Wednesday, March 30, 2011

ABC Wednesday: K is for
Kings Road, Audenshaw


Kings Road was constructed as an access during the building of the Audenshaw reservoirs in the 1880s. Kings Farm lay to the East (left) of Kings Road under the shadow of the #3 reservoir. When the M60 motorway was built, the #3 reservoir was reduced to allow the motorway to come through. The motorway embankment seen here is where the reservoir embankment used to be. When this photograph was taken in May 2009 the land on the right was "earmarked for development".


By the time I revisited in May 2010 construction of an estate of new houses had already begun. The rest of the photographs in the post are from a walk taken a few days ago starting in the opposite direction along Kings Road.


Another 12 months on and the new houses can be seen from near Fairfield Golf Course.


This shot shows the strip of land between Kings Road and the M60. Some 22 acres of land, originally reservoir embankment were used for grazing cattle.


On the West side of Kings Road lies Fairfield Golf Club and Gorton Upper Reservoir. on the other side of the reservoir lies the Wright Robinson Sport College. The school which preceded the college was built in 1961 on land previously part of the golf club. In compensation Manchester Corporation Water Works took 50 acres of land from Kings Road Farm and allocated it the golf club.


Cornhill Lane leads off Kings Road by the side of an electricity substation. To the North of the lane is the Eastern section of Fairfield golf course. Most of the land South of Cornhill Lane is occupied by Denton golf course.


Kings Road ends when it meets Debdale Lane where it crosses the South-eastern corner of Gorton Upper Reservoir.

I wrote about Gorton Lower Reservoir in February 2009 and again in October 2009. There is more I've learnt recently about these reservoirs but it will have to wait for another day.

More information about Kings Road Farm can be found on the Audenshaw Local History website.

You can view the 26 photographs that make up my walk last Monday (with a map and slideshow available) on the Geo-trip website.

More K posts can be found at ABC Wednesday.

12 comments:

  1. Lovely, scenic locale.
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

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  2. Thanks for the tour, quite a lot of change in a small area.

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  3. With Joy, I thank you for the tour and a glimpse into a world very different from mine.

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  4. Such a nice trip in the area of Kings's Road :)
    Good choise for K-day!

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  5. Beautiful K!

    Have a little tour of Korea, come by and see.

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  6. Interesting History - I look forward to seeing the results of your further researches in the area :-)

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  7. What a beautiful place..Each picture unique in it's own way.

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  8. This place is gorgeous... Thanks for the tour! :)

    Kisses from Nydia.

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  9. This place is amazing, i used to love coming here on walks last year... as well as a spot on the golf course - just off the top of kings road. That has been our (mine and my partner) spot for A few years now... it is such a beautiful place to be, the view, the piece and quite... we went to visit yesterday night to realise our spot will no longer be there because of the build of houses... knocking down trees on the left and right side of kings road. were devastated... one of three tree has been marked with our initials for years now.. right beside those three trees is a bending baby tree.. now all was see is a building sight. yes this place is a place ill never forget but for it to never be there again to visit is heart breaking.

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  10. ... is there any chance you or anybody can tell me what is actually happening to Fairfield gold course? the top end of kings road...it would really mean a lot.. thank you

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    1. You would have to contact the golf club or the builders - I have no connection with them - this is just an account of a walk I made there three years ago - whilst you remain anonymous it is unlikely anyone would contact you via this blogpost.

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