1929 North East Coast Exhibition 'Memorabilia'

I got bored, I went on eBay, and I came away with another piece of tat. Yes, it's happened again.

The latest purchase is a pair of unused stamps commemorating the famous North East Coast Exhibition of 1929. Held on what we now know as Exhibition Park at the top end of the city centre, the summer-long event was meant to be a sort of 'world's fair', focussing, of course, on local stuff. I'm sure you know all about it.

Anyway, the organisers came up with all sorts of ideas to promote the exhibition; and one way which I wasn't familiar with was the issuing of the above, which were known as 'Cinderella Stamps' (as they were the 'poor relation' of proper stamps). As you can see, they had no value, and weren't 'official' postage, but were instead just used as sticky-on advertisements for letters and parcels. You know, for commemorative / propaganda purposes.

I managed to smuggle them into the house from the postbox when the wife wasn't looking, so don't tell her.

An Early (failed) Armstrong Invention

Following on from last week's piece about industrialist William Armstrong, I have recently come across another little-known snippet about the man. It concerns an early invention of his, and its complete failure to make an impression of any sort. Not that that put him off developing his genius, though.

A few weeks ago I fell upon this little plaque next to the Pleased to Meet You pub on High Bridge, Newcastle:

I'm rather embarrassed to admit that I had no idea what the plaque was on about, so I set about trying to enlighten myself.

In the mid-1830s, a 20-something-year-old William Armstrong was a long way off becoming the mighty Victorian industrialist he was to ultimately become. He'd just got married, and was somewhat reluctantly making his way in the world as a solicitor. Ever the keen amateur inventor/engineer, he could often be found fiddling around with mechanical devices - and was a regular visitor to the works of engineer Henry Watson in High Bridge. The buildings thereabouts have long since been knocked down and rebuilt, but the above plaque marks the spot where the two men casually met. He visited Watson pretty much every day, in fact, for several years.

Watson made all manner of devices: clocks, theodolites, telescopes, etc - all highly technical stuff. Armstrong was especially friendly with the Hutchinsons, who worked under Watson. And it was here, in 1838, that he persuaded the little company to make his first machine - an invention, in fact - namely, the rotary hydraulic engine. The idea came to him when he was out fishing, and noticed how inefficient a nearby watermill was. He reckoned he could come up with something better. Armstrong said:

I was lounging idly about, watching an old water mill, when it occurred to me what a small part of the power of the water was used in driving the wheel; and then I thought how great would be the force of even a small quantity of water if its energy were only concentrated in one column.

He, Watson and the Hutchinsons discussed the idea. Armstrong then wrote a paper about it (image from same below). But there was no interest. So he made a working model at Henry Watson's works, which was ready towards the end of 1839. Using pressure from the town's water pipes the machine was able to muster five horse-power. Basically, the water was fed through a pipe, catching the wheel as it exited, and forced around four folding apertures (which acted as pistons, to drive the wheel around). But still no-one showed any interest. 

So ... he switched his thoughts, in time, to the idea of a hydraulically-driven single-stroke pistol. It took some time, still, but, as I'm sure you're aware, this was the direction which Armstrong and his great hydraulic inventions eventually took. But as for that original 'rotary' affair, well, you can find an example tucked away in a corner of Newcastle's Discovery Museum (presumably, it's the one and only example, too). It's on the top floor, opposite the cafe, if you're interested.

Armstrong's prototype 'rotary hydraulic machine'. 

It was on display for many years at his old Elswick Works.

So, now I know what all the fuss is about on Newcastle's High Bridge!

[info taken from The Great Gun-Maker: The Life of Lord Armstrong by David Dougan, originally published in 1970; and The Early History of Elswick by Alfred Cochrane, published in 1909]

William Armstrong the Elder

Some observances on the life of the father of the famous industrialist, William Armstrong, also called William, taken from The Early History of Elswick by Alfred Cochrane, being a transcript of a lecture given by him in 1909:

"He was the son of a Cumberland man, William Armstrong, who migrated from a village near Carlisle at the end of the eighteenth century, and established himself as a corn merchant in Cowgate, in Newcastle. Mr William Armstrong, the elder, seems to have enjoyed a moderately successful business career. I have seen it stated that he became very rich, but I find it difficult to establish this, and I do not make out that when his son started these works [the famous Elswick works] he succeeded in inducing his father to put any money into the enterprise. In fact, the son does not appear to have inherited his inventive powers from the father, for the elder Mr Armstrong was not at all receptive to new ideas. Like many of his contemporaries he regarded the changes and novelties of the age with dislike and apprehension. In 1824, when a question arose of making a railway to Carlisle, he spoke at a public meeting in opposition to the proposal, and made a long speech, ably and argumentatively showing the advantages a canal would possess over a railway. Fortunately his persuasiveness was ineffectual, for it would hardly suit us today to be pulled in barges from Newcastle to Carlisle. He stood and was defeated for the Mayoralty for 1850, the year when Queen Victoria opened the Central Station, but was elected for 1851. He died, aged 79, in June 1857, when his son and his son's works were already famous.

"Socially, Mr Armstrong, senior, who was a man of some culture and learning, was much liked, and had a considerable circle of friends .... Mr Armstrong's family consisted of a daughter, born in 1800, and a son, William George, born in December 1810. The son was a rather delicate child, who early displayed an enquiring and ingenious turn of mind. He is said to have been anxious to know how his toys were made, and to have devised small and simple mechanical contrivances ...."

