My name is Samantha Wheatcroft I’ve lived in Skircoat Green for 19 years with my husband David & our two sons Finton & Toby.

When Gallery 339 closed last year it was a big loss for Skircoat Green. Myself, friends, friends of friends etc were constantly asking each other where to go to get a great card or a fabulous present?

In conversation, Amanda Norton, the current owner of Nicholls Fashion and Beauty shop in Skircoat Green, mentioned that she was thinking of retiring from the fashion side of the business (the beauty rooms are staying open).  The Dress shop has been on Skircoat Green high street for 80 years, with just two families owning it (the first being Mrs Nicholls).  Obviously, this high street doesn’t have empty shops very often!  For me, it was an ideal opportunity to try & fill that gap that Gallery 339 had left behind.

Eesome Gift and Card shop won’t be a replica of Gallery 339 as I obviously want to put my own stamp on it.  However, customers will be able to select cards from some of the great companies that previously supplied Gallery 339 as well as some of the same products.  However, there will also be gorgeous candles, jewellery, homeware etc. from new and different companies too.  Most of the stock will be designed and made in Britain and where possible, from good old Yorkshire!

As this is a new venture for me, I’d like to say a huge thank you – to all my family and friends who have been incredibly supportive. Also, to Natalie Seager who ran Gallery 339. She has bravely chosen to forge a new pathway, practising restorative therapies.  Natalie has been a boon to me throughout this process so a huge thank you to her too.

Eesome will open in June 2019, the planned opening times are:

Tuesday to Friday 10am – 5pm

Saturday 9am – 4pm

If you’d like to get in touch then email eesomegifts@gmail.com or find the store on Instagram as eesomegifts or visit www.eesomegifts.co.uk  Otherwise, I’ll see you in June when the shop opens!

Last month I mentioned doing a printmaking workshop at The Artworks. The seven week course has come to an end and has been a really interesting exploration in technique and materials. I started off the course trying out etching with inscribed scribbles as illegible ‘writing’. I also tried drypoint and had the idea to bring in discarded plastic packaging (which I’ve used in various ways in my practice before) to treat as a drypoint plate. After several attempts and being dissatisfied with the results, I realised that the most interesting results had been a squashed plastic tray. It had unsuccessfully printed the inscribed words but what was interesting to me was every time it was inked up and went through the printing press it made a different flattened impression. Playing on words; this printing ‘plate’ (technically a collagraph) is also a flattened version of a ready-made food container which is a stand-in or a poor-substitute of a dinner plate. Therefore this series of prints is called ‘Plates’ which I’m showing in an exhibition in Leeds called Dualism (15 April – 5 May).

I also mentioned I’d been selected for a writer’s residency working with Yorkshire Visual Arts Network, Corridor 8 and artist Sarah Smizz, producing a piece of writing for publication later this year. My research methodology is using snowball sampling to interview artists about their practices in order to unearth hierarchies and challenge the uncritical use of the term ‘resilient’ to describe artists in the region. This project has really picked up pace over the last few weeks (literally snowballed!) and has been incredibly inspiring talking to so many (previously unknown to me) artists about their work and strategies of resilience.

In the midst of juggling everything and critically questioning what it means to be resilient, I took the decision to step down from my role as coordinator for Halifax Mothers Who Make. It’s a sad decision but something had to give. I felt the group needs more time and energy than I can currently commit to really develop it and hopefully I’ve found a brilliant successor to continue the work Lucy Simm started and I continued for 18 months after. This decision did not come lightly, as I really enjoyed the role, but I had to acknowledge I couldn’t maintain everything I wanted to do at current pace without serious risk of burnout.

As well as ongoing curatorial projects Art Lab at Dean Clough, Soundstripes and Dwell Time, I’m Associate Artist for Welland Festival 2019. Of course, this involves rubbish and it also involves talking in the form of collecting stories of past and imagined future Elland. I’m collecting discarded bottle caps/lids and stories of Elland through guided litter-picking, story-telling walks around a 1.2km route along the new imagined shoreline of Elland-on-Sea. Scientists predict that if all the ice caps were to melt, the sea level would rise by 80m. My walking route of Elland plotted around 80m altitude is where the future coastline would be. These guided walks will inform my research and bottle cap collection for a new installation for Welland Festival in June.

Find out more about how to get involved in walks, send in your stories of Elland and where bottle cap the collection points are below.

