Pannal and my little cat

 I know a lot of people do not like cars but I do and my two cats are lovely gentle creatures and quite loving. Well my little one Marble looked very poorly on Sunday. I could not get an appointment with the vet until 2pm. I put her in her basket and I left at 1pm and I was stuck on Parliament Street for thirty minutes with temporary traffic lights and poor little Marble died whilst I was stuck there. I carried on to my vet at Crab Lane and they confirmed she had gone. I was all shaky on my journey back and I felt so sad. She had been blind for two years but knew her way around the garden. I suppose seventeen is a very good age for a cat but I miss her. Tigs I do not think does but when I came back home she followed me around all the time. Everywhere I went she was behind me. Tigs will be my last animal as we have had dogs and then cats and it is so very sad when they go as they were a big part of our lives.

From sad news to I hope good news as the Country Park in the Crimple Valley I proposed is still on the cards and will be discussed within the Local Plan which is being looked at now. We do need this as every political party wants to build millions more houses.We definitely do need to keep our green space in PANNAL AS WHO KNOWS WHAT WILL HAPPEN HERE IN THE FUTURE.

Hopefully in this week's Harrogate Advertiser there will be an article about the awful "multi storey car park thing" that is flats built on the footprint of the now demolished Dunlopillo Headquarters. I was also asked by the owner of a house that can see "these flats" if I could have a Tree Preservation Order put on the two sycamore trees that partially cover the flats which she can see from her lounge window. Hopefully North Yorkshire Council will do this. I have also asked the Harrogate Advertiser to print a photo of what these flats will look like as I could not find anything on the internet.   

Welcome to my new neighbours Sheila and David. Well welcome here but not to Pannal as they have lived for many years on Rossett Green Lane.  

I am still getting queries from people re their ancestors who have lived here in the past or buried in St Robert's Churchyard and people just wanting to know about Pannal its history and its buildings. I am happy to answer all their queries . One query I had was from two ladies looking up at the Church one of them said to me"Is this the Village Institute?" I said no its a church. "Well where is the Institute     then?" I  told them politely.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  .                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   

            

Pannal and Award

 My lovely neighbour Shirley Holberry died a few weeks ago. She lived next door to me and was a good neighbour, in her nineties always very smart and well dressed. I now have new neighbours who come from Rossett Green Lane where they lived for a good number of years. So welcome David and Sheila.and I am sure you will be very happy here as they are surrounded by lovely people. I will include myself in this just in case no one else does.

Have not been able to walk one of my favourite walks - Crimple Valley - as it is soggy with all the rain we have had and as I am still in summer clothes its a no go area. Hopefully we shall have a dry spell and I can get back there again. I especially love it in the spring/summer when all the buttercups are out and I found two orchids this year. These fields used to be a wildflower paradise. Who remembers the cows and then the sheep on there when Mr Harper owned the farm (now gone). Also the Taylors.

I had some very exciting news as I had a phone call to tell me I had been put forward for a Local Hero Award at Rudding Park. I knew nothing about this and I do not know who proposed me. I am afraid I had never heard of Local Hero Awards. Probably very remiss of me. Now what the Award is for I do not know. I have done so many things since living here. First TPO (ever in Harrogate) Pannal No 1. Saving the Sun Pavilion and Colonnades,Chairman and Founder of Friends of the Valley Gardens, Chairman of the Harrogate Society, Having Spacey Houses Farm listed and various other building in Pannal being saved, writing the first ever book on Pannal followed by three more on Pannal. Or could it be for looking after the patio garden alongside St Roberts Church for many years or having new stocks built. Who knows so it will be interesting to see what happens. Has anyone ever been to one of these events? If so give me the heads up please. I did notice that the event    was being sponsored by Vida Healthcare. Now they have dementia homes so I hope I am not having free passage there. . 

Tigs and Marble still think it is summer and they spend their time in the garden.They do have shelter where they can go when it rains. I am not at all popular if I forget to put the door on the latch. Cats can give one filthy looks. Tigs is a very affectionate cat Marble not so but sometimes!

