Whitby and Troutdale…..
First to Whitby….
I have visited Whitby Abbey many, many times and never fail to be impressed by the ruins that remain today. Perched high above the North Sea there has been a religious community here since Ad 657. It is also a site of religious importance as it was here in AD 664 the foundations for the English Church were established.
The ruins we see today are of course from a later date. Major building work occurred in 1090 and that building rebuilt in 1220. After the Monasteries and abbey’s fell into disuse both time and weather have taken there toll…but perhaps no one was expecting the ruins to come under fire from German Naval shelling in 1914. A new Visitor Information centre and museum have been added, well worth a visit, they have been installed in the adjacent family house (circa 1672) of the Cholmley family.
The other Religious ruin is much more modest in size and is one we stumbled upon by accident. It is Wayside Chapel, possibly also an old school room for what was once a thriving farming community in Troutdale.
So far I have not uncovered any historical facts to add to this sadly neglected Chapel abandoned on the only road in and out of the Dale….
It may well not be as big as Whitby but I guess it will have its own historical secrets, equaly as important to the Troutdale community of old.
7th June
(C) David Oakes 2015
DAVID OAKES - IMAGES. 