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 https://annecaldwell.net/

Winter can be a difficult time of year to feel motivated to do anything, let alone sit in a cold shed-studio making work! Some tactics I fall back on when feeling unmotivated and uninspired include doodling in my sketch pad (in the warmth of the house), reading and watching artists’ lectures on youtube. The idea of ‘productivity‘ as churning out work that is exhibition-ready is not sustainable and often counter-productive. Sometimes a quieter period of reflection, learning and ‘messing about’ is a better use of time.

Last year I took part in the 64 Million Artists January Challenge of creating something everyday – with a mini brief of a theme or a challenge to use a new material. This was great to play around with new ideas and techniques, plus be inspired by others’ contributions. Maintaining a self-motivated art practice is sometimes literally about practising or repeating a process or skill that is pushed into new directions or becomes more advanced. I notice that my ideas or focus on certain objects and materials can go in cycles and that’s interesting to me in terms of recycling; ideas and materials can be recycled in art practice just as waste materials can be recycled.

Mark Twian thought everything was recycled. He wrote, “For substantially all ideas are second-hand, consciously and unconsciously drawn from a million outside sources, and daily use by the garnerer with a pride and satisfaction born of the superstition that he originated them; whereas there is not a rag of originality about them anywhere except the little discoloration they get from his mental and moral calibre and his temperament, and which is revealed in characteristics of phrasing.”

Although originality is a contentious point, being aware of other artists’ practices as a frame of reference but not duplicating them or plagarising them is important to me. Sometimes aspects are similar with common artistic concerns, but finding my own voice and what is important to make and do for me is my main concern. In reviewing my practice and previous work, I can see recycled ideas or obsessions with types of objects and materials. Currently it’s toilet rolls and these have previously appeared in my work in 2006 and 2012. Perhaps I’m on a 6-yearly cycle!

My recent work-in-progress includes an adapted/dysfunctional object of a toilet roll tube fitted onto a child’s paint roller (titled Toilet Roller), and some daily drawings that I’m calling Daily Constitutional. The drawings are made using an upended toilet roll tube as a stencil and I’m using leftover coffee and beetroot juice as colour washes before overlaying with pen. By making art out of waste, I’m playing around with ideas of value and questioning what is rubbish/waste/cr*p. I’m making these drawings every day as something that is ‘good for my constitution’ – fulfilling a creative need – and also playing around with euphemism. This comes full circle to the ‘feeling cr*p’ at this time of year and making questionably cr*p art out of cr*p materials.

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

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

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

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

Twitter https://twitter.com/alicebradshaw

Upcoming:

Dwell Time, Huddersfield – Sheffield, Spring 2019
https://www.alicebradshaw.co.uk
https://dwelltimepress.wordpress.com
https://buttonitstories.wordpress.com
https://www.facebook.com/groups/MWMHalifax/

The Piece Hall will be hosting a free event on January 25 to celebrate the launch of their new season of sculpture on Burns Night, which falls on his birthday this year.

Burns Night celebrates the life and works of poet Robert Burns (25 January 1759 – 21 July 1796). Suppers are usually held on or around his birthday and it is occasionally called Robert Burns day.

This tradition follows celebrations by his close friends in 1801 and has been established as a national day of celebration for Scottish people and has spread across the globe.

The courtyard will be illuminated by fire lanterns surrounding the installation of David Murphy’s ‘The Blanket’.

Attendees will be able to enjoy foot-stomping music and hoedown classics from the Last Chance Saloon band while fire-breathing performers wow and amaze.

Of course, all of the Piece Hall’s resident bars and restaurants will be open to provide some brief respite from the cold.

Additionally, in celebration of Burns Night, there will be several pop-up food stalls providing traditional foods for the occasion, as well as hands-on activities to keep your children entertained.