Foxton in the Mail

[Boaty Jo]

Here's a link to some interesting photos of Foxton in today's on-line Mail.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2719088/How-times-haven-t-changed-Incredible-pictures-200-year-old-Foxton-Locks-preserved-Victorian-heyday.html

 

 

[Guest]

Here's a link to some interesting photos of Foxton in today's on-line Mail.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2719088/How-times-haven-t-changed-Incredible-pictures-200-year-old-Foxton-Locks-preserved-Victorian-heyday.html

Excellent - I have never seen such good photos of the inclined plane as it was in it's hey day before.

[Scholar Gypsy]

thanks, nice photos.

 

The paddles must have been quite hard work (or maybe boaters were fitter then), as those paddles had no reduction gearing.

 

I wonder when they were painted red & white?...

.

[matty40s]

Good old journalistic research- the" more modern building in his surrounds" appears to be hiding underneath in the first pic!!

thanks, nice photos.

The paddles must have been quite hard work (or maybe boaters were fitter then), as those paddles had no reduction gearing.

I wonder when they were painted red & white?...

.

After someone wrote that useful little poem...

[IanM]

thanks, nice photos.

 

The paddles must have been quite hard work (or maybe boaters were fitter then), as those paddles had no reduction gearing.

 

I wonder when they were painted red & white?...

.

Lots of paddles over the system don't have reduction gearing. In fact I would say a majority of ground paddles don't.

[Scholar Gypsy]

Lots of paddles over the system don't have reduction gearing. In fact I would say a majority of ground paddles don't.

indeed so. That is because most ground paddles are only 3-4 feet below ground level, while those on a staircase are rather deeper. I would also expect those at Foxton etc to be bigger, as they are singles targe than pairs. Both factors add to the weight to be lifted.

[David Schweizer]

thanks, nice photos.

 

The paddles must have been quite hard work (or maybe boaters were fitter then), as those paddles had no reduction gearing.

 

I wonder when they were painted red & white?...

.

 

Certainly since the 1970's when they were still painted white.

[IanM]

indeed so. That is because most ground paddles are only 3-4 feet below ground level, while those on a staircase are rather deeper. I would also expect those at Foxton etc to be bigger, as they are singles targe than pairs. Both factors add to the weight to be lifted.

Good point

 

But back in the day they probably weren't worn and they were greased daily

[Peter X]

Good old journalistic research- the" more modern building in his surrounds" appears to be hiding underneath in the first pic!!

...

No "appears" about it, you're obviously right.

It never ceases to amaze me how lazy some journalists can be; look at the caption of the older photo:

"A man sits on a wooden plank...". How did this person get a job writing for a national newspaper, when there are plenty of unemployed English graduates who'd love the job and know the language well enough to distinguish a plank from a beam?

[1st ade]

No "appears" about it, you're obviously right.

It never ceases to amaze me how lazy some journalists can be; look at the caption of the older photo:

"A man sits on a wooden plank...". How did this person get a job writing for a national newspaper, when there are plenty of unemployed English graduates who'd love the job and know the language well enough to distinguish a plank from a beam?

 

I was going to comment on the "plank" earlier but adding updates from a Samsung Tablet isn't as easy as I thought (now on a proper computer)

[IanM]

Good old journalistic research- the" more modern building in his surrounds" appears to be hiding underneath in the first pic!!

You could argue that it is a modern building built in the same style as the original on the original foundations...

[Mr Badger]

 

A man sits on a wooden plank...

 

I hate photo captions which just describe the picture from a position of ignorance. I can see its a man sitting on a balance beam for myself. But an interesting set of pictures.

Edited August 8, 2014 by Mr Badger

[David Mack]

No "appears" about it, you're obviously right.

It never ceases to amaze me how lazy some journalists can be; look at the caption of the older photo:

"A man sits on a wooden plank...".

 

followed by "in the present day a gentleman sits on the same wooden plank..."

 

That is not the same wooden 'plank'. It has probably been replaced 3, 4 or 5 times since the first photo!

 

And "A computerised image shows how little the house has changed in after hundreds of years with visitors gathering around its entrance and admiring the canal boats"

 

Of course it hasn't changed in that image - they've pasted the old view of the cottage into a modern photo. Would be more helpfu to have the full modern photo to compare!

 

The two images of the top and bottom of the incline showing how little has changed are misleading. If you had gone there in the 1960s it would all have looked very different. The incline was completely overgrown. It has been cleared back to more like its original form since then.

 

 

Edited August 8, 2014 by David Mack

[RLWP]

I think you are expecting far too much from what is really just a coffee table piece. It's broadly accurate and nicely presented

 

I've seen a lot worse

 

Richard

[David Mack]

I've seen a lot worse

 

That is certainly true!

[john6767]

 

That is certainly true!

And the photos are great, even if the captions are rather dubious.

 

Also is it just an illusion or has the location of the paddle changed between the 2 pictures?