Kemp Delph

steeljack · 17-12-2006, 02:35

Does the name Kemp Delph mean anything to any members who live in Ossy ? for some reason I think it was somewhere near to Cocker Chemicals ( my Grandad used to look after the lodges during the early 50s ) I seem to remember it was somewhere in the middle of some fields between Cockers and Stanhill ? , my mother who was raised at West End used to say it was a popular swimming spot for the local lads .
I tried finding it on Google earth , not sure if I am looking in the right place
Thanks

garinda · 17-12-2006, 03:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by steeljack

Does the name Kemp Delph mean anything to any members who live in Ossy ? for some reason I think it was somewhere near to Cocker Chemicals ( my Grandad used to look after the lodges during the early 50s ) I seem to remember it was somewhere in the middle of some fields between Cockers and Stanhill ? , my mother who was raised at West End used to say it was a popular swimming spot for the local lads .
I tried finding it on Google earth , not sure if I am looking in the right place
Thanks

Yes it's still there. Westender and myself had a chat about it, I'll see if I can find it.

garinda · 17-12-2006, 03:04

Lol, not very indepth, but here it is.

http://www.accringtonweb.com/forum/s...ght=kemp+delph

steeljack · 17-12-2006, 03:05

thanks , I didn't know if I had the name right or not , or if I was having a 'senior' moment and getting two places mixed up into one

garinda · 17-12-2006, 03:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by steeljack

thanks , I didn't know if I had the name right or not , or if I was having a 'senior' moment and getting two places mixed up into one

People were still swimming there this long hot summer, though the last time I walked past you could see a dead cow.

steeljack · 17-12-2006, 03:15

it's funny what memories this site has triggered in my memories , places and events I haven't thought about for 30/40 yrs

garinda · 17-12-2006, 03:20

To get to Kemp Delph you take the footpath down from Stanhill Lane, opposite the last houses. After a hundred yards Kemp Delph is on your right. The path takes you down to the three lodges which are still there, but much cleaner now Cockers has cleaned up it's act. It used to be bright orange water, and was sometimes so thick you could walk on it.

steeljack · 17-12-2006, 03:29

in the days when my Grandad was there the lodges were used by locals for fishing , but those were the days before the word 'enviroment' had been invented, What kind of chemicals did Cockers get involved with ?
I know Billy Blythes did lots of stuff with sulpher , seem to remember a lot of exiled Poles worked there during the 50/60s and they had a yellowish tinge to their skin

WillowTheWhisp · 17-12-2006, 08:22

I always used to have trouble saying 'Cocker Chemical Company'

panther · 19-12-2006, 17:23

hey up my dad was just talking about that the other day, how funny!!

garinda · 19-12-2006, 17:46

It is a weird place really. I suppose it must at sometime have been a quarry. The thing is though that it isn't very big in area. It just goes vertically down, and doesn't really spread out much. We were told as children that we must never go in it because it is bottomless, not a true fact, but it is very deep.

It can't have been much of a commercial quarry. I wonder if it was the place where the stone was quarried for nearby Knuzden Hall, as it is the same type of sandstone?

steeljack · 19-12-2006, 17:50

re, the water in it , is it fed by a spring or just rainwater run off from the surounding fields ?

garinda · 19-12-2006, 17:58

Quote:

Originally Posted by steeljack

re, the water in it , is it fed by a spring or just rainwater run off from the surounding fields ?

I've asked Santa for a digital camera, so soon I will be able to do an illustrated report for you as well, if he thinks I've been a good boy this year.

It's in total isolation. It must be spring fed. There are no streams on the surface that feed it. Even in hot summers, like this and that of '76, the water level drops dramatically, and you see shelves of cut stone that are usually cvovered, but it is always full of water.

firefighter753 · 19-12-2006, 18:55

steeljack PM me your email address and I will send you a placemark for kemp delph on google earth.

jimmi5bellies · 21-12-2006, 08:16

Weird place, makes you wonder how many human bodies are in there as well.
Wonder if the police thought of this place when they was looking for that man who was murdered.