Welland Cap Stories https://capstories.home.blog/

Welland Festival https://www.facebook.com/wellandfest/

Alice Bradshaw http://www.alicebradshaw.co.uk/

Museum of Contemporary Rubbish http://museumofcontemporaryrubbish.blogspot.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/alicebradshawartist/

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/alicebradshaw.co.uk/

Twitter https://twitter.com/alicebradshaw

This month, the CEO of The Piece Hall Trust, and recent winner of Business Woman of the Year award, has kindly agreed to share a little about herself with SGD readers.

Nicky Chance-Thompson accepted the mammoth task of guiding the final preparations to get the Piece Hall ready for opening in August 2017, managing this in a matter of months!

Since then, there have been a raft of awards won for the building, other team members of the Trust and Council and also, for Nicky herself.

The Piece Hall Trust is a charity; the building has become an amazing indie retail area, unique entertainment space and remains a historic monument. How does Nicky manage our national treasure as well as fit in the role of Lady Mayoress of Halifax 2018/9 and live a normal life too?!

Having worked in London and other big towns, what inspires you about Halifax? 

The people, the landscape and the quality of life. How lucky are we to live in a town surrounded by such beautiful countryside? It’s also bursting with creative talent and I’m so glad that this is now being more recognised nationally.

How, in the past 12 months, have you managed to juggle work, any social life and fulfil the role as Lady Mayoress? 

My social life has been pretty much non-existent but I’ve enjoyed being Mayoress and supporting Marcus in his role as Mayor. I’ve got to know about the wonderful and kind communities of Calderdale and it’s made me fall in love with it even more. The job is very demanding but I’ve made it work as it’s so important and I just love The Piece Hall.

As CEO of the Piece Hall Trust, what has been the most enjoyable time so far? 

Meeting royalty and working with a fantastic team and tenants. It’s a real privilege to have such great colleagues and we are doing great; my thanks to each and every one of you. It’s been a challenge taking everyone on this journey because the ambition is far greater than the Piece Hall that people might remember from the past. This is a transformational project and about far more than the square that is The Piece Hall.

My daughter would like to know of your favourite TV programme when you were 10!

It was Grange Hill.

What’s your favourite music?

All music! I love classical and modern. I’m a musician so I can’t settle on one genre. Ask Mark at Loafers my taste is eclectic.

How are your dogs?

They are very grumpy with us right now but still seem to love us unconditionally. They have been very understanding this year. I’m looking forward to spending more time with them. And my cat Tom.

And finally, your advice to an aspiring business woman regarding what to focus on in a predominantly male environment?

Build great supportive networks, always be yourself and remember it’s ok to be different.  We have different strengths. Together #wecan

Many thanks to Nicky for taking time out to answer our eclectic set of questions.

As a family, we love the Piece Hall.  We enjoy supporting the businesses, attending events, and talked no end about the positivity it’s adding to our town. There are many ways people can choose to support The Piece Hall Trust: Volunteer your time, make a donation, become a member, sponsor an event or become a corporate member.  For more information go to www.thepiecehall.co.uk/support-us

The Piece Hall has a huge variety of events planned for 2019, visit the website, Facebook page or visit the Welcome desk below the South Gate to find out which event you’re going to see, we might well see you there! 😊

It’s safe to say that Harveys of Halifax, Halifax’s independent department store, is part of the fabric of the town. As an independent, family owned store in its fourth generation of ownership, Harveys has embraced change over the years. Tracy Harvey, the store’s Managing Director, told us “We’ve undergone many changes over the years and we’ve adapted the way we operate to embrace the changing times in and around Halifax. We’ve expanded, altered the brands we have in store and improved the way we communicate with our customers. One trait of ours as a store which has remained consistent has been our unwavering commitment to provide each and every one of our customers with an excellent, personal customer service.”

For a unique shopping experience, the team at Harveys have carefully sourced and managed the products which are stocked. Retail Director, Tony Murray, told us “We want to be a home for new, modern brands that previously you would have had to travel outside of Halifax for. Our most recent additions include Barbour, Fjallraven outdoor clothing, Cath Kidston and Valentino bags. We’re constantly on the look out for fashion, beauty, gifts and homeware which offers something special and different.”
In addition to the main store on Rawson Street, there’s also the new gift shop in The Piece Hall which has something for every budget and all tastes. Many of the brands and gifts in stock at The Piece Hall store have a story to tell – the stories of the people who create the products and many of the products have a Yorkshire theme. The main store is floor after floor of beauty, gift and fashion inspiration – all under one roof. Harveys prides itself on a very personal customer service, from the lady at your favourite make-up counter to the sales assistant in the menswear department – they all care passionately about the service that they provide their loyal customers.

