Journalists travel the world in search of stories of interest for their readers. So, one sun-bathed July Sunday afternoon,
I made the (literally!) five yard trip from my house to the historic coach road which, half a mile long, was the main
approach to the grandeur and beauty of the once proud but now sadly demolished Ellowes Hall. The aim: to give www.yampy.co.uk
visitors from outside Gornal - and maybe one or two within the area who are unaware of our abundant history and traditions - a
flavour of the jewels of the past that lie, often forgotten and neglected, on our doorstep.
An article on Ellowes itself is currently under preparation, but suffice to say that it was a substantial mansion built in
the early 19th Century by the Fereday family, and was owned for around a hundred years by a succession of wealthy - and
sometimes subsequently bankrupt - Black Country industrialists. The Great War signalled the beginning of the end of its era,
and within twenty years of its service as a Home Guard HQ in the Second World War it was sold off as housing land and
pulled down.
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Access to the coach road is by veering left as Moden Hill descends (see photo, left).
The main Sedgley to Dudley highway was once
a turnpike road and the Moden Hill junction (by Cafe Casita, the old Cotttage of Content pub)
led straight to the Coach Road; the Moden Hill road we know today, leading down to Catholic Lane and the Nature Reserve, was within living
memory little more than a dirt track.
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To the right of the entrance to the old road stands what first appears to be a milestone whose writing has long
since disappeared, but it is actually thought to have been used as a step up onto the Estate's horses. Around twenty
years ago it was removed by the Council and had to be rescued and replaced by local residents; not the first or last time
that Gornal heritage has been either lost or saved by a whisker from similar thoughtless acts.
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Once on the old road, we round a corner and arrive at the site of the main entrance gates to the Hall.
The left hand gatepost and railings still exist, while the right hand side has disappeared, together with the Lodge
to which it was attached.
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Beyond the gates, the path descends gently. The trees on either side are as they were 150 years ago; it is said that
lanterns were strung between them, guiding night coaches to the Hall. Modern life seems far away here, and with the dappling
effect of sunlight and the gentle wind through the leaves, it is not difficult
to imagine oneself transported back through time; a chance meeting at the polo match.. love letters arrive on the mail
coach.. stolen kisses beneath the lofty boughs.. one can almost hear the sound of horse hooves clattering, and bodices ripping.
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To the right of us is Cotwall End valley and the Dingle wood, and to the left is the site of the old quarry, on which new
houses were built in 1990. The public right of way from opposite the Good Intent Pub descends onto the Coach Road at
Old Quarry Drive on the housing estate. The steps down onto it are of interest because the workmen who built it a
decade ago took it upon themselves to make a laudable and broadly successful attempt to use recovered local stone to hide
the 1990's bricks, so that from Old Quarry Drive the steps look modern, whereas from the Coach Road they appear to be of its
period.
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Across the coach road from these steps is a stile leading onto green belt land; it is a short walk from here to
the Nature Reserve (now known as Critters Farm), and onwards across the Straits to Baggeridge and Himley Hall for the
more energetic. This is the position of the '24 Steppings'.
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There were three of these Steppings; places where a tunnel was built under the road in order to keep the
carriageway clear of, well, the peasants - for safety reasons, I'm sure. Unfortunately they are now filled in
(the tunnels, not the peasants), although
traces of them can still be seen (see photo, right).
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The views from the stile and the little bench just beneath it are quite breathtaking in their panorama and clarity,
and are a 'must' for anyone visiting the area on a clear day (although I appreciate that we are not short of
beautiful views from most places in Gornal).
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A hundred yards on, past another of the Stepping entrances, is one of the Ellowes Estate's lazy and timeless pools. Around
here was the famous sugarwell, so called because its water was so sweet.
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One can bear right now, and walk down the valley
towards Cotwall End Road. Alternatively one can continue along the route to the Hall, but it is with a sense of anti-climax
that a wooden fence soon signals the end of that journey. It is often said that Ellowes Hall School is on the site of
the mansion, but in fact the house was on a raised bank, now the eastern part of Cedarwood Road. There is nothing
for it at this point but to slither down onto a narrow footpath skirting the School and emerging at its main entrance
on Stickley Lane.
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So there we have it; a brief and personal introduction to some of the fascinating treasures of Gornal tradition and
history. Or the long way round to The Crown for a pint. Either way, a sunny summer's afternoon well spent.
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