JunkMarket Style

This morning, I was browsing through my fav. blogs/feeds & found that my recent bird feeder was featured on JunkMarketStyle!! Wooohooo--and so many nice compliments about it: check out the front page here: http://www.junkmarketstyle.com/ And my post about the bird feeder & comments here: http://www.junkmarketstyle.com/item/5496/industrial-birdfeeder

Letters

Just listed some metal letters on Etsy; the pics turned out pretty good; I thought.... there really is something about typography....

birdies in the snow

The view of the back yard; I've been feeding the birdies all year: the snow storm seemed to bring in even more than usual! The hung out all day & entertained the cats; picture at least 3 kitties at the window watching the show :)

Merry Christmas!!

Wishing everyone a warm & happy holiday : )

-Amber-

Treasury

Wahoo!! I'm in a Treasury on Esty!!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=28537

Winter has arrived...

My front yard :)

Skwishy Cat & Beasty: looking out at all the snow....& helping with office organization by tearing paper, carrying off pens, & generally making pests of themselves....

Reuseum Finds

Kevin & I stopped in at the Reuseum last night; got some nifty stuffs for future projects : ) Word on the street is the Reuseum will soon be offering little grab bags full of cool jewelry/art supplies on Etsy!!
Old typewriter; cool keys & it's mine, all mine!!!


A lovely assortment of fuses, little light bulbs, leds, etc. :)

A rather late obituary

Sorry to pick up from Historic Gas Times that Sir Denis Rooke died in September. Sir Denis lived in Coleraine Road in Blackheath and was 'one of the outstanding personalities produced by the gas industry in the 20th century'. The list of his achievements in the industry was outstanding - and he was Chairman of British Gas 1976-1986. Of course - he went to school locally at Addey and Stanhope and started his career at East Greenwich Gas Works. Its very difficult to summarise 'one of Britains greatest industrial leaders of the twentieth century'
--- he was always sympathetic to local gas historians - and I had talked to him about the plight of our great gas holder back in the summer!

Crossness Record

Another dynamic edition of Crossness Record in the post - they don't seem to want to come and talk to GIHS either - I keep asking them!

This issue starts with an introduction from their new Chair - one Jonathan Rooks.
Otherwise - contents include - article progress of restoring engine Victoria - compounding the beam engines - news and bits and pieces about all the money they are being offered! and details of how to get in touch with them.
www.crossness.org.uk

Less about the medieval century tide mill

We have been trying - really trying - to get one of the archaeologists who worked on the tide mill on the Lovells site to come and talk to GIHS about what they had found. We were all really excited about it - but no chance! Apparently archaeologists don't want to talk to historians. HOWEVER we have just spotted that one of them is down to speak about it at the LAMAS conference in March. This is at the Museum of Docklands on 14th March. Tickets are £10 for non-members of LAMAS and details can be got from Jon Cotton, Early Department, Museum of London, 150 London Wall, EC2Y 5HN jcotton@museumoflondon.org.uk . And if you send off a cheque and say you want to go they want you to send a stamped addressed envelope in. You need to do it NOW because they are limiting the number of tickets. This mill needs to be put into a historical context - not just a list of what they have dug up!

New Bird Feeder

Just finished today; for Gary (brother in law). I think it turned out pretty cute : ) Aluminum, copper, sticks, steel, cable, bearings, little bolts, & washers....

Steamy Necklace

Just listed this one on my Etsy shop; it's definitely my fav. necklace ever!!! I made it for the AGC Awards a couple weeks ago, & wore it with my ruffly red dress & black boots; I loved the mechanically element of the necklace with the sparkles : ) Got lots of great compliments on it... I was going to keep it, but decided to go ahead & list the set in my shop....

Matching earrings; surprisingly lightweight....

I kinda hope no one buys it!!

New Look for the Holidays

Thought I'd spice up the blog for the holiday season....

Etsy Shop

Well, all of a sudden the Etsy shop is doing really well!!! I'm thrilled to be making some sales & shipping my jewelry all over the country; this morning I shipped a couple necklaces out to Brooklyn, NY!

