TONG CHURCH.

Saint Bartholomew`s church at Tong is over 600 years old. This notable landmark is often described as "The Westminster Abbey of the Midlands". The church appears in Simon Jenkins Thousand best churches in England and is one of the very few grade I listed churches in Shropshire, England. St Bartholomew`s church is also recognised as the setting for the closing chapters of Charles Dickens " The Old Curiosity Shop". Despite the significance of the churches heritage, Tong is only a tiny parish with less than 200 inhabitants. As well as being a significant example of early fifteenth century architecture, the church contains the tombs of many members of the Vernon family. It has retained numerous original features including 16 choir stalls with Misericords, the original chancel screens and pews, a fine 16th century chantry chapel and the tomb to Sir Thomas Stanley with an epitaph written for him by William Shakespeare. It`s unusually shaped tower contains, among others the Great Bell of Tong , which is the largest bell in Shropshire. On the day we visited the church was closed, so was unable to photograph the lovely interior. Maybe we will go back another time.

 

 

 

 

 

Entrance Gate into the church grounds.

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A beautiful stone carving.

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Stone ruins. Not certain what they were, probably from the castle that once stood there.

 

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AIRCRAFT #1.

 

MIKOYAN - GUREVICH  MIG - 27 FLOGGER 71.

 

Ground attack fighter.

 

Built in the 1970s. Entered service in the mid 1970s. Carries a crew of one, Max speed:- Mach 1.7, Range:- 805 miles, Service ceiling :- 61,000 feet, This aircraft is powered by one Turmansky R-29B Turbojet rated at 12,310 KGP ( 27,000lbs ) static thrust with afterburner. It was designed to carry a total of sixteen 550lb bombs.

 

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MIKOYAN - GUREVICH  MIG-23 FLOGGER 07.



 



Air combat fighter.

 

Built in the late 1960s. Entered service in the early 1970s. Carried a crew of one. Max speed:-Mach 2.35. Range:- 805 miles. Service ceiling:- 61,000feet. This aircraft is powered by one Turmansky R-29B Turbojet rated at 27,000ibs static thrust with afterburner. It could be fitted with one 23mm twin barrel gun, four weapon pylons for rocket packs and air to air missiles.

 

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WESTLAND WESSEX HC. MK2 XV728.



 Military Transport Helicopter.

Aircrew:-2, Max speed:- 132mph, Range:- 478miles, Service ceiling:-10,000feet, Loaded weight:- 8,657lbs, Rotor Dia:- 56feet, Length:- 65feet-9inches, Height:- 16feet-2inches, Armament:- provision for SS.11 air to surface missiles, torpedoes, rocket launchers and machine guns. Power plant:- two coupled Rolls-Royce Bristol gnome mk 110/111 shaft turbines rated at 1,350 s.h.p.

 

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SAAB S-35XD DRAKEN AR-107.

 

Photographic Reconnaissance Fighter.

 

Aircrew:- one. Max speed:- 1,320mph. Range:- 2,020 miles. Service ceiling:- 60,500 feet. Loaded weight:- 27,557lbs. Span:- 30feet-11inches. Length:- 50feet-4inches. Height:- 12feet-10inches. Armament:- two 30mm cannons, four air to air missiles or bombs. Power plant:- one Volvo RM6C engine rated at 17,262lbs static thrust with afterburner.

 

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HANDLEY-PAGE HASTINGS T.5 TG517.

 

Multi-purpose transport/training aircraft.

 

Flew for the first time during 1948. Delivered to RAF Kemble in July 1948. Carried a crew of five plus up to 50 passengers. Max speed:- 348mph. Range:- 4,250 miles. Service ceiling:- 26,500 feet. The aircraft is powered by four Bristol Hercules 106 radial engines, each developing 1,675 HP. The aircraft did not carry any armament but in addition to its internal load could carry two landrovers slung under the fuselage. The Randome seen here was a later addition when the aircraft was used to train Vulcan crew.

 

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MK.1 MECHANICAL HANDLER (mini-horse).

 

This pedestrian controlled vehicle was used for towing ground equipment up to 15 tons in weight. It consists of a three wheeled chassis on which a Coventry Victor AD 3.6 HP air-cooled diesel engine provides the drive to two rear wheels via a three speed/reverse gearbox and differential unit. Transmission is through an automatic centrifugal clutch. Steering is controlled by a pivoted tiller arm on the front wheel and incorporates the throttle control squeeze lever which, when released, reduces engine speed to a tick over and automatically disengages the clutch. Hydraulic brakes on the rear wheels are applied by the tiller.

 

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BLUE STEEL.

 

air to surface missile, speed mach 2.5, range 200 miles. This was the Nuclear "Stand Off" weapon carried by V-bomber aircraft like the Vulcan. It was fitted with a B.S Stentor rocket motor and an Elliot inertial control system for driving moving foreplanes and elevons.

 

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YELLOW SUN.

 

This was Britains first H-bomb with the tail fin fitted it was 21 feet long and with a weight of 7,250lbs. It had a yield of 500KT but was never used and was withdrawn from service in 1970.

 

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BLACKBURN BUCCANEER S.1 XN964.

 

Maritime strike/ reconnaissance aircraft.

 

Flew for the first time on the 21st July 1963. Entered service with 801 squadron in 1964. Carried a crew of two. Max speed:- 646mph.Range:- 4,000 miles. Service ceiling:- 40,000 feet. This aircraft is powered by two Bristol-Siddeley Gyron Junior 101 Turbojets, each rated at 7,100lbs static thrust. Its armament consisted of a bomb bay with a capacity for 4,000lbs total weight of bombs, plus 3,000lbs of bombs carried on each of four external wing pylons. The aircraft is also equipped for air to air refuelling.