Despite its history and tradition – Harveys is far from afraid of change. The store is always expanding its portfolio of brands to appeal to new audiences and to give the people of Halifax something different and valuable. There is now also the option to shop online for home delivery or collection in store.

Fancy shopping and dining? Then call in to Upstairs@ Harveys and enjoy a well deserved cuppa, freshly made lunch, dinner or an afternoon tea as a special treat.

Visit the website at harveysofhalifax.co.uk or follow the team on social media including Instagram and www.facebook.com/harveyshalifax where you’ll find lots of regular competitions and special events being planned.

Take a fresh look, at Harveys of Halifax.

Image courtesy of Joe Cornish Gallery

(Main featured image courtesy of Andrew Sinclair)

On 17^th May a new statue, designed by renowned sculptor Andrew Sinclair and commemorating the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, will be unveiled at the top of Woolshops. The work will incorporate statues of soldiers from various eras, along with a bust of the great Duke of Wellington.  Work began on the site at the end of March.

As many readers will know, the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment has a very long association with Halifax.  Its title was awarded by Queen Victoria to the 33^rd Regiment of Foot in 1853, after the death of the first Duke himself.  This unit amalgamated with the 76^th Regiment in 1881, and survived until 2006.

From 1794 the 33^rd was under the command of Sir Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) in India, and from 1806-1812 Wellington was Colonel of the Regiment.  Along with other British troops, the 33^rd Regiment fought under his command at Waterloo in 1815.

Surviving accounts of the battle written by private soldiers are incredibly rare.  In the late 1970s The Department of Manuscripts at the British Museum (now The British Library) was given a letter with a vivid description of the battle, written two months after it took place, in the name of George Hemingway of Halifax, 33^rd Regt.  We are lucky this survived.

Writing from occupied Paris on 16^th August, two months after Waterloo, Private Hemingway took up his story at Soignies on 15^th June 1815, and related his experiences at both the battels of Quatre Bras and Waterloo.  It appears that, although written in his name, he dictated his text to another Halifax man in the 33^rd, Private William Illingworth, whose message to his own family is incorporated in the letter.  You must realise that many soldiers were illiterate in those days. The spelling is very erratic, and there are gaps in the text, so the reader has to concentrate carefully to decipher it.

I shall make a few quotations from the Hemingway letter.   He makes much emphasis on the deprivations endured by the British soldiers in advance of the battles; he tells how soldiers went three days without food, and were much exposed to heavy rain, struggling in the mud.  At Waterloo, Hemingway was wounded about seven in the evening of 18^th June, during the last attack by the French Imperial Guard. Ensign Howard of the same battalion was the author of another vivid description of Waterloo, and reports that when the 33rd formed in a square, and faced the final French charge, ‘we could scarcely send our wounded officers to the rear and much less men.’ Hemingway’s wound must have been light, for he was able to leave the field in the hour of victory, a weary survivor. A large proportion of the wounded died – many of them weakened by the limited medical treatment they were given – and some units suffered more deaths over the following months, as a consequence of wounds, than on the day of Waterloo.

The Regimental Muster Books preserve some information about the military careers of George Hemingway and his friend (and scribe) William Illingworth. They joined the 33^rd on 1^st October 1812 (Illingworth) and 10^th December 1813 (Hemingway) respectively. After their letter was written in August 1815, they remained in the French capital for some time. On 23^rd December that year they embarked at Calais, and on Christmas Day marched into Canterbury. They reached Colchester on 1^st January, then marched to Hull.  Having arrived at Sunderland in April, they received their Waterloo medals. Hemingway (the name is normally spelled ‘Hummingway’ in the Muster Books) suffered a good deal of ill health in the years that followed, but he served in the 33^rd until 2^nd February 1820. By then he ranked as having served more than seven years (two years’ extra service was credited to every soldier who fought at Waterloo) and was drawing thirteen pence a day. Briefly he served further in Guernsey, but the 33rd was mainly employed on garrison duties in England during these years. William Illingworth stayed on in the regiment. He too drew pay for seven years’ service and (from 1817) for being a bandsman. He was discharged (‘service expired’) on 9^th October 1819, some four months before his friend. Neither man rose above the rank of Private.