Pannal Walk was fun

 Friday was a lovely sunny day. We all met up in the car park of St Robert's Church and started our walk after a few introductions from Kevin who had arranged all the speakers and who is a really nice guy. He is a member of Harrogate Civic Society and they were hosting the event.  I was taking a group of lovely people some from Pannal other further afield a walk round Old Pannal and it was fun and I have had some great feed back to say how much they enjoyed the walk. Very gratifying to our village.  I love living in Pannal and I wanted to show everyone what I love about it. I have lived here so long and I know so many people. Unfortunately all the older people who were so helpful telling me about their time in Pannal and being very generous with sharing photos, reminiscences, and kindness. have all passed on. So I am so glad I took the time to seek them out and talk to them. Being a journalist helped and I could see that Pannal was changing. There was no Rosedale, Woodcock Close or Pannal Green and the School was at the top of Woodcock Hill/Spring Lane. This was in the 1960s and Crimple Meadows and Walton Park developments came in the 1970s. I think it is because I am a journalist, inquiring mind no plain nosey that I started taking notice of my surroundings. Then I thought I shall have to write this down and those notes became the basis of my first book A History of Pannal. Two others followed Postcards from Pannal and Pannal and Burn Bridge Their Stories. It took two years to write the massive Centenary History of Pannal Golf Club as I had to read through one year of men's minutes and one year of ladies minutes starting in 1906. It was well received and I won an award for it. Very chuffed I was as it is not a dry dusty old tome. I have a lot of humour in it and I really enjoyed writing it.   I have written other books not on Pannal. Keeps me out of mischief. 

I have asked North Yorkshire Council who now run Harrogate to make a Tree Preservation Order on the two Sycamore/great maple trees in front of that ghastly building on the footprint of the old demolished Dunlopillo head office. It will hide part of it from the residents who live opposite. It is a horrible building and enormous. Will it get any better we shall have to wait and see but I am not taking bets that we shall love it. Interestingly I have heard people who walk through the village when they reach Station Road from Main Street and it looms up say Good heavens what is that? Sometimes their exclamation is worse. 

My daughter is recovering slowly from her attack by the cows and trampled on. She was very lucky not to have been more seriously injured.

Tigs one of my cats. Did you know Tigs is short for Tiger. I did not until someone said its from Winnie the Pooh. I did not name them Tigs and Marble as that was their names when I was press ganged into having them about sixteen years ago. Tigs is very loving Marble not so as she is descended from a feral can so the vet says. I have lovely vets and I said to the lady vet how kind she is with the cats and she said yes it is the afternoon. I am not a morning person. Not meaning she is unkind in mornings but she is better later on so she says. . 

Last call for Pannal Walk

 I am taking a group round Pannal as part of Heritage Days  I shall be in the car park of St Robert's Church at 1.45pm on Friday 15th September and the walk starts at 2pm for about one hour and a half. If you fancy having a walk around Old Pannal do come and join me .I shall not wear you out and we shall keep to the old parts of Pannal. I have lived here nearly sixty years. I was married in Harrogate and my four children born here and attended Pannal Primary School. So you see I like Pannal and have been very happy here and have written four books on my favourite village. First books ever written about Pannal. So just come along and perhaps you will have stories to tell me. It will be a fun talk and I look forward to meeting you.  I have not restricted numbers so just come along and we shall hope for a good dry day. Parking at the car park. I have been doing walks and talks on Pannal for years but the first time for Heritage Days. 

Pannal Heritage and Update

We have all seen the massive building that is going up on the old Dunlopillo site and I cannot say that anyone I have spoken to says it is lovely. Although we would not know as we have never seen a photo of what the finished product will be like. I was speaking to a gentleman and he said there will be 38 flats and there is talk of an underground car park. Now that must be at the rear of the building as the frontage I found out years ago belongs to a Solicitors firm in Halifax. Now whether they have sold it I do not know. Now are we the only village round and about that has a building of this height? To think we were all hoping that there would be pretty houses where the monster is. Fat chance of that ever happening. 

Notice that Crimple Hall has its late weekend music "wish" granted. Will that be ok we shall have to wait and see. Interesting that our local Councillor and the Parish Council and a number of residents objected to no avail.

It will be Heritage Week starting Sunday 10th September when there will be a number of places and buildings open to the public. I am doing a walk and talk round Pannal on Friday 15th September at 2pm. I shall be in St Robert's car park ready and waiting so I do hope you will join me. I was asked to give the talk a name and I suggested A Village Walk with the Village Idiot. The organiser said he was quite taken with my suggestion but could I suggest another title. I have. I enjoy doing these walk and talks as I meet so many very interesting people. Let us all hope for a dry day as we do not want a trudge round in the rain . I shall be in the car park come what may ready for 2pm

An update on my daughter Susan. She is coming along well and she was so very lucky. If she had not been wearing a rucksack it could have been so much worse as the cows came round a hill behind her and she did not stand a chance. She would have had substantial damage to her spine but the rucksack saved her from spinal injuries. The hospital did scans and x-ray and said no bones were broken she was just battered and badly bruised and managed to crawl out of the field to the nearest house to get help. Susan said the man and woman were very kind and helped her and even came the next day to make sure she was ok. We were all meeting up in Bristol to go to The Wave (Christmas presents) but alas poor Susan will have to go at another time. They have extended her ticket when they heard what had happened. Now if you are wondering did I go the answer to that is no. Would have loved to have gone as it looked great fun and my youngest grandchild Daniel aged seven loved it. At the moment I am suffering from sciatica which comes and goes so no chance of me holding on to a surf board. Everyone loved it and are eager to go again.So another trip in the offing. 

