crich area community news
BASA
(Bullbridge and Sawmills Area Civic Society)
We’re a group of local residents who got together less than a year ago primarily because of our concern over the proposed redevelopment of the Stevenson’s dye works site at Bullbridge. Naturally, other local worries, anxieties and issues immediately demanded attention too, and so BASA was born.
Our primary aim is to make the Bullbridge and Sawmills area a better place for everyone to live in. Bullbridge and Sawmills may not be the prettiest area, and life here certainly isn’t improved by the traffic speeding along the A610 or taking a runner at Bullbridge Hill. We lack the seclusion of Fritchley and the charm of Crich. Nor have we evolved around a central focus such as a green. But we have an undeniable industrial history. Did you know that the Cromford Canal, the only canal within a World Heritage Site, ran through Bullbridge and Sawmills and continued for fourteen miles through this hilly landscape without needing one lock? Did you know that in 1840 George Stephenson, the father of railways, had to tunnel under the canal to get his railway along the Amber valley? Did you know that we may have
the world’s oldest railway bridge tucked behind the derelict car park?
We feel that the canal is the key to redeveloping and improving Bullbridge and Sawmills. Together with the Friends of the Cromford Canal we have persuaded JG Land, the redevelopers of the dye works site, to allow sufficient space for the canal to be replaced along its old bed.
Our combined efforts to resolve the planning issues with Lockwoods Haulage last year certainly brought people together. It also made us realise just how much local knowledge there is about the history of our area. And so this year, during 2010, we want to begin to gather people’s recollections of life in Bullbridge and Sawmills in past years. At the same time we are keeping a watchful eye on redevelopment plans for the Stevenson’s site.
We meet every few weeks in Sawmills village hall. Everyone is welcome, whether or not you are a BASA member – and new members are very welcome indeed. If you have old photos of the area, or memories to share, do come along. We advertise our meetings in the Canal Inn and the Lord Nelson, and on our website which you can see at www.bullandsaw.co.uk
Otherwise, contact Gill Hirst, our Secretary, for details (01773 856178). We look forward to meeting you.
Freda Raphael, Chairperson
An early photograph of Stevenson’s dyers, about 1910