If anyone out there is thinking of purchasing for Christmas; better do it soon!! My supply is dwindling, & time is running short....I will deliver for free to anywhere in the Boise area; just let me know when you order & I'll take the shipping charges off.... www.refinerii.etsy.com

My jewelry is also available in town at: The Black Pearl in Eagle & Foxtrot Style in downtown Boise. Both stores have a nice selection of necklaces, earrings, & pins & they will box them up for gift giving!!

In Bellevue: check out my collection at the Green Antelope, & if you're in McCall, stop in at the ArtiZen & talk to Judy; she'll show you around the store & point out all the stuff I have there, including new jewelry :) Happy Shopping!

Tide Mill Mystery

I have been sent some information by George Mathieson taken from records of the Bryan Donkin Company. Donkins were a ground breaking engineering company based in The Blue at Bermondsey in the early 19th - they subsequently moved to Chesterfield where they flourished until quite recently.

George wrote to say that in 1809 Donkin "acted as a consultant to the executors of the Greenwich Tide Mill and persuaded them to bring in Mr. Hall as contractor. His approach to hydraulics was logical and showed considerable technical skill".
- "Mr. Hall' is probably John Hall of J.E.Hall the Dartford engineering company.

George later wrote " Donkin spent a lot of time in 1811 and 1812 working out how to drive in the piles to support the wharf, sinking a cylinder of brickwork, and supervising the building of a pier, brick walls and gates, and adjusting the flow of water".


The thing is - which mill is he referring to? We have two candidates - one is the tide mill at Deptford Bridge and other the Tide Mill which stood in East Greenwich at the end of what used to be Riverway but which is now a difficult-to-work-out bit of riverside.

So:

Deptford Bridge Mill - was an ancient mill washed away by a flood in 1824 and rebuilt when it was taken over by Robinsons. So whatever Donkin did would have to have been work on the old mill - which was probably pretty creaky by then and needing work - but would a mill on the Ravensbourne had a pier and a wharf?

The East Greenwich Mill - was built in 1802. So it was new in 1812 and why would it have needed work? It had been built by Lloyd and Ostell who were the leading millwrights of their day. The only evidence that it might not have been structurally wonderful is that in the early 1840s it was described as a 'heap of wood' and throughout its history it does seem to have not worked very well. However it would have had a wharf on the Thames - and it could have had a pier too, a 'causeway' is shown on old maps. However - the note about Hall being 'consultant to the executors' is interesting - the mill was subject to a Chancery case for many years, although it should have been cleared up by 1812.

Comment on this would be welcomed.

John Smith

I have had a message about the death of John Smith - but know no details. John moved out of Greenwich many years ago but had been in the early 1970s one of the founders of the Charlton Society. As a historian he wrote a three volume history of Charlton - books of enormous detail - for which he will be long remembered.

Greenwich Time takes an interest in industrial history!!!!!

The December 9th column of Greenwich Time includes, as ever, Tony Lord's article - but this time it actually has some industrial history interest!!!!!!!Tony is writing about the plaque on the house by Our Lady of Grace Church in Charlton Road - which tells us it was the home of William Henry Barlow. Of course Tony focusses the article about this distinguished engineer on the Tay Bridge Disaster of 1879 which Barlow reported on. There is a great deal about waters lashed into a fury and stuff like that (has he ever read 'Hatters Castle?). He does say a bit more about Barlow and St.Pancras Station and so on - so good for you Tony! are we going to get any more of the same?

