Boshaw Whams Reservoir

One of the 615 milestones set up for the newly formed West Riding County Council in 1893/94. Over half still remain by the roadside. In the Contract they were to be painted blue with white letters but then black letters on white was used, perhaps easier to read. This one on the west side of the B6106 just south of the junction to Dunford Bridge was black with all legends white when first recorded by the Milestone Society in 2002. By 2021 it had been repainted but the place names and mileages left unfinished.

At the top of the grassy banking in front of a stone house, this milestone was repainted in 2018. It is on the south side of the B6106 on a bend in the road. The metal attachment on these stones is 100cm high but there will be a further 20cms of backing stone under soil level. This attachment was forged at the Brayshaw and Booth foundry in Liversedge.

At Hade Edge where the minor road to Dunford Bridge leaves the B6106 with its back to a house wall, is another of the 1893/94 WRCC milestones. This one has silver painted letters on a black background. These milestones are now, usually, painted white with black legends but this is well kept and easy to read.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This end on view shows the combined jet condenser and single acting air pump. The big green drum above is an oil separator that removed oil from the exhaust steam so that the condensate could be used in the mill's processes. The little black cylinder to the left is a vacuum operated trap that discharged the oil that had been caught (best not to think where it might have gone).

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This view is down the side with the valve gear. The big lump in the middle is the low pressure cylinder with the high pressure cylinder beyond. The black object on the left is the combined jet condenser and single acting air pump.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This shows the high pressure cylinder valve gear under the control of the Lumb governor and regulator. In the background the crank is in the correct starting position, ready to start turning as soon as the stop valve is wound open. The three ropes bottom right drive the governor.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This shows the low pressure cylinder with the jet condenser and air pump behind it. The big green vessel is the oil separator. Everything was kept in spotless condition by the engine's last driver (or tenter) - Herbert White. The engine is now at Markham Grange Steam Museum near Doncaster.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This view is from alongside the high pressure cylinder looking towards the crank. The latter is in the starting position and a few moments later the engine was running. This is Pollit & Wigzell's patent three piston rod design with the two low pressure rods passing either side of the high pressure cylinder. The shiny rod coming from the right hand edge is one of the low pressure rods. This made for a slightly shorter and more compact engine. The plastic pipe above the engine is not original and was a replacement condensing water supply. The little shelf on the end wall once held a gas meter.

This is Pollit and Wigzell's standard three throw feed pump driven off the main engine next door. It was in the same space as the flywheel and rope driven alternator in the room next to the engine house. I visited this site quite a few times before the engine was finally removed in 1998 for re-erection at Markham Grange Steam Museum.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This is the flywheel next door with the rope grooves and the wooden boarding over the spokes. The boarding prevented the flywheel stirring up a gale. As re-erected at Markham Grange Steam Museum it does not have the boarding. The teeth around the rim are for barring the engine round. This was originally by a small steam engine but more recently an electric motor had been installed. This installation was beautifully kept and even more than 40 years after I first saw it (about 1976) I still have very fond memories of it.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This shows the Lumb governor with the modified Wilby regulator and an electric stop motion. The three piston rods of the patented 'three-rod system' are seen towards the bottom. The blurring of the governor's balls and the horizontal position of the operating lever below the centre weight both indicated that the engine was running at its operating speed. This was always a treat.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This shows the lower part of the Lumb governor with the modified Wilby regulator that adjusted the cut-off as the load varied to keep the engine's speed as close to its design speed as possible. Behind is the crosshead with the three piston rods that are the feature of Pollit & Wigzell's patented three rod design.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons.

Agnes is one of my favourite engines but is no longer at this location, indeed the engine house's site has been cleared. Agnes is a horizontal tandem compound condensing mill engine built in 1909 by Pollit & Wigzell of Sowerby Bridge. The Corliss valve cylinders are 18" & 36" bores by 4' stroke. Operating speed was 80 rpm on steam at 160 psi and it developed 600 indicated horsepower. The 16' flywheel drove via ropes to a large alternator next door and to some limited machinery in part of the mill. The engine was in regular use until early 1980 and was then run just for show, usually on Friday afternoons. This shows it running at full speed one Friday afternoon with blurring of the governor, crosshead and crank.

There are just two 19C West Riding CC milestones on Dunford Road from the B6106 at Hade Edge towards Dunford Bridge. This one is just south of the West Yorkshire/South Yorkshire boundary at the Bare Bones Road/Flight Hill cross-roads. Both have been painted expertly recently and the foundry name, Brayshaw & Booth, Liversedge is on the bevel. Milestone Society National ID: YW_HUDB09

Looking north-eastward in the direction of Green Gate and Law Head.