Picture provided by Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Cotton Town digitalisation project.
Over the years Blackburn has steadily been losing its wealth of architectural heritage. According to my mum one of the biggest crimes committed was the demolition of the old clock tower and market hall. Sadly a sympathetic redevelopment was not to be, literally a case of out with the old and in with the new modern purpose built shopping centre. Once again Blackburn council are currently undertaking a multi million pound facelift which includes, yes you’ve guessed it a new clock tower. No tears this time when the bulldozers move in as the past design which made strong use of ‘white tiling’ was derogatively likened to that of a Victorian lavatory. See you can't please everyone, even Diarist John O Neil back in 1856, thought it the "poorest looking place of a large town" that he had ever seen, (Timmins, 1993 a pictorial history). Although the new tower is still in its skeleton state I don’t think it will get the seal of approval from mum. As an employee of boots chemist which was a situated in the old market hall mum clearly has a deep sentimental attachment to those old buildings. What are your thoughts?
Over the years Blackburn has steadily been losing its wealth of architectural heritage. According to my mum one of the biggest crimes committed was the demolition of the old clock tower and market hall. Sadly a sympathetic redevelopment was not to be, literally a case of out with the old and in with the new modern purpose built shopping centre. Once again Blackburn council are currently undertaking a multi million pound facelift which includes, yes you’ve guessed it a new clock tower. No tears this time when the bulldozers move in as the past design which made strong use of ‘white tiling’ was derogatively likened to that of a Victorian lavatory. See you can't please everyone, even Diarist John O Neil back in 1856, thought it the "poorest looking place of a large town" that he had ever seen, (Timmins, 1993 a pictorial history). Although the new tower is still in its skeleton state I don’t think it will get the seal of approval from mum. As an employee of boots chemist which was a situated in the old market hall mum clearly has a deep sentimental attachment to those old buildings. What are your thoughts?
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