There are five parks in the town, three of which have Green Flag Awards.[104] The first park opened in Ashton-under-Lyne was Stamford Park on the border with Stalybridge. The park opened in 1873, following a 17 year campaign by local cotton workers;[105] the land was bought from a local mill-owner for £15,000 (£1.1 million as of 2011)[106] and further land was donated by George Grey, 7th Earl of Stamford.[107] A crowd of between 60,000 and 80,000 turned out to see the Earl of Stamford formally open the new facility on 12 July 1873. It now includes a boating lake, and a memorial to Joseph Rayner Stephens, commissioned by local factory workers to commemorate his work promoting fair wages and improved working conditions. A conservatory was opened in 1907, and Coronation gates installed at both the Ashton-under-Lyne and Stalybridge entrances in 1953.[105]
Hartshead Pike is a stone tower on top of Hartshead Hill overlooking Ashton and Oldham.[108] The current building was constructed in 1863 although there has been a building on the site since at least the mid-18th century, although the original purpose is obscure. The pike may have been the site of a beacon in the late 16th century.[109] It has a visitor centre and from the top of the hill it is possible to see the Jodrell Bank Observatory in Cheshire, the Welsh hills, and the Holme Moss transmitter in West Yorkshire.[110]
A column flanked by two lions and surmounted by a statue of Peace and a soldier. There are bronze plaques on the base of the monument.
Ashton-under-Lyne War Memorial, in Memorial Gardens
The Witchwood public house, in the St Petersfield area of the town, has been a music venue since the 1960s, hosting acts such as Muse, The Coral, and Lost Prophets.[111] In 2004 The Witchwood came under threat when the area was being redeveloped, but was saved from demolition after a campaign by locals and led by Tom Hingley, drawing support from musicians such as Bert Jansch, The Fall, and The Chameleons.[112]
The main Ashton-under-Lyne War Memorial, in Memorial Gardens, consists of a central cenotaph on plinth, surmounted by sculpted wounded soldier and the figure of "Peace who is taking the sword of honour" from his hand.[113] It commemorates the 1,512 people from the town who died in the First World War and the 301 who died in the Second World War.[114] The cenotaph is flanked on both sides by two bronze lions. The plinth is decorated with military equipment representing the services, as well as bronze tablets listing the Roll of Honour from World War I. Commissioned by the Ashton War Memorial Committee, the statue was sculpted between 1919 and 1922 by John Ashton Floyd, and unveiled on 16 September 1922 by General Sir Ian Hamilton.[113]
The tablet on the front of the memorial reads:
Erected in honour of the men of Ashton-under-Lyne and district who fought for King and Empire in The Great War, especially those who sacrificed their lives, and whose names are recorded hereonaccounting software Roofing Siding York PA
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