GLIAS NEWSLETTER

GLIAS Newsletter in the post - nothing much about Greenwich but nevertheless all good stuff - [Sue, Brian, Fiona - whoever sent this out - my page 2 is missing - if you read this can I have another one?]
Future GLIAS events:lectures - all in the Morris Lecture Theatre, Robin Brook Centre, St.Bartholomew's Hospital, London, EC1 18.30 start.
21st Jan - The End of the Pier by Michael Bussell
18th Feb - Say Sarsons not Vinegar by Tim Smith (this is about the Sarson's Brewery which was by London Bridge Station - that whiff of vinegar as the train slowed down - highly recommended)
20th May - Robert Stephenson, Eminent Engineer by Michael Bailey

alsoSERIAC 2009 - The Industrial Archaeology of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. 25th April 2009 at the Guild Hall Winchester. www.hias.org.uk 01962855200

another town hall another plaque

Some of us were lucky enough to get an invite to see the Mayor unveil a plaque on what has been known for many years as West Greenwich House. It is, of course, yet another of the old Met. Borough of Greenwich's neglected and abandoned Town Halls. Thank you Cllr. Maureen O'Mara for making a fuss until the plaque was put up.The building was originally the Greenwich District Board of Works Offices and built in 1876. It was opened by Thomas Norfolk, the local brewer and Chair of the Board. It cost £1,500 for the land, £6,190 for the building and £1,500 for the fixtures and furniture. In 1900 the Board became the Metropolitan Borough and interdepartmental communication within the Town Hall was effected by speaking tubes and whistles. It was a much grander building then - with a Dome and a portico. In the late 1930s the Borough replaced it with the architecturally important building down the road (sold off in the 1970s after amalgamation with Woolwich!). In the Second World War it was used by the Local Defence Volunteers and bombed - hence the changes to the original. On 12th July 1944 a V1 hit the site next door which is why there is a garage there and not posh Georgian houses. In 1948 it was used as the Housing Department and the Food Office and in 1954 it became a community centre - which it remains. Inside several rooms are named after Greenwich Borough dignatories - Harold Gibbons (founder of Greenwich Labour Party and Mayor through much of the war), Ada Kennedy (another war time Mayor), Harry Icough (Mayor when the Town Hall moved down the road), William Mills (local Tory leader and motor bike enthusiast)

Holiday Decor (on the cheap)

Composted the remaining pumpkins today & made a cute holiday display for the entrance to the house: been meaning to for a week now, I was feeling a bit out of season with my pumpkins still out!! Sad to see them go, though: fall is my fav. time of year & I love pumpkins!


In years past, I always went to the store for some small evergreen trees/shrubs for the planters, but this year I decided to use what I had at hand.... After trimming off the dead stuff, I filled the planters up with light green pebbles & went gathering all the aluminum skwigglys I could find....this took me all around the garden, in the garage, in the house, & I considered thieving some from the next door neighbors that I gave them this summer; but in the end I restrained myself & had plenty anyhow... :) I scrounged up some copper coated stick things too, along with a few other items...

I love using the type-writer keys in planters; they have been in for spring, summer & fall--I'm liking the contrast of the black against all the light colors.....

Glass rod things that came off an old, ugly chandelier....

A wooden snowflake---I think this is the only traditional type holiday thing I used this year (besides lights)
Ornaments I made from salvaged aluminum wire: I have a ton of them; so I couldn't resist hanging a few off the lights : )

I also added some white lights to one of the sculptures out front; tacky, I know, but I couldn't help myself... The house looks pretty good, I must say & I didn't spend a dime :) Just a bit of time & digging around in the attic for the lights :)

Industrial Heritage

The Autum (sic) 2008 edition of Industrial Heritage has just arrived. It contains a reprint of Richard Cheffins article on the LESC building in Greenwich High Road which originally appeared in Greenwich Industrial History Newsletter. We are also pleased to see another reivew of the Richard Hartree's book about the Penn family and works = so perhaps the message is getting through!

