Mesnes Park (pronounced "Mains") is the jewel in the crown of Wigan. Opened in 1878, Mesnes Park was intended as a place for the people of Wigan to enjoy some leisure time in pleasant surroundings, away from the Collieries, Cotton Mills and Iron Works that were the main source of employment in the town during the industrial revolution. Life in Wigan during this time was hard, the industrial sites were often dark, dirty and dangerous places to work. Mesnes Park was a place where everyone could go and relax on the one day off that many people only got in those days, Sunday, right after going to church.
Over the years several additions were made to the park, the frst of which in 1880 was the Swiss Chalet where the park keeper lived. It was followed in the same year by the magnificent Pavilion set high above the surrounding gardens with impressive stairways leading up to it. To this day the Pavilion is a great place for a coffee and an ice cream on sunny afternoons.
Over the years several additions were made to the park, the frst of which in 1880 was the Swiss Chalet where the park keeper lived. It was followed in the same year by the magnificent Pavilion set high above the surrounding gardens with impressive stairways leading up to it. To this day the Pavilion is a great place for a coffee and an ice cream on sunny afternoons.
The first of the statuary paid for by public subscription was installed in 1903 to commemorate the men from Wigan who served in the British Army during the Boer War in South Africa and never came home. sadly the original was lost to decomposition during the 1960's. A new statue was installed in 2013, again paid for by the people of Wigan and I'm honoured to be one of them.
1910 was the year a statue to commemorate Sir Francis Sharp Powell was installed and again the people of Wigan paid for it. It was to honour his service to the town as a Member of Parliament and for his philanthropy. It's said that if you rub his foot you will enjoy good fortune, a local legend that began in the years following WW2. His foot gleams in the sunshine in contrast to the dark weathered bronze of the rest of the statue of Sir Francis as he sits on his chair in contemplation.
At the beginning of the 21st century Mesnes Park was showing every single one of it's 120 years. Conservation group "The Friends' Of Mesnes Park" together with Wigan Council applied for and was awarded a multi million pound grant from the UK National Lottery Heritage Fund to restore Mesnes Park to it's former glory. This included the reinstatment of The Coalbrookdale Fountain which was dismantled in the 1920's and the new Boer War memorial I mentioned earlier. The grand re-opening ceremony was performed by TV and Radio broadcaster Stuart Maconie who was born in the town. The renovation was a success and the people of Wigan have been enjoying the park every day since, only closing for the duration of the lockdown due to Covid 19 in 2020. Two world wars never managed to do that.
In 2017 when I decided to take up Film Photography again after a long hiatus, Mesnes Park became my classroom. As you can see from my photographs there is a lot for an aspiring photographer to study and learn from. I'm being brave this week and posting a slide show video that I made using Nero Video alongside my photographs. You can see more images on my Flickr account at Jim Graves Flickr
All photographs were shot using my Nikon F801 and Nikkor lenses on Kodak ColorPlus 200, Kodak Pro Image 100 and Ilford HP5+400. I also sneaked in a couple of digital images shot with my Nikon D700. The music is titled "Analog" and was written and performed by Mike Gutterman, host of the Negative Positives Film Photography Podcast. I have learned a lot and been encouraged by the folks at Negative Positives toenjoy the whole film process from loading the film into my camer right thriugh to developing and scanning to show you all here. I haven't made the next brave step and tried developing colour film yet, I still support the good folks at Max Spielmann to do that for me, but I might give it a try before the year is out. Please visit the links below and I hope you enjoy this weeks video and images.
Analogue Wonderland
Max Spielmann Photo Store
Negative Positives Film Photography Podcast
In 2017 when I decided to take up Film Photography again after a long hiatus, Mesnes Park became my classroom. As you can see from my photographs there is a lot for an aspiring photographer to study and learn from. I'm being brave this week and posting a slide show video that I made using Nero Video alongside my photographs. You can see more images on my Flickr account at Jim Graves Flickr
All photographs were shot using my Nikon F801 and Nikkor lenses on Kodak ColorPlus 200, Kodak Pro Image 100 and Ilford HP5+400. I also sneaked in a couple of digital images shot with my Nikon D700. The music is titled "Analog" and was written and performed by Mike Gutterman, host of the Negative Positives Film Photography Podcast. I have learned a lot and been encouraged by the folks at Negative Positives toenjoy the whole film process from loading the film into my camer right thriugh to developing and scanning to show you all here. I haven't made the next brave step and tried developing colour film yet, I still support the good folks at Max Spielmann to do that for me, but I might give it a try before the year is out. Please visit the links below and I hope you enjoy this weeks video and images.
Analogue Wonderland
Max Spielmann Photo Store
Negative Positives Film Photography Podcast
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