Hemingway was and is, a not uncommon name in Halifax, and his identification back in Halifax is not certain.  It may well be he was the same George Hemingway who in 1845 kept a shop at 15 Clark Bridge, between Halifax Parish Church and the bottom of Southowram Bank, beside today’s Matalan store. George and Elizabeth Hemingway, to whom the letter was addressed, may have been Waterloo George’s parents.  I have not yet located either his burial, nor that of Illingworth.

David C Glover

To find out where I’m talking this month take a look a the following:

To find out more about the unveiling of the memorial visit https://memorial.dwr.org.uk/#events

If you don’t feel valued by your partner then you’re going to end up feeling hard done by. Feeling valued requires that someone shows they’ve seen your worth and are big enough to tell you this. After that, the onus is on them to prove it by showing you.

So many clients present this in the counselling room, and relationships often end because one of the couple feels they’re not valued by the other.  Your partner may tell you you’re loved, but we also need to witness how these terms of endearment play out when it matters most, so we can feel safe and cherished in the relationship.

Any of the following sound familiar?  Inconsideration, doesn’t listen to you, rarely make you their priority, angers easily, takes out their frustrations on you, caught out in a lie or have little regard for your boundaries?  If you’re nodding your head right now, then chances are you will also be feeling de-valued.  Yet it doesn’t have to be a deal breaker, but it matters you take action by inviting your partner to listen while you tell them how they make you feel, and more importantly that they take it seriously and heed your words.

In every relationship, there will be times when one lets the other down, and it’s important not to make any rash decisions, but ensure you both talk it through or enter into couples therapy if that’s your ‘thing.’  If the love is truly there, you’ll work it out. A good indicator as to the fate of your relationship will be how your partner responds when you bring it up, and their subsequent behaviour towards you.

All a tad dramatic?  I disagree.  If you are giving out care and love to your partner then you should expect it back. Nothing demolishes a personality more than feeling de-valued.

Marica x

For more of Marica’s self-help blogs visit www.calderdalecounselling.com

maricawebley@gmail.com

07759 014131

In 1769, a Tax Collector was killed on a dark, cold night on the outskirts of Halifax.  In March I am hoping to lecture on the reason for this murder – and its consequences – at Square Chapel. In this brief article, and it successor, I can only set out some basic facts.

Bell House

During the 1760s, the clipping and counterfeiting of gold coins was becoming a problem for the authorities in greater Halifax parish; and the activities of the so-called Cragg Vale coiners did not go unnoticed by William Dighton, Supervisor of Excise for Halifax district since 1759. For some years he had attempted to take action against such practices, with the support of Halifax attorney Robert Parker, but they were unable to produce firm evidence to bring any major culprits to justice.  The coiners’ leader was known to be David Hartley of Bell House, Erringden, called by his friends “King David.”  A few on the edges of his gang were taken, but no-one of significance.

  In 1769, things changed, when Dighton was approached by a certain James Broadbent of Mytholmroyd, also on the fringes of the gang. He was to inform on some other minor members, resulting in various arrests during that year.

Unable to obtain direct evidence against David Hartley, Dighton again enlisted the help of Broadbent, allegedly promising 100 guineas for him to betray Hartley and another close associate, James Jagger. At a meeting in Bradford, Broadbent swore his statement before a magistrate, Edward Rookes Leedes of Royds Hall, in the presence of Dighton, stating that he had witnessed the two men clip four Guineas at Bell House.  This statement was all Dighton needed to arrest Hartley and Jagger, which he did on 14^th October, with the help of attorney Robert Parker. Hartley was arrested at the Old Cock Inn, Jagger at the Cross Pipes Inn, both in Halifax. The two men were committed to York Gaol, where they joined other alleged coiners to await trial at the Spring Assizes.

However, Hartley’s arrest did not deter the other coiners; and Broadbent was angered at not receiving his bribe.  The clipping men wanted revenge; and the days of William Dighton were numbered. But first, the coiners attempted to secure the release of their leader from York Gaol.  