Industrial Archaeology Review and Penns

In the post another learned journal - Industrial Archaeology Review - and as ever very short on anything about London - although I did enjoy the article about industrial housing in Essex.
Greenwich does however get a mention in Bob Carr's review of Richard Hartree's book on 'John Penn and Son of Greenwich'.
PLEASE REMEMBER Richard is coming to speak to GIHS on 20th January (not 11th as much of the press has been saying).
Bob begins by pointing out the importance of Penns as a major builder or marine steam engines at a time when the Thames was Britain's great shipbuilding river. In the 1830s Penns built seven oscillating engines for Thames paddle steamers - achieving success where others had had difficulty - which became standard propulsion in this field for many years. Penn's engine in the Elbe steamer John Penn built 1864 was in use until 1966, and we have already in this blog noted the engine on the Diesbar, still in use and designated an ASME landmark this summer. The Penn engine used in Empress and used in Bournemouth until 1955 is now in a museum in Southampton. Penns were the preferred contractors for the supply of large steam engines to the Navy and played a central role in the transition from sail to steam. In 1854 John Penn's lignum vitae propeller shaft bearing was a crucial contribution to the development of screw propulsion. A replica of a Penn trunk engine of c.1860 has been built and fitted into, Thames built, Warrior in her berth at Portsmouth.
As shipbuilding was moved away from the Thames Penn's began gradually to decline and were sold to Thames Ironworks in 1899. There is now nothing to see on their Blackheath Hill site - not even a plaque or any sort of sign - but some elements of their boiler works at Payne's Wharf remains, although also without any sort of mark.
Bob also points to the family history elements of the book - and that Richard's ancestry also includes Blackheath based moralist author, Samuel Smiles. But most of all it is 'an educational book explaining in simple terms the development of marine propulsion in the 19th century'

Remember to come to the meeting on 20th to hear Richard - and there are details of how to get the book further down in the blog.

Blackheath Scientific Society

A couple of newsletters and articles from this Blackheath based organisation - and any organisation which has meetings attended by a 25 year old pet spider, can't be bad. This was a red legged tarantula who eats one cricket a month (she has to watch her weight) and the meeting was invited to give her a stroke.

Future meetings will include:
19th December AGM and members contributions
16th January - Glaucoma
20th February - Aviation terrorism

Meetings are at Mycenae House. 7.30ish

Gaslight - hopefully not the last!

The newsletter of the North West Gas Historical Society in the post - full of crises because there is no one to take over editorship of their excellent newsletter. It contains the second half of their article, by Tom Blyth, about Bryan Donkin and Company. Because they are looking at the firm from their 20th century base in Chesterfield (and because everyone ignores London industry and pretends British industry was totally in the Midlands and North!) the article is about Chesterfield but they were a BERMONDSEY based company and that Bryan Donkin himself, although a northerner, came to work in Kent - at first in Sevenoaks and then to do groundbreaking work with Halls of Dartford. The article does mention the younger Donkin's work on the exhauster with John Beale but fails to mention that this was developed by Beale on the GREENWICH PENINSULA. So - I will write off to them and say so.

Woolwich Antiquarians

Regular as could be - the Woolwich Antiquarian Newsletter (wish we could compete in getting it out on time!). They recently had a talk on West Norwood Cemetery - and I remember taking visitors down to the catacombs there, before drug dealers made closure a necessity - very spooky - both the corpses and the dealers! The Antiquarians note the number of Greenwich industrialists buried there - Joshua Field (of Maudslay Son and Field - who were on the Peninsula and the famous Henry Maudslay was Woolwich born), Joseph Maudslay (one of Henry's sons), Attwood Mathais (of Deptford's General Steam Navigation), William Simms (of Troughton and Simms instrument makers of Charlton), Robert Mallett (of Mallet's mortar) and many others. They probably didn't know about, or wouldn't have registerd Alexander Angus Croll - gas industry activist and industrial chemist, and there will be lots lots more.

AGC Awards

Tonight, Kevin & I attended the AGC (Associated General Contractors) awards....just thought I'd share some pics---I felt like the belle of the ball in my red ruffly dress... You can't see in the pic, but it actually is short in the front; when I walk; you can see my boots!! Note the boot pic; I made over a pair I

already had with organza ribbon for laces & glitter on the heel. And, I wore bright red extensions in my hair; a first for me & lots of fun! I made the award trophies & also donated pieces for the silent & live auctions.... All in all, it was a fun night. Will upload pics later of the necklace I made to go with the dress....

Holiday Shopping--this Saturday!!