 

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LOCKHEED T.33A  51-9036.

 

Tandem two-seat dual control advanced trainer.

 

Left the Lockheed factory in April 1953. Entered service with Armee Del Air in 1954. Carried a crew of two. Max speed:- 600 mph. Range:- 1,345 miles. Service ceiling:- 47,500 feet. The aircraft is powered by an Allison 723 - A35 Turbojet rated at 4,600lbs static thrust. For armament it could be fitted with two 12.7mm M.3 Machine guns.









 









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MONSALE DALE - Derbyshire UK.

is a valley in the Peak District of Derbyshire, England. In geological history this area of Derbyshire was long ago under water, and is formed from a subsequent uplift of resultant sedimentary deposits, known as the Derbyshire Dome. Overlying sandstone and shale have been eroded away, exposing the underlying  limestone which forms the basis of the area today, which is consequently known as the Whitepeak. Monsal Dale is a site of special scientific interest ( SSSI ). The local landmark is the Headstone Viaduct, built by the Midland Railway, over the river Wye. The headstone viaduct is 300 feet long, with five 50 foot span arches, some forty feet high at the centre. The viaduct no longer has trains going over it, it is now used by ramblers and cyclists.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The river Wye.

 

 

The headstone viaduct.

 

 

 

A close up of the farm you could see in the first photograph.

 

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ROMAN ARCHES IN LINCOLN UK.

 

PRIORY GATE - LINCOLN.

A very short distance from the east end of Lincoln Cathedral stands Priory Gate, which marks the location of one of the old medieval gates that gave access to the cathedral close. This gateway, surmounted with battlements as if it still served a defensive purpose, straddles the north end of Pottergate.

 

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NEWPORT ARCH.



The most famous Roman remain in Lincoln, and the best preserved. The gateway straddles Bailgate, at the northern extremity of the old roman city, where the old roman Ermine street struck north towards York. The Newport Arch dates to the start of the 2nd century AD. It gave access from the city to Ermine street, the main roman road north to York. It is famous as the only Roman Arch in Britain still in use for daily transportation. In the fourth century the city walls were strengthened and at that time Newport probably consisted of a central arch for traffic flanked by two smaller pedestrian arches. An upper floor topped the archway and the whole structure was flanked by twin towers. The whole structure would have risen to a height of 26 feet above ground level. The arch we see today is merely the upper section of the inner arch; the outer section was destroyed in the 17th century. There is no record of any attacks upon the arch or the city walls during roman times, though the gates here were attacked in the 13th century, during the battle of Lincoln Fair. It is rather remarkable that the archway still stands, for in 1964 a tall lorry tried to pass under the central arch and became stuck, dislodging bits of the archway which had stood for 1800 years or more. The considerable damage caused by the lorry was repaired, and the arch still straddles Bailgate and traffic still goes through the arch.

 

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Part of the old Roman wall.

 

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THE EAST GATE OF ROMAN LINCOLN.

The ruin that you see here is part of the eastern gateway into roman Lincoln. Several gateways have stood on this spot starting with a wooden gate to the roman fortress, built in about AD 60. The wooden posts inside the ruin mark the positions of timbers from this early gate. The stone ruin is the base of a semi-circular tower - it was one of a pair ( the other is under the road ) which flanked two arched gateways. You can see a doorway into the tower and the start of a flight of steps leading to the upper storeys. Built in the early 200s, this was the last and the grandest roman gateway on this spot. It stayed in use long after the Romans left Lincoln. These remains were excavated in 1963 - 66 and are now preserved as an ancient monument.

 

 

 

An artist`s impression shows how the complete gateway might have looked in the year AD300.

 

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POULTRY.

I know it`s a strange subject to take photographs of but I think they are interesting, weird, cute and they give you eggs, I love eggs.

 

SEABRIGHT ROOSTER.

 

The seabright is one of the oldest recorded British true bantams created in the 19th century through a selective breeding program designed to produce an ornamental breed. They are among the most popular of bantam breeds. Seabrights are often difficult to breed. As a largely ornamental chicken, they lay tiny, white eggs and are not kept for meat production.

 

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THE POLISH.

Although also called Poland, they do not hail from the country Poland as one would automatically assume given its name. As a matter of fact, the Polish breed of chicken is of European heritage. This type of chicken is famous for its crest of feathers, making them one of the most beautiful breeds of chicken. Bred primarily as a show bird these days, they were originally developed as egg layers.

 

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GUINEA FOWL.

 

Are a family of birds in the Galliformes order. The Guinea Fowl are native to Africa. They are seed and insect eating, ground nesting birds that resemble Partridges, but with featherless heads.

 

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AMERAUCANA.

 

Is an American breed of domestic chicken developed in the United States in the 1970`s. It was designed from the Araucana breed of Chile, and was bred to maintain the blue egg colour of that breed while eliminating the lethal recessive gene.

 

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CARBURTON CHURCH.

St Giles church in Carburton, Nottinghamshire, UK is an Anglican church of the Anglo - catholic tradition in the diocese of Southwell. St Giles is an unusual shape and dates back to the early 12th century, parish records date back to the 1530`s. The church is grade II listed. It is a small church, one of the smallest in the country. It is of Norman origin. Two centuries ago, it`s south aisle was removed and the arches filled in, hence the curious sight of pillers and arches on an outside wall. The church is 50 feet long by 15 feet wide, comprising chancel and nave under one roof, with a porch at the south - west and a small vestry at the north - east. The square bell chamber contains one bell. A double sun dial, inserted in the south western angle of the main wall above the porch, produces a peculiar effect, owing to the building being not truly oriented; the right angle faces of the dial are consequently not in line with the wall face on either side.

 

 

 

 

 

The pillars and arches on the outside.

 

 

 

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