Author: Published by Nelson

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Was Shoreham Millwright’s Invention fitted to Lancing Windmill?

Shoreham millwright James Holloway is particularly well known for having invented the screw brake, a system that enabled the vanes of windmills to be slowed down gradually, thereby avoiding any damage caused by more sudden stops that occurred on conventionally operated mills.
He fitted one of his screw brakes on West Blatchington Mill (amongst others) but I had no record of him ever working on Lancing Mill. This is detail from a photo of the Lancing mill – is it part of the machinery to slow the vanes in which case I assume the chances are it was Holloway that fitted it?
http://www.shorehambysea.com/mills-millers-millwrights/

Not Holloway’s system apparently but a fascinating response from Peter James of the Sussex Mills Group:-
The wheel you can see at the back right of the buck is the ‘Striking Chain Wheel’ around which, there is a chain that goes down into a weight box (the long capped box below). There would have been access to this box within the mill and the miller would have a hung a weight on the chain. The striking wheel would be geared to the striking rod, probably via a rack and pinion. The striking rod ran through the centre of the windshaft and connected to a cast iron cross at the front. Linkages from this cross would connect all of the shutters in the sails. The linkages together with the cross are called ‘the spider’.

The miller would hang a weight on the chain, which would in effect hold the shutters closed against the strength of the wind. If the wind became too strong the shutters would open against this weight and ‘spill’ the wind, thus slowing down. Hence this is a form of automatic control – different weights could be used depending on the strength of the wind.

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Details in photos

Can’t see that this has been posted before but it’s a small part of a larger photo and one of my favourites for detail:-
Passer by exhaling smoke from his fag,
Impatient man in car (and, yes, it’s a Model T Ford) with noisy kids thinking ‘How much longer – is she buying the bloody place!’
Automobile Association  bonnet badge (blimey, do you remember those!)
Lad with wheelbarrow imagining how pleased his Mum will be when he brings fresh horse manure for the garden back through the house.
Evidence of an itchy-bum outbreak in Shoreham (that’s lowered the tone a bit!)

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A cautionary tale – Bungalow Town

Not of much interest to many perhaps but this cautionary note is for those researching Bungalow Town property locations:-

For many years now it has been known that the 1930’s Bungalow Town property map (in Shoreham Library and on this website) to be unclear in places as regards the rather indistinct way some of the bungalow names are noted against the property footprints. Nevertheless the map remains a good indication of where most of the bungalows were, in fact many have been proved correct through old photographs (e.g., name signs on the walls of the buildings etc.,).
One glaringly obvious inaccuracy though has to be the misnaming of the well known ‘La Morna’ (1) as ‘Silverstrand.’ The attached illustration footprint of property number 566 clearly matches ‘La Morna’ as do the features indicated in the photographs of the neighbouring properties.  Obviously this has the effect of shunting the order of names on by one but due to the indistinct labelling the names that appear on the map some properties later continue to match correctly against proven bungalow locations.

(1)   A high resolution copy of the ‘La Morna’ photo shows a lifebelt on the wall with the building’s name on it.
(2)    The property map is here http://www.shorehambysea.com/bungalow-town-property-map-1935/

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Oldest Shoreham photo?

An atmospheric photo that oozes antiquity! The title is ‘Smacks and Vessels on the Beach at Shoreham’ taken by Samuel Buckle, a British photographer 1808 – 1860 and the photo was taken in 1853. Just about the oldest Shoreham photo I’ve seen.
(From the J Paul Getty Museum Collection – copyright)

Getty Museum: Smacks and Vessels on the Beach at Shoreham

Smacks and Vessels on the Beach, Shoreham; Samuel Buckle (British, 1808 – 1860); 1853; Salted paper print from a paper negative; 16 × 19.8 cm (6 5/16 × 7 13/16 in.); 84.XO.288.25; No Copyright – United States (http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/)
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Tracing photographs

From right to left, anti-clockwise:- A newspaper cutting of an otherwise anonymous group and Shoreham location has ‘Standen Family’ written on it. A check through our street directories shows the Standen Brothers at Southdown Nurseries in Mill Lane (where the greenhouses are in the aerial photograph). A 1950’s parade of Morris dancers provides a closer view of the nursery just beyond the lodge to the cemetery and lastly a view of the entrance and shop in the 1930’s.

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The Lindupp brothers

The story of Reuben Lindupp is included in ‘More Shoreham Characters’ on this website http://www.shorehambysea.com/more-shoreham-characters/ Susan O’Leary has sent us this link to her fascinating story of Reuben’s brother Harry who left Shoreham to become one of the early pioneers in Australia. Well researched and beautifully illustrated with some stunning photos – well worth a read. Thank you Susan.
http://www.historysnoop.com/henry-harry-lindupp-1827-1905

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A flying mishap

The photograph which shows an upside-down aeroplane in a field, has been taken directly from a postcard that was issued at the time of the incident.
But what do we know about the event?

The aeroplane is a Sopwith D1 three-seater general purpose biplane.  From the number 27 on the tail, we can tell that this example was operated by the RNAS. With a wingspan of 40 feet, and powered by a 7-cylinder Gnome Lambda rotary engine, this type of aeroplane first flew on 7th February 1913.  On 16th June 1914 one of these aeroplanes achieved a new British altitude record of 12,900 feet whilst being flown by Sopwith’s chief test pilot Mr Harry Hawker.
This type of aeroplane carried two observers sitting side by side in the front, with the pilot behind.  Three celluloid transparent windows were fitted in each side of the fuselage to give the observers a downward view.

Continue reading “A flying mishap”
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Sussex Aero Club

We’ve often seen views across the old suspension bridge to New Salts Farm and barn on the west side of the river south of the railway line but it wasn’t until discussing one image with Paul (Spinalman) that I realised detail from a 1922 shot of the suspension bridge being demolished (top photo) included lettering on the long barn ‘Sussex Aero Club.’ This was a bit of advertising by the owner of the aero club on the main airfield who rented that barn in Easters Field from the farmer. Shortly after, the barn and the field was rented by the Miles brothers to develop and fly their aircraft for a short while in the early years of their Miles Aircraft company before they moved to the north side of the railway.