GEOFF CRAMBIE: Corner of Nelson that has disappeared forever

Yes, here on a hazy day in the mill town, four huge chimneys can be seen; these are for Fryer and Co. Victory Works, Bridge Cotton Mill, Victoria Mills and Walverden Shed, all of which today are no longer providing employment for the good folk of Nelson.

On the left of our picture is the long gone goods yard for British Railways and the two women seen here are walking towards the subway for Nelson Station. Note at the far end of the advertisement hoardings, Nelson Station signal-box can just be seen. This is where I proudly worked almost 50 years ago in the summer of 1963.

Just to the left of the telegraph pole is the still-standing grandiose Station Hotel and to the right in the distance is the sadly lost Railway Hotel. The town centre Railway Hotel was built for the coming of the railway to Nelson in 1848 and was always a very busy pub.

However, not long after this photo was taken, this fine hostelry was bulldozed to the ground in 1959. Today it is only through seeing evocative pictures such as this one that each and every one of us can recapture an era that’s gone forever.