[It should be pointed out that William Armstrong Snr married his wife, Ann Potter, of Walbottle Hall, in 1801, and their daughter, also called Ann, was born in 1802, and not as stated above]

The Spedding Mill

(click on images to enlarge)

Whilst on a recent visit to the Mining Institute in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, I came across this curious little relic: the Spedding Mill. It can be found just inside the entrance, and next to it can also be found an explanatory information panel:

Elsewhere in the building (as part of an exhibition, when I visited) there is another one...

The Spedding Mill is something which I'd never heard of before, so I thought I'd try to find out a bit more about it ... but there's not a lot of information out there. There's a nice article about the chap in question here, but there is nothing much about the invention, or, indeed, his unfortunate death at the hands of it.

I must admit that the whole concept of the Spedding Mill seems frightfully hazardous to me. I'm guessing, too, that though the invention first saw the light of day (or rather the dark of night) in Cumberland, it was also employed here in the North-East in the days before the Davy and Stephenson Safety Lamps.

If anyone can enlighten me further, then I'd be delighted to hear from you in the comments below.

A Relic of Newcastle's 'Great Exhibition'

(click on images to enlarge)

I am sorry to say that I have again been seduced by an item of historical tat being touted on eBay. This time it is a commemorative copper (or bronze?) medal, issued in 1840 to mark the occasion of what was, effectively, Newcastle's very own 'Great Exhibition' of the early Victorian age. It is about 1.5in in diameter and cost me thirty-odd quid. Honestly, I'm such a sucker for this sort of thing.

I write at some length about this curious event in my book Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Fragments of the Past, vol.2, but, in essence, the five-month jolly during the summer of 1840 was both a celebration of achievement and a vehicle for the education of the masses. The medal's inscription indocti discant et ament meminisse periti means (according to my online Latin translator) "May the ignorant learn and may the experts love to remember." I'm not sure how accurate that is, but I think you get the general idea.

The exhibition spanned several buildings and rooms across Blackett Street, High Friar Street and Nelson Street - essentially between the entrance to the Academy of Arts on the former to the New Music Hall on the latter. Obviously, there were exhibitions of art, as well as examples of innovative local manufacture, a 'magic lantern', a 'centrifugal railway' and lots and lots of hydraulic contraptions. There was even "an ingenious revolving door" placed at the top of the staircase from the Music Hall to Nelson Street below. It was a commercial success, and something similar was repeated in 1848 at the same venue.

Those Victorians certainly knew how to boast! And why not?

Wot Cheor, Geordie!

Esther McCracken was born Esther Helen Armstrong in Newcastle on 25th June 1902. She was educated at Central Newcastle High School (now Newcastle High School for Girls), where she was a regular winner of the annual cricket ball throwing competition. In time she would prove herself in the fields of acting, broadcasting and, most notably, as a playwright.

Described as small and full of spirit, she performed with the Newcastle Repertory Company up to 1937. Over time she began writing plays, too, with her first effort being The Willing Spirit in 1936. Her 1938 play, Quiet Wedding, brought her national fame and a move to London, and was even made into a film in 1941 and again in 1958 (as Happy Is the Bride). A sequel, Quiet Weekend, written in 1941, proved a huge success, being performed over 1,000 times in the capital (and was also made into a film). She began, essentially, in comedy, before moving onto more serious material later in her career, including Living Room in 1943, No Medals in 1944, and Cry Liberty in 1950.

In the meantime, Esther married a famous rugby player and accountant, Angus McCracken, in 1936 – though he was killed in action in 1943. In 1944, she married again, to shipping magnate Mungo Campbell. She became even more widely known when she introduced the well-known BBC radio show Wot Cheor, Geordie, which ran throughout the 1940s and ’50s. 

She is chiefly remembered locally for her help in setting up Newcastle University’s theatre (now Northern Stage) and the city’s charity hub/HQ, MEA House – the name of the latter coming from the initials of the christian names of her husband (M), herself (E) and their solicitor colleague Alistair Fyfe (A) (the three being responsible for the setting up of the fund to finance the building). The multi-storey building in Ellison Place was the first British building purpose-built to house a range of voluntary services. Opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1974, it still provides to this day office accommodation for registered charities at rents below market rate.

Esther McCracken died in London in August 1971, aged 69. Interestingly, her granddaughter, Imogen Stubbs, who was born in Rothbury in 1961, has also become a famous writer and actress.

[article taken from The Great North-East: An English History Tour, vol.2 - see left-hand column]

Newcastle's Oldest Church?

I called in at St.Andrew's Church in Newcastle the other day. I will not bore you with all of my poorly-taken photos and the various historical bits and bobs I picked up (another time, maybe), but thought you'd like a short piece about the church's claim to be the city's oldest. For starters I can do little better than point you to this little information board:

(click on image to enlarge)

Then I came across a little more 'back-up' evidence in the form of this (again, sorry for the picture quality):

By way of explanation...

Make of 'dowsing evidence' what you will. However, I've got a little bit of experience of this sort of thing myself, and personally know a dowsing enthusiast who provides some very convincing evidence/arguments. So I, for one, am quite sympathetic to the claims/theory.

Could always get the archaeologists in, of course....