This Saturday---I'll be set up on the patio at Galerie Belle Ame: noon till around 5 pm. Stop in & check out my latest tree toppers, ornaments, new jewelry, & lots of other fun stuff!! Make a day of it & take in the festivities around Eagle; there's going to be a parade, holiday shopping & sales, events, Santa, & more; check out all the details here: http://eaglechamber.com/Custom%20Files/Documents/value6090.pdf

See you there :)

Thames Discovery Programme

I wondered if you would be kind enough to disseminate the following information to the members of the Greenwich Industrial History Society about our project and website, which contains details of our introductory events and training programme for 2009? We will be working on a foreshore site in Charlton in the New Year and this may be of interest to your members.The Thames is the longest open ­ air archaeological site in London, and much of the foreshore is freely accessible to the public. However, many of the exposed archaeological sites are often unrecognised and unprotected, and almost all are vulnerable to the twice ­ daily scouring of the tidal river, and thus require close monitoring. The Thames Discovery Programme aims to communicate an understanding and informed enjoyment of the historic Thames to the widest possible audience. Over the next three years, the archaeologists from the programme will survey 20 archaeological sites along the tidal Thames. This will be supported by the work of the Foreshore Recording and Observation Groups (FROG), who will monitor the surveyed sites for changes, as the daily tides scour away the remaining archaeological features. The FROG will be made up of volunteer members of the public, who will be trained in foreshore recording techniques, health and safety and digital recording by the TDP team.The Thames Discovery Programme is a massive opportunity for members of the public to get involved in one of the most exciting archaeology projects in London. Our outreach work will also involve school groups,student research projects, opportunities for work experience, travelling displays, exhibitions, lectures, site visits and an annual conference.We hope that, through this website, we can further public interest, not just within London, but nationally and globally.Our website is http://www.thamesdiscovery.org/, and contains all the information about volunteering with us. If anyone is interested in more details,please do not hesitate to get in contact with me. Lorna Richardson, Archaeology Outreach Officer Thames Discovery Programmel

Dot

Richard Buchanan has written that our member Dot Lawrence had died - She was well into her 80s.
Dot was interested in many aspects of Greenwich history - and had been active in saving an archive of electrical engineers and cable makers, Johnson andPhillips.
At least she will be spared a twilight life, something an active person like herself would have hated.

A dress for the ball....

So, I have to find a dress---this week. I've been invited to attend the Gala for the Idaho AGC Bright Horizons Awards: a semi-formal affair..... I made trophies for the awards & donated a piece to the charity auction: those who see my work at this event are possible future clients... so I have to look good!! I was thinking of a corset-style dress---anyone out there know of a good shop in Boise????? I'll start with Foxtrot, since I know them & love a lot of their stuff & go from there. Also have to find something suitable for the husband..... And of course, we both want something a bit different; not just your off the rack at JcPenny kinda thing

it's going to be a long week....wish me luck...

More Etsy Treasures....

Just added some new things to my etsy store: sparkley lapels pins & necklaces----gears, crystals, old keys: the perfect holiday accessories!!! http://www.refinerii.etsy.com/

The Reuseum

Kevin & I stopped in at the Reuseum in Garden City last week; OMG: cool stuff! The place is packed with all kinds of treasures; old cameras, computer parts, electronics of all kinds, lab glass, & more! We wandered around for at least an hour; I filled up a box full of goodies for jewelry making, & scored a lovely large glass lens, some bearings, & some copper thingies. All for a steal of a deal!!! I highly recommend checking it out if you're in the market for cool junk---it's open on Saturday & Sunday only... And, they will even take you're old stuff for recycling!!
www.resuseum.com

Royal Artillery (very expensive) book

I was invited in the week to the launch at Firepower of a new book about the Royal Artillery - I didn't buy it (£37!) but I would very much welcome anyone who fancies reviewing it here.
It is called 'The Royal Artillery, Woolwich. A Celebration' and it is by Brigadier Ken Timbers - I guess it is available from Firepower info@firepower.org.uk

Holiday Open House-Dec 6th

Stop by Galerie Belle Ame, 179 South Eagle Road & warm up by the fire. Enjoy a cup of coco, & watch artists at work...
I'll be there all day; stop in to see new jewelry, Christmas tree toppers, ornaments, wall art, sculpture, & more!!

