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Wednesday 26 February 2014

Sepia Saturday - Rocky Memories

Each week Sepia Saturday, provides an opportunity for genealogy bloggers to share their family history through photographs.  

Take a journey into rocky memories visiting India, the  Scottish Borders, the Lake District,  Brimham Rocks in Yorkshire, Staffa off Scotland's west coast and Marsden Rock at South Shields, County Durham.

INDIA

My husband's uncle Matty (Matthew Iley White) of South Shields, County Durham is among this group of soldiers perched on a rock in India.   Matty  served in the  Durham Light Infantry in India 1933-1937, as listed in his service book below. 



HAWICK IN THE SCOTTISH BORDERS
Little  daughter  on a little rock surveying the land above  Hawick in the  Scottish Borders, c.1976.  It must have been a good summer as the land looks unusually  dry.   

THE ISLE OF IONA OFF THE WEST COAST OF SCOTLAND  

A windy day as daughter, now a lot older, but still perching on a rock! 

LAKE DISTRICT
A large rock in the Lake District - near Keswick (I think) c.1988  I don't know how I was adventurous  enough to climb to the top - I could not do it now. 


BRIMHAM ROCKS IN YORKSHIRE 
To North Yorkshire  - and the Brimham Rocks, hugh balancing rock formations  with spectacular views over the Niddersdale Moors. With a labyrinth of paths and plenty of hiding places, be warned,  this is a great place to lose children who can hunt for rocks with weird names such as  Dancing Bear, The Eagle and The Gorilla, The Smartie Tube and balance on the Rocking Stones.  In the care of the National Trust. 




TO SCOTLAND & STAFFA OFF THE ISLE OF MULL
We now head north to the west coast of Scotland - and Staffa which  lies 9 miles off the Isles of Mull and Iona.  Its most famous feature is Fingal's Cave,  a large sea cave located near the southern tip of the island some 60 feet high.   The sight  of the rocks and the sound of the sea inspired composer Felix Mendellsohn to capture his visit  in 1829 in "The Hebrides Overture". Other famous visitors followed - John Keats, Sir walter Scott, Joseph Turner and Robert Louis Stevenson.  Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were rowed into the cave on the royal barge in 1847. 

Approaching Fingal's Cave on the Island of Staffa.
A view from the top - quite a climb on steps cut into the rocks, 
with a rope to hold on to  as a safely aid!


MARSDEN ROCK OFF SOUTH SHIELDS, COUNTY DURHAM
A journey  to South Shields at  the  mouth of the River Tyne - home of my husband's Donaldson ancestors. 


Marsden Rock is a 100 foot sea stack which lies 100 yards off the cliff face.  Believed to be once  a smugglers' haunt,  it is now the home of seabird colonies.   In 1803 a flight of steps was constructed up the side of the rock. In 1903 several choirs climbed onto the rock to perform a choral service.   My husband spent his childhood here, with the beach a favourite playground.

In a way this is an historic photograph, as in 1996 the arch collapsed, splitting the rock into two stacks. The smaller stack was decreed unsafe and demolished.  

Among the cliff face rocks at Marsden  c. 1983 


 Daughter (left) with her cousin and dog Cindy - with matching hairstyles! 
c.1983


Copyright © 2014 · Susan Donaldson.  All Rights Reserved
  

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18 comments:

  1. Love the pictures of the cliffs overlooking the water, I could spent hours on top of a cliff like these featured in your post. Good one ScotSue!

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  2. I have never seen large rocks with steps before. I love the dog with the matching hairstyles.

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  3. What a great collection of rocks. I couldn't climb those steps now either, but back in the day, I would have.

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  4. Great rock collection! Smiling cause I remember bringing home pockets full of rocks, thinking I'd have a small "rock collection" one day. Nah, just little rocks sitting around all over the house! Some I do remember where I collected them from still!

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  5. A clever & fascinating take on the prompt! The Brimham rock formations in North Yorkshire are somewhat reminiscent of rock formations in the Sierras in certain areas where I've seen quite a few balancing or stacked rocks. And I can certainly see pirates of yesteryear hanging out in Fingal's Cave! :))

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  6. Great collection of rock photos. My favourite is the one of your young daughter gazing out at the view over Hawick countryside.

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  7. Great collection - I can see why my Long (Longbottom) ancestors from Yorkshire loved the Stoney Rises in Victoria - quite similar.
    I love the stairs on that rock - very OH&S!

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  8. What a beautiful collection of photographs! I was in Yorkshire in September 2012 but missed seeing the Brimham Rocks. Lovely!

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  9. I enjoyed travelling your rocky road this week, and well done for referencing composers too you clever thing!

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  10. I love when rock formations are given names of objects they resemble. Sedona in Arizona is home to Snoopy, Coffee Pot, Bell, Cathedral, Grand Piano, Madonna & Child, Camel, and many more.

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  11. What an amazing rock post, with rock situations, like the stairs leading up, so creative and delightful.

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  12. To think I nearly post a photo of Brimham Rocks. Is the dog an Afghan? Great rock photos, Sue.

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  13. such an exquisite array of rocks...I especially like the ladder provided to climb atop that one you show from 1988, Keswick

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  14. The balancing rocks at Brimham remind me very much of similar formations of granite in Zimbabwe, but it is to the photos of Fingal's Cave that I am drawn. I hope to get there one day - the columnar basalts feature in many geological text books. Thanks for sharing your photos.

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  15. I'm with you Brett - I reckon Fingal's cave looks incredible.

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  16. Staffa must be an amazing place to visit. The rock coluumns look spectacular.

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  17. I love the steps up the side of the big rock. I think it's a great idea, especially for those less adventurous people who would rather not try to climb up on their own. Great photos!

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  18. That's a fine collection of rocks! Especially the ones with family in them.

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