An unhappy Broadbent, spilled the beans as to his ‘treachery’ to another coiner, and the two went to visit Isaac Hartley, David’s brother. Despite Isaac’s explicable fury, he was persuaded that Broadbent now believed David was innocent, and could retract his statement made to the magistrate.  The men travelled together to York, where they met with the prisoners while they exercised in the gaol courtyard. With David Hartley’s agreement, a revised statement was given to a York attorney, which it was hoped cleared the two prisoners of their crimes. But it did not work; bail for David was not forthcoming, so Isaac Hartley and Broadbent reluctantly returned to Cragg Vale. At attempt to retract the statement given to magistrate Leedes was also made, but it brought no success; for the latter believed the original account. David Hartley and Jagger remained in prison until their trial, yet took an active role in plotting the events that followed.   

Isaac Hartley now held a meeting with other coiners at an alehouse in Mytholmroyd, but not The Dusty Miller as has often been claimed. They agreed there was no alternative but for Dighton to die. Yet to find men willing to carry out such a dreadful act would not be easy; and they would expect to be well paid.

Coiner Thomas Spencer was tasked to seek men willing to accept 100 guineas to carry out the dastardly deed. Two names, Matthew Normington and Robert Thomas, recognised as being sufficiently desperate for the money, were put forward. They were engaged for the job.

Following several unsuccessful visits to Halifax in search of their prey, Normington and Thomas finally brought William Dighton’s life to an end. Shortly after midnight on 10^th November 1769, the exciseman was shot near his home, the site being approximately where Swires Road joins Savile Park Road, Halifax.  The killers also rifled his pockets and stole the valuables he was carrying. Hearing gunshots nearby, Dighton’s daughter Susannah, and their servant Mary, rushed outside.  The dead body of the exciseman lay in the roadway, his body showing clear marks of having been trampled on by boots post mortem.

To be continued in April 2019…    David C Glover

FUNDRAISING TALKS !

ALL NEW ILLUSTRATED HISTORICAL TALKS AT SQUARE CHAPEL, SPRING 2019

BY DAVID GLOVER 

2 p.m.  Wednesday 6^th March

THOSE CRAGG VALE COINERS!

CLIPPED GOLD – AND MURDER!  BODIES HUNG IN CHAINS ON BEACON HILL!

DAVID ATTEMPTS TO RETELL THIS EXTRAORDINARY TALE,

250 YEARS AFTER WILLIAM DIGHTON THE EXCISEMAN WAS MURDERED

2 p.m.  Wednesday 13^th March

MYSTERY!  GRAND DUCHESS ANASTASIA or ANNA ANDERSON?

THE YOUNGEST DAUGHTER OF RUSSIAN TSAR NICHOLAS II

WAS BELIEVED MURDERED IN 1918. 

BUT IN 1920 A YOUNG WOMAN IN BERLIN CLAIMED TO BE HER! 

THE MOST ABSORBING 20^TH CENTURY ROYAL MYSTERY

2 p.m.  Wednesday 20^th March

OLD HALIFAX PHOTOS – PART 8

A FRESH SELECTION:

SEE PAST VIEWS OF WOODSIDE MANSION AND WOODSIDE BATHS;

OLD HOUSES SUCH AS CASTLE CARR AND UPPER SALTONSTALL;

AND BE AMAZED AT FORGOTTEN BUILDINGS IN SOUTHOWRAM BANK,

CLAREMOUNT, AND LEE BANK!

BOOK VIA SQUARE CHAPEL BOX OFFICE 01422 349422 OR ONLINE

Tickets £6.00 [£5.00 Concessions]

This month’s poem is by Anne Caldwell, a poet I had the pleasure of meeting when we performed a reading together in Bradford. I have warm memories of that evening and am delighted to include this beautiful and uplifting poem which is aptly entitled ‘March.’ We can start thinking about spring at last!

MARCH

You’re kneeling in the borders.

Above your hat, four terracotta pots like coronets.

Snowdrops are sucked mints,

Narcissi shoots spiking the flower beds.

The underside of everything’s turned over:

fresh earth, worm casts, spiders’ nests.

Water shimmies in the trough

and pirouettes all over your yard.

The bench is too wet to sit on yet.

The broom is bright with yellow buds.

The lavender’s wired with dried-up heads

but it’s re-sprouting.

You’re quick as a vole. Giddy with lengthening

daylight hours as you clip the yew.

The lane winds up the hill –

ribboning the unfenced moors.

Taken from Painting the Spiral Staircase, published by Cinnamon Press.

Anne Caldwell is a freelance writer and education specialist. She currently works for the Open University as an Associate Lecturer in Creative Writing and is doing a PhD. More information about Anne can be found here http://annecaldwell.net/