VALLEY ROAD, EARLSWOOD: THEN & NOW...

 Valley Road, Earlswood: Then & Now…

THEN...

The engine house dominating

The rear of the scene is testament to industry

And a working canal, supplied

By Earlswood’s Engine Pool off Valley Road.

A sloping, grassy wall splits the narrow lane,

Which diverges and converges, curiously, 

The three silhouetted figures clearly demonstrating

The height and angle to the pool from the road, 

With trees and fields proliferating aside…  

The engine house dominating

The rear of the scene is a landmark, listed

And the canal is now for leisure use

Nearby, their towpaths trodden well.

The splitting wall’s grassy slope remains,

Whilst vehicles and walkers vie, perilously.

The myriad signs and yellow lines warn, frustrating, 

Whether progression or regression, time will tell,  

As lavish homes far right lounge, exuding pride…  

NOW...

Pete Ray

15th February 2021             

The old and new images are remarkably similar.

The Earlswood reservoirs were man-made and constructed in the 1820s, the workforce including prisoners from the Napoleonic wars.

The River Blythe feeds the three pools: the Engine Pool, the Windmill Pool and Terry’s Pool, my favourite…