My cats were very pleased to see me back. Well Tigs was, she made such a fuss and followed me around and on two occasions I nearly fell over her. Poor Marble is blind and she did know I was not there but as they were getting fed by be lovely kind neighbour she was ok. 

Pannal daughters terrible accident

 We were all set to have a wonderful holiday. all the family. We were all meeting up in Bristol to go to The Wave. Christmas present for us all. We received a terrible phone call. My daughter Susan was in Lindisfarne and coming to Bristol from there. She was crossing a public footpath through a field when cows she had not seen, as they were behind a hill, galloped up behind her and knocked her over and trampled on her. She was badly hurt but managed to somehow escape out of the field and crawl to a nearby house and just said help me please. The couple at the house did and she went to hospital. She was amazingly lucky not to have been killed. Her rucksack saved her from spinal injuries and very fortunately she had no broken bones but was covered in bruises and in pain. She was very brave but very shaken. Still not right but getting there. You can imagine the state we were all in hearing the news. This is not a one off occurrence as cow attacks are frequent. Susan was taken by complete surprise and could no nothing to defend herself. Made us all wonder if it is because cows do not have human company. Some are milked in the field no one touching them as they are automatically fed and milked now. They see humans as strange or are a threat to them. What a horrible shock for everyone involved. 

Crimple p/a for music into the early hours. There has been a number of objections as the music will be heard by a number of houses.So we shall wait and see what NYC do and hopeful the right decision will be made. Anyone ever had three appliances break down on the same day? Washing machine, cooker and fridge. I have replaced washing machine. New cooker being delivered tomorrow. Fridge will have to wait as it works a bit. 

Not a cheerful blog this time. Nor a long one as I am/was a bit shaken over Susan's accident and what might have been. 

Pannal Mystery

 I have all the papers, books and photographs belonging to Pannal Ash College formerly Southern College established in 1870. Taken over by the Police Training College.  When the Police announced they were leaving their Secretary Margaret Hart asked me if I would have what they had accumulated from Pannal Ash College. I did so and I have them dating back to 1920. Over the years I have had various enquiries relating to "old boys" that attended the college and I have been able to answer all their queries.

Dr Christopher Klinger from Devon came across my blog and emailed me to see if I had any information on Pannal Ash College and in particular his grandfather who attended the college as a 13 year old boy in 1935. It was a very sad story as his parents who were living in Poland wanted him educated at the College. He came over and was a pupil there until just before the Second World War. Germany marched into Poland his parents "disappeared", There was no more money for his education so he had to leave aged 17. Poor George - not his Polish name - but what he was called in the College. His parents gone so George emigrated to Australia where he had a new life, married and had children. His grandson asked me if I could trace him.

I looked through all my papers and found him. Dr Chris Klinger his lovely wife Charm and his fourteen year old son Asoka came to see me and I had a delightful surprise awaiting. I gave them the magazines he was mentioned in and to great excitement a photograph of George was found. I also presented them with the school plaque that George would have seen every day at the College. A very joyful visit as they had not expected that I would find so much. A lovely visit made so much happier. I gave them directions to what is left of the buildings. I had the Memorial Chapel opened by Lord Harewood in 1927 listed in 2014 and also the Headmaster's House. The land is being developed for housing but it lies empty on Yew Tree Lane. 

I was delighted to meet this lovely family, not forgetting their lovely gentle dog and I am so pleased I have so much memorabilia and saved it from being destroyed. A unique record of a long forgotten College.       

I am a journalist, historian, author and don't know what it is called but I have many queries from relatives of  people who lived in Pannal and are now deceased.  When I can traced them I am always pleased to help their relatives. 

I have two of my grandchildren (twins) coming up to stay with me tomorrow so that will be fun. So Harrogate, Knaresborough, Ripon, Leeds, Bradford and Otley here we come. 

Not only am I fed up with the rain. Today and last Thursday I got soaked playing golf, Tigs and Marble are too.