Over the last nine years I have regularly received comments from the form on the Parlington History site, virtually all have been beneficial in a number of ways.
- Offering useful family history that ties in to the data I have uncovered.
- Providing new images of the old hall.
- Clarifying some of my assumptions.
- Connecting people who were related by their ancestors employment.
The list could be much longer, but I’m sure you get my drift. But then a couple of weeks back I received a message via the site which seemed to be genuine enough, below is a transcript of the message.
My dog and I have just walked from Buck and Sykes to Garforth and back. I was astonished at the sheer beauty of today. Next time Im taking a camera and an acoustic guitar for the dark arches. Really. We walked to willow farm shop and asked for directions to Garforth. I couldnt find the way under the motorway for the life of me. Apparently I missed a ‘v’ in the fence near the fishing pond on 3 passes.. Ill have to try harder next time. This website is amazing, thankyou very much for the info Ill be picking up from it. My only question is why there appear to be squares dug out on the path? I lost my footing in 2 as they were disguised with a inch or two of leaves owing to the season. A cyclist will be certainly thrown off. Hmmmm
I was pleased to receive a glowing recommendation, after all I don’t write the history of Parlington for any other reason than I feel it needs to be set out for all to see, history is a very important part of our culture. My efforts are entirely altruistic, and whilst I might get some inner glow from the proverbial “pat on the back”, that I might receive from time to time, the overarching purpose is to provide a useful insight into what was once a very significant local family, residing in a long established country mansion.
My first reaction was to reply to the enquirer and so I sent the following, with the photograph that I have put at the head of this post.
Glad you like the site, if you are doing a gig in the Dark Arch, with your guitar, that is something I would love to see! The “v” in the fence is here, see attached photo. The view is taken looking towards Garforth with the wall of the Gamekeeper’s cottage on the left. This is the route of the former railway, from the fence it is a bit tricky for a couple of hundred yards, follow the line of the stream (River Crow) until it disappears into a bank by a tree, then take the high path through the woods, after about a hundred yards or so the path drops down back to the line of the railway, and you will find the Bathingwell spring on the left. The spring was a favourite bathing spot for Colonel F R Trench-Gascoigne (1851-1938) so I believe. Anyway thereafter it’s a straight walk along the old railway track bed until you reach the outskirts of Garforth, you will then loose the route and walk out on Ash Lane, to the Aberford-Garforth road.
I don’t know anything about the holes you mention, wherabouts are they? I will alert the estate managers if you can let me know the location.
Would you like me to add you to my email updates, I send out from time to time, roughly monthly? Also do pass the word on about the site as I have been lucky in the past to get new bits of information this way.
Best wishes, and enjoy the walks, it’s a great spot!
Well imagine my horror when this came back a day or so later!
Are you kidding me? Security codes.. Whats this nonsense? Are you printing money under the dark arches?
It appears you are subject/slave to this ridiculous spy assination 007 world of the funternet.. Get over yourself before you reduce yourself to tapping away on a computer forever, I dont need remining of the contents of a message I have sent to you (of course I can find this in my sent folder). And who the hell is going to try to crash the Aberword Parlington website? Jeeez forget it. You are so up your own arse it beggars belief.
Some of my closest and dearest intimated I should respond in the firmest way telling the author of the messages what a ***** they were, and I almost took their advice, but then I reflected upon the things that had been said; the security code for example is a reference to the requirement on the site form to input some numbers to stop automated trolls from sending the form. Why make a comment on that? Then the reference to the form sending a copy of the request to the instigator of the message, surely not worthy of comment. Then as for me being up my own rear end, well what a stupid statement, and how presumptuous, if anyone was so up themselves it has to be the author of the vituperate garbage. Therefore I can only conclude that we live in a sad world where mindless morons seek to gain some pleasure at the expense of others, why… I can’t imagine, so futile, there is much to do in life, we are here for only a brief time in the geological sense, so wasting it and upsetting others for no reason is PATHETIC. Of course the individual concerned has done no physical harm, but it demonstrates the hate that some in our midst harbour. I suspect the dog alluded to in the first post might prefer not to be associated with his/her owner as I can imagine brutality may be a first call for the slightest indiscretion! The bile is obvious.