Sunday Drive!

It's no secret that I have a special affinity for English Cottages and English Villages, so with the weather being just right for a nice drive, I thought I would set off on a Bloggy Drive to some of England's Villages. Why don't you come along with me?

Barnard Castle

Our first stop will bring us to Barnard Castle, which is a town in Teesdale, County Durham, England named after the castle around which it grew up. It sits on the north side of the River Tees, opposite Startforth.

Set in County Durham, Barnard Castle is a historic market town. I'm already loving the area, I mean look at the streets and the old buildings.....maybe we should hurry though, looks like it's going to rain.

The castle was founded by the Normans shortly after the conquest, but enjoyed its heyday under Bernard de Bailleul during the latter half of the 12th century. The castle passed into the hands of the Balliol family (of which the Scottish king, John Balliol, was the most important member), and then into the possession of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. King Richard III inherited it through his wife, Anne Neville, but it fell into ruins in the century after his death. The remains are now in the care of English Heritage.

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Barnby Dun

Barnby Dun is a village and civil parish situated north of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It is twinned with Kirk Sandall and the parish has a population of 8,524. Barnby Dun was home to the Thorpe Marsh Power station before its closure in the middle 1990s. It has a fourteenth century church, St Peter & St Pauls. At present Barnby Dun is an ever growing, thriving village.

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Bilston

And here we are at Bilston, situated in England's West Midlands region. There is quite a bit to see around here, there's the Lighthouse, there's a couple museums OR we could go for a swim?

Bilston Town Hall

St. Leonard's Church

Situated just two miles south-east of Wolverhampton, it was extensively developed for factories and coalmining. Many houses were constructed in the Bilston area. Between 1920 and 1966, the council replaced most of the 19th century terraced houses with rented modern houses and flats on developments like Stowlawn, The Lunt and Bunker's Hill. Bilston has had a market in the town centre for many years.

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CASTLE NORTHWICH

It's been so much fun but I'm getting a little tired of all the traveling we've done today, so I think this will be our last one for now.

Northwich is a town in Cheshire, England. It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane. The town is about 18 miles (29 km) east of Chester and 15 miles (24 km) south of Warrington.

The area around Northwich has been exploited for its salt pans since the Roman period, when the settlement was known as Condate. The town has been severely affected by salt mining with subsidence historically being a large issue. However, recent investment in mine stabilisation is set to change the town with the 'Northwich Vision' providing a roadmap for a programme of development work into the future.

Northwich's main shopping area


St. Helen Witton Church

Town Bridge

I guess we'll end this visit at one of my favorite places, the library.

Northwich Library

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Well I hope you enjoyed this drive as much as I did, I think maybe next Sunday we'll go to Scotland or Ireland? We'll see!