Numbers

I spent the afternoon yesterday cleaning up leaves, gardening, & moving sculptures around the yard & generally enjoying one of the last nice days of fall... And, we finally got the new house numbers up!!! They are definately different....

Computer Parts Earrings

more earrings; now on etsy!! and more to come soon. We made a stop down at the Reuseum the other day, & I scored all kinds of cool stuff for jewelry. More on that later....

GIHS Meeting Venue Reminder

It has been brought to the Society's attention that the Blog pages don't actually have a reference to where the monthly meetings of the Society are held. We will investigate creating some kind of reference to the Meetings and venue on the Blog page by some other means, but meanwhile, this is lifted off one of our earlier printed format newsletters.

MEETING PLACE

Meetings are held at;

The Old Bakehouse, (at back of the) Age Exchange Reminiscence Centre, 11 Blackheath Village, London, SE23 9LA

Do not go to the Reminiscence Centre itself - The Old Bakehouse is at the back, in Bennett Park. Walk into Bennett Park and turn left into a yard. The Old Bakehouse is the building on your right. The entrance is straight ahead. Members and visitors are strongly advised not to park at the Old Bakehouse.

Here is a map of the area.
The arrow tip should be pointing more to the western end of Bennett Park.

Tom's site

Tom Stothard was a wonderful man who devoted himself to a lot of issues in the history of Docklands. I have a note from his grandaughter asking us to put a link through to a website which has been set up to showcase some of his work. http://tomstothard.website.orange.co.uk

Link corrected - November 2nd 2009

Naval Dockyards

In the post a copy of the Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society. As ever it contains almost nothing about the two VERY VERY IMPORTANT dockyards at Woolwich and Deptford. What can I say? its all about Portsmouth again!!!
I know they should say we should all get writing - ??? So why don't we?

SLAS

In the post a newsletter from Southwark and Lambeth Archaeological Society. All good stuff! Their coming programme includes:
13th Jan Neil Hawkins on Excavations at Drapers Gardens
10th Feb. Stephen Humphrey on Industries of Southwark, Bermondsey and Rotherhithe
10th March Recent local Archaeological and Historical Work
allmeeting 7.30 106 The Cut, SE1

Christmas Tree Toppers!!

Tree toppers now on Etsy!!! Last year I made a bunch of these; with crystals & pearls attached with wire---they were soooo pretty, but so time consuming & I had to put a high price on them to cover the materials costs. Got lots of great feedback & a few sales.... So, this year, I decided to offer something similar, but at a more affordable price...... I used glitter instead; they are really easy to make & look great!! Oooo, how I love glitter!! These also make a great alternative wedding bouquet; they have nice handle on the bottom & are lightweight & easy to carry.



Contact me soon if you want one; I'd be happy to deliver in the Boise area :)

Recycled Aluminum Onaments

Holiday ornaments now on Etsy; http://www.refinerii.etsy.com/

New Truck!!

OK: so you can laugh all you want, but Kevin found a truck on Craig's-list; we went & picked it up yesterday in Emmett; & I love it!!! It's old, & rusty & bright (faded) orange, buy I luv it!!! We put some gas in it, & started it up, & it runs great; gets better in town mileage than my big truck!!! We paid $100; and it's been with the city of Emmett since 1969-the year it was built---I wonder if we took it out of town for the 1st time.....it spent it's former life as a city vehicle; notice the light on top (still works--he he he!). Anyway, I think we'll keep it & I'll use it as my in town run-around truck :) I'll have to get some graphics for it!!

I wonder what it is; do I just like old vehicles? Is it because it's like the old blue truck my family used to drive when I was a kid?? I dunno, but I'm amused by the character of the old truck, & I think it will be with us for a long while.....