I remember seeing sheep being driven down Bridge St.- Chester St. area in the '40s or '50s, while waiting for the 50 bus in Bridge St. Presumably they were heading for the Lairage but where from?
Fascinating stuff - I know the New Chester Road Buildings as 'the Tannery' - as for many years, until it became the timber yard, quite recently - it was used to render (separate skins from flesh and bone - nice!), by various heating methods, cattle carcasses. I don't think the meat itself was actually used for consumption from this site.
My dear wife worked in the Lairds offices just over the wall while she was pregnant - the smell made me want to vom', but was much worse for her..!
The tan yard and lairage on the Chester road were seperate entities,the skins were proccessed in lime pits.I have seen a guys foot after a piece of lime went down his welly unbeknown to him,not a pretty sight and took a long time to heal.Woodside lairage had a cattle walk that went over the lock at sandy bottom from where the irish boat now ties up.The meat on the hoof going along Bridge street probably came from the docks because the berth was full at the cattle walk.
My old man used to work there, and Green Lane. Used to take his lunch down for him, what a job for a 10 year old, blood everywhere. Found the kosher bit off putting. Beast in the drum, turned upside down with throat exposed, bloody great knife, slash, buckets of blood and lots of noise. 'orrible but fascinating. Then off down to the sheep pen and there's the old man putting bolts into sheeps heads while his mates are skinning and gutting. "'ere's yer butties dad." "ok, put 'em over there." "right, tahrah." and off we pop. Still like my sweetbreads and fries when I can get them.
Only quicklime, calcium oxide CaO is corrosive. Once it's been in contact with water, or slaked, it becomes harmless calcium hydroxide Ca(OH)2. Calcium oxide is corrosive because it combines with water in flesh & in doing so it generates heat.
My grandad was a cow hand for levers at storeton and it was his job to drive the cattle down the wiend past cammel lairds and onto the floating road for the irish boats. if he was lucky he could get a lift from a farm lorry traveling back and grap a pint in the travellers on rest hill road. Otherwise it was a long walk home. for another 6 am rise. My uncle Tom looked after the shire horses and took great pride in there turn out winning several roses.
They lived at wantondale cottage in storeton valley just on the bend (chicken corner)
They used to use quick lime in mortars in the 18th century against massed troops. It was a great anti personell munition.
And they used slaked lime in mortar for bricklaying. I remember the lime pit at the top of Mount Rd., where it meets Storeton Rd. when they were building the Mount Estate.
We used to live at the back of a builders yard in Moreton (Warings) and they had a lme pit in there, used to play in there as akid, and in the workshops when no-one around. Warings are still going but dont know if by the same family! Anyone remember them, one of the lads was called Paul, Think there were 3 sons, lived about 6 houses down from them in Borrowdale Rd.
