Castle Carr Fountain

I first heard about the water gardens at Castle Carr 6 years ago. They are opened to the public only once a year, and every year until today I have missed it. This year the twins were old enough to walk the 5 mile round trip. Not bad for three year olds with little legs. My little boy complained all the way there – every step! But chatted, and hopped and drew on the road with a nice stone all the way back.

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Castle Carr was a mock Tudor castle, Constructed between 1859 and 1867. It lies at the end of a long, narrow, country road in Luddenden Dean.  It was built for Captain Joseph Priestly Edwards, though he and his eldest son were killed in a railway accident before it was finished. It’s an odd kind of place. It feels stilted, not quite right. Once completed, the owners never lived in it; it was cold, damp, plagued by midges. It was used as a hunting lodge on occasion, but rarely fully occupied.

First of all we came to the remains of the castle itself: All that remains of this vast building is the tower with a portcullis (on the left of the photograph above) and piles and piles of stone :

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There are pieces of carved stone work everywhere. From large stone lintels from windows and doors, to really ornate ones:

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We walked further down the valley to the water gardens below the castle. The fountain (2nd only o the one at Chatsworth) never fails to impress – or soak! A light breeze cause the jet to soak both the man from the water board in charge of setting it off, and the crowds of people near the front! Excuse this poor photo. There are many better ones to be found on line.

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After the fountain had run out of water I had a little wander. In years gone by visitors were able to walk around the stone walk ways between the ponds and waterfalls, but it’s not safe to do so now.

 

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With the children with me there was very little drawing time, but I have a sense of the place now. I’ll do some drawings tomorrow…

6 Responses to “Castle Carr Fountain

  • Love the photos – wonderful 🙂 Really looking forward to seeing the work progress.

  • Kate, I was there on the same day. I went down to the side of the main pool with my camera and tripod after someone from the Rotary Club announced the event was over and you could have a wander round, but there would be no health and safety cover. Someone from the search and rescue team soon arrived and told me move, but I had a few words with him and he disappeared which then gave me chance to take some photographs. I really can’t see what the safety risk is. The first time I visited Castle Carr was in 1968 when I was 13 when a friend and I sneaked in from above the reservoirs. I’m currently writing an ebook about the history of the estate.

    • Really Roger?? I’d love to know what you find out. I’m only scraping the surface with the research on these houses. But it would be so easy to get completely lost in it all! There are so many unanswered questions about Castle Carr.

    • Wheh I was a child I used to go hikig and on hosteling holidays with a rather nutty male teacher and the mother of one of my friends. He often took us to places that were not really allowed. I have always remembered one place I particularly liked (but was also a bit afraid of too) but my memories were fragmented. I have asked many people if they knew where this place was where there was a ruin of a castle that didn’t really seem like a real castle and pools of water that seemed like a reservoir but were very ornate. We walked across the water on a sort of spillway. After all these years (I’d guess it was somewhere between 68 – 69) I now know where that was.

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