The Road To Industry - Park Bridge, UK - UK Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Tameside Countryside Service

PARK BRIDGE

The Road to Industry

It may be hard to believe as you stand in this peaceful spot today, that this area was once a hive of industrial activity.

Over the river on your left was the busy Fairbottom Colliery and Fairbottom Bobs. Across the road, below the workers cottages, iron and coal was loaded on to barges on the Fairbottom Branch Canal and a narrow gauge tramway ran up the road to the busy Park Bridge ironworks.

"We delivered steel bars to all engineering firms, and used to collect old textile rollers for reconditioning. We'd fetch 'em in and they repaired 'em here, you know, re-fluted and everything in the roller shop".

Chris Brown drove lorry loads of steel bars to the docks for export.

Fairbottom Bobs
This rare steam powered engine was used to pump water from the coal pit. In 1929 its ruins were shipped to America destined for the Henry Ford Museum.

Go wild about Park Bridge

Take a little time to explore the varied countryside here at Park Bridge. take a stroll by the river and look out for the Dipper. This small dark bird with a white throat and breast is remarkable for its method of walking into and under water in search of food.

Glance up through the trees and see if you can spot the Goldcrest, Britain's smallest breeding songbird.

Take a quiet stroll in the early morning or evening and you may be lucky enough to see Roe Deer in the woodland clearings. These small, shy deer have a very good sense of smell and hearing and feed on brambles, grasses and the leaves of young trees.