Walking China and Loughborough: Burton Street, Beeches Road and Baxtergate

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Changes around town

Huge apologies if you were expecting to land here and find an incredibly interesting post about a needle-making family in Loughborough. This week has been really busy for me so I haven't had enough time to bring my research together into a readable blogpost, and I would like to do the topic justice, so please accept today's offering.

The Charnwood Roots Project has had quite a big call on my time this week, with a training session and some research. Two children came home from uni to celebrate a birthday, and I went to a lovely concert that the youngest was playing in. All this means that time to bring the needle-makers post together was in short supply. However, I did manage to sneak out for a pre-Sunday dinner walk, partly because at work, we're measuring our steps and aiming to walk the equivalent of the Great Wall of China, so I need to do lots of walking to contribute my share, but also, it was a chance to see what's going on in our lovely town at the moment. And there certainly is a lot!

I started my walk on Burton Street: Ok, so the Grammar School buildings never change, but they are so photogenic, aren't they:

Grammar School buildings

From here I walked the path leading from Burton Street to Shelthorpe where I walked under the arch showing the award won by the estate when it was built in the 1930s:

At the bottom of Shelthorpe Road I turned and walked up Leicester Road, and crossed into Beeches Road. Up on the bridge I had a great view of the GCR railway track and the signals:

Bridge number 334!

The signals

Several interesting specimens in hiding around here too:

Of course, just beyond the bridge is the former Ladybird place, now a wallpaper factory, Anstey Wallpaper Company, making wallpapers for the likes of Sanderson etc..

Ladybird House

Walking along Windmill Road I then turned into Great Central Road and noticed the allotments next to the GCR, but the station itself was a little more appealing for a blogger with camera:

The restored canopy

The post box, installed in the reign of George V (1910-1936)

Looking through the canopy

Walking down Great Central Road, and across New King Street took me into Moira Street, then left into Trinity Street, left into Rutland Street, left into Moor Lane, right into Cobden Street and then left into School Street. Here I looked down what's left of Pinfold Jetty into Coronation Way (I think that's what it's called):

Pinfold Jetty

At the end of School Street I found myself looking across Coronation Way into the site of the old hospital:

School Street showing the pile driver

Looking back down Pinfold Gate, I could see the new flats on the site where the Cherry Tree pub used to be:

Cherry Tree flats

Back on Coronation Way, I took a better look at the development on the hospital site:

Better view of the pile driver!

Numbers 55 & 53 Baxtergate in the background

Noting an interesting signpost on the corner, showing that we have a "Heritage Quarter":

Mention of our Heritage Quarter!

I then noticed that the tiles inside what used to be Cottons (I think) had been removed from the wall (see my blogpost on ghost signs in Loughborough for what this are used to look like less than a year ago):

The area formerly covered in white tiles

These Love Loughborough signs have popped up all over town:

Love Loughborough signs

Then, into Baxtergate to see what progress was being made on the proposed development on the old hospital site:

Nos. 53 & 55 under scaffolding

Not sure what's happening to no. 51

Close-up of no. 53

No. 55 from the side

The hoardings in front of the site have changed recently, and promise us eateries galore and a cinema:

Artist's impression of what the development is going to look like

This was the end of my journey: Had it been open, I would have stopped in here for a delicious pot of tea:

Delice Café

Here my journey ended. About 7000 steps: But how far to China?