Brackley

The largest town in south-west Northamptonshire, Brackley had a market charter since before 1217, its wealth having come from wool. The architectural highlight is the Town Hall of 1707, sold to the town by the Earl of Bridgewater for the princely sum of one shilling (5p). Its ground floor was originally open and the clock is dated 1883.
An extract from from"Northamptonshire Living Memories".

The town is a mix of stone, brick and colour-washed render. One of the best examples of the rendered buildings is the Crown Hotel, which has now expanded to take over Thorpe’s the florist to its left. The colour scheme on the Georgian facades is now muted grey with white dressings. The houses beyond all have shopfronts now, instead of domestic windows. The house on the left, behind the Pre-War Austin Big 7, is now an estate agents.
An extract from from"Northamptonshire Living Memories".

We are looking westwards along the Grand Union Canal on its way to Birmingham, at point where it originally joined the Oxford Canal. This junction was later moved further on, and the ‘cut’ to the left became the entrance to the ‘pound’. The building on the left is the Stop House, where boats would stop to pay their tolls as they moved from one canal company canal to another. The ‘Belmont’ (centre left) is the butty to the ‘Stanton’ (next to it), belonging originally to Barlows. Butties were the un- powered boats towed by their powered partner.
An extract from from"Daventry Living Memories".

The marina was originally a reservoir to maintain levels in the Grand Union Canal; it was also used as a pound to moor working boats. Water was pumped from here up to the top lock. The line of bushes and trees in the middle distance hide the embankment of the railway line, which ran from Weedon through Daventry to Leamington. The service was withdrawn in 1959.
An extract from from"Daventry Living Memories".

This view of the Rec shows the steam engine hiding the terrace of houses known as Mount Pleasant. The building on the extreme left is Stead & Simpson’s shoe factory, one of the last shoe manufacturers to survive in Daventry, once home to many factories and craftsman. Steads’s factory has now disappeared, to be replaced by Tesco’s supermarket and obligatory car park. Fortunately, the Rec still survives.
An extract from from"Daventry Living Memories".