney at Langley which was used to remove fumes. Every so often boys were sent along it to collect the lead and silver which collected inside it. ”
At best this ring fence could only improve matters marginally and in the mid nineteenth century long horizontal flues, usually over a mile long, were constructed at smelt mills. These flues carried the poisonous fumes out onto the moors, where it was thought they did less harm. Over time the inside of the flues became coated with waste lead, silver, zinc and other valuable elements. Periodically these flue deposits were scraped down and recovered. It must have been an extremely dangerous job. Langley’s chimneys were commenced in 1801 and cost £871, but the profit on recovered lead and silver was worth £227 in the first year of their use. The last section of the flue system and the chimney were completed by 1882. The smelt mills finally closed in 1887 and much of the works were demolished by 1896.
“ People have been mining lead around here for hundreds of years – perhaps even as far back as Roman times. ”
This picture is from sixteenth century Germany, but it gives a good idea of the hustle and bustle at early mines. The mines at Alston, not too far from Langley, were important sources of silver in the Middle Ages. There was an acute shortage of gold in western Europe at this period caused by the Arabic Islamic invasion of gold producing localities – and silver was the next best thing!
“ Before human beings came along the lead – and the silver and zinc – lay quietly and harmlessly under the soil. ”
This is Allendale today – perhaps not quite as quiet as in the days when wolves roamed the hills, but still very beautiful.
“ And before that … well, all the elements that exist in the universe were created in stars formed after the Big Bang – but that’s a much more complicated story! ”
Of course, there are no photographs of the Big Bang, so this image of Nebula NGC 2818 in our own Milky Way will have to do. A nebula is an interstellar cloud of dust, gas and plasma. All the elements that exist – including lead, silver and gold – are thought to have been formed inside stars; only inside stars is there sufficient energy for elements to be forged. The elements that were created then were subsequently spewed out into the universe when these stars ‘died’.
“ Meanwhile, 13.7 billion years on from that event, dew gathers on a leaf in the garden at Langley, unnoticed by anyone … or is it? ”
Questions
What feelings do you have when you think about people like us who lived not-so-long ago?
Do you think people are happier today than they were 10, 100, 500, 1000 years ago? Why? What makes people happy?
What things are different today from 100 years ago? Why might or mighn’t Langley be a better place now?
What things are different today from 100 years ago? Why might or mighn’t the world be a better place now?
Do you think the world is better place today than it was 100 years ago?
Where in today’s world do you find dirty and noisy factories?
How do human beings mess up the world? Is it inevitable that they spoil things?
What does thinking about the immense age of things make you feel like?
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the beautiful world you have given us:
Forgive us for often making a mess of it – and help us restore and heal the damage that we do.
Thank you that you love and care for each one of us – small though we may feel:
Help us, in the time that we have been given on this earth, to reflect this love in the world around us.
Thank you that each one of us is made from material forged in stars:
Help us ‘to shine like stars in the universe’ (Philippians 2.15).
