Upcoming Event...

This coming Saturday and Sunday (15th & 16th June) The Gibberd Garden, in Partnership with Herts Essex borders Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, will be holding their annual Real Ale festival. Well worth a visit this one - up to 35 different beers available across the weekend, and they even erect a couple of marquee's in case it goes all "British Summer-ish!"

See the HEB website for more details - Gibberd Garden Beer Festival 2013

Past & Present...

Photo from Clare Baster's "Harlow, a Photographic history of your town" 

Harlow "Rams" seen here in the plain jerseys competing against a visiting Czech side at their Ram Gorse ground. The club is still here and thriving, with three senior gents sides, plus vets, ladies, and junior teams turning out each week during the season to entertain.

The picture above was taken in April 2012, when Spanish side Poblenou Enginyers visited to play Harlow's "Saints". Surprisingly this was a league match - the Spanish side having played in the Greene King Premiere league for several seasons. The month before the Saints had travelled to Barcelona for their away fixture , taking a 25+ strong party of players and supporters.  More information on and photos of Harlow Saints RFC can be found at Harlow Fourth Team Photos.

We will remember them...

Some photos from Harlow's Service of Remembrance in the Town Park this morning...

The parade marching from Burnt Mill school along First Avenue before turning up School Lane to the park.

At the memorial ready for the service to commence...

Standard Bearers and Guard...

The Service underway...

Wreaths...

"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old.
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them".

Harlow - Sculpture Town

Some signs appeared a while back, introducing Harlow as a "Sculpture Town" - whatever one of those is. A quick glance at Google suggests that this is a title unique to Harlow, but if that is the case then it's understandable, really.

Above is the official interactive map showing the sites of the 66 sculptures of varying types, shapes and sizes scattered around the town. With works from the likes of Henry Moore, Elisabeth Frink, and Rodin, this is a serious art collection which people travel to see. We who are resident are fortunate enough to have them on out doorsteps, and in most cases, we probably take them for granted. 

"Sundial" - Museum Garden

Almost every area has a sculpture or several of its own - the Town Centre is positively over-run With them, and even Church Langley have one of their own - outside Tesco. They range from the starkly modern (Solo Flight, at Mark Hall, and Echo, at Staple Tye) to the historic - Rodin's "Eve". Some were commisioned specifically with their space in the town in mind, and others have been purchased to add to the collection.

Next time you are walking through the town, to your local shops, or perhaps in the Town park, cast your eyes around you and see how many of these works you have been strolling past, without giving a second thought.

The Lawn...

Harlow has the distinction of being the home of the first modern-style residential Tower Block in England - The Lawn, in Mark Hall North was built in 1951 and is of such historical importance that it is now a Grade II listed building. It's design was clever in as much that every property had a south-facing sitting room in spite of there being 4 properties per floor. Sir Frederick Gibberd personally oversaw the pegging out for the foundations on the ground as the block had to be built with regard to the seven established oak trees which surround it.

The Lawn takes its name from the lawns of Mark Hall which used to be nearby. Indeed one of the Park Lodges still stands further along the road - look...

...I wonder how many people who walk or cycle past that regularly have no idea of the history of this unusual looking building!

How sad that a style of housing which originally started out so carefully planned and thoughtfully built has - thanks to the 1960's and 1970's trend towards high-rise block -  now become synonymous with all that is bad about the way people can be forced to live.

Have you ever lived in The Lawn? Or indeed in that Park Lodge? It would be lovely to hear some stories of the places direct from the people who have lived there.

Autumn Colour in the Town Park

Thanks to the attention paid to green spaces and room to breathe when the town was being built, this is possibly the very best time of year to live in Harlow...

It's an amazing place to walk at any time of year, but never better than when the leaves start to turn, when wherever you look is every shade imagineable from bright yellows and oranges, green, to the most startling bright reds.

If you've not been for a wander around there recently, why not pop along and take a look for yourself? It makes a great short cut when walking to the station from the Eastern side of the town too...

Past & present...

I've been loaned some old books about the history of the town. One of the most fascinating things has been to see how much things have changed - it's easy to presume that because Harlow is a New Town, it won't look that different, in fact nothing could be further from the truth!

The picture of Felmongers, above, was taken in 1955, before the area had even been fully completed (The old pictures I will be featuring over the next few posts are taken from Clare Baster's book "Harlow, a Photographic history of your town" and are all property of the Frith Collection).

The shot above was taken from as close as I could get to the exact same spot, and clearly shows how Frederick Gibberd's plan for a "green town" has come to fruition. The houses on the right are now barely visible through the tree canopy, and further planting on down the road has softened the lines of the houses on the left, too.