When I first visited this part of New Farnley on Low Moor Side I was like a kid in a sweet shop, writes Mark Stevenson.
So much was jumping out at me I did not know where to start. I could see a row of cottages and as I walked up you could see another row of cottages.
I was rather pleased with myself when I said in my head I bet they are pre-Victorian and it turned out, for the most part, I was right.
They had stone tiled roofs which is a good indicator that they might be not so much pre-victorian but pre-train. The trains brought the tiles up from Wales for use on roofs as opposed to the locally quarried stone being used.
The two rows of cottages today are numbered 1-9.
No.1 is thought to date from the mid-1800’s. No.2 from the 1700’s. No’s 3-4 also date from the 1700’s. No.4 was for a number of years the Post Office.
At the end of this row is a chip shop built around the 1930’s to replace the one that burnt down in the field at the back if I’m remembering right what the previous owner told me.
He also told me it was haunted. Not sure if he was pulling my leg on that one can’t be many haunted chippies in the country.
You then come to the next row which is numbered either 6-9 or 7-9. The first two cottages were No.7.
The whole row dates from the early 1800’s apart from No.8 which is Victorian.
There was a gap between Nos. 7 and 9 so they built No.8 in it. All of these cottages, apart from No.8, are listed and are said to be a rare example of their type.
I lived at no 4 my father Ronnie Murgatroyd owned the post office and grocers. He was born 1927 the day the chip shop roof went on. His father owned both chipy and post office. The chippy was not haunted but number 2 was, my grandparents lived there. Number 1 was also known as Thorns farm I believe, number 3 was the shop and store room which was a ARP post in the war and had a reinforced porch over one door. Love the photo and post. Thanks
Xmas day we all used to go to 8 Low Moor Side where my mum Hilda Taylor was born. Her mum was Mary Sharp. The Sharps had come from Shelf, worked in the mine and there were lots of Sharps in New Farnley. Mary and her family had lived in Newton Square. Low Moor side was Just one room down and one up. The toilet outside round the back. I remember going to Murgatroyds. ( Apparently no relation to the one near the airport)