By Aimee Belmore and Gary Carter
LOCALS are keeping pieces of Saddleworth’s history burning bright after almost 60 years.
Judith Liversidge has set about giving abandoned gas streetlamps in Dobcross a new lease of life, with the help of friends and neighbours.
It comes six decades after her father, Dennis Longden, finished lighting them following years of service when the area was part of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
And a helping hand from a friend will see a second, close to the Husteads Farm where she lives, brought back into modern day use.
“I remember my dad lighting them in the 1950s and 1960s,” said 66-year-old Judith, who runs Husteads Riding School on the lane of the same name.
“He was the last gas lamp lighter in the area, for the old Saddleworth Council when it was part of the West Riding.
“The last time I can remember him lighting them was when I was four or five-years-old!
“Some of the lamps he lit, near Husteads fishing pond, are still there, so we did one up last year, getting a solar lamp in and painting it – we also put a plaque on it in memory of my dad.
“They were all disconnected from the gas main but we managed to get a solar light going – it does light up at night and I want to put a hanging basket on its arm and solar Christmas lights around it.
“Further along the lane, at the lodge where the fishing pond is, there’s a bench and there used to be a gas lamp there.
“A good friend of mine, Robert Hirst, managed to salvage one from a yard. I painted it and had that one put back in – it’s not the original one but one is back there.
“We’re doing it up at the moment and I’m going to do the same with that one. A gentleman has a template he made for me, with a solar panel on its top.
“However, that won’t be done until the Spring now. I can’t paint because of the weather!
“There used to be five along the lane – we’ve got two up already but apparently, there are quite a lot around Saddleworth.
“I went over to the Lower Royal George Inn at Scammonden and Robert came over and asked if I was from over the top because of my accent.
“He asked if my father was a gas lamp lighter. When he was a young boy, he came over to Husteads Farm with a horse dealing man and said, ‘I aways remembered the gas leeter from Owdam!’”
Now one gas lamp, soon to be two, has been restored, the hope is seeing that working can inspire others to bring ones near them back to life.
Irene Brierley has helped Judith with the labour of love, which started in summer 2023, along with neighbours Gary Leeson, Christopher Nicholls, Jason Harrison and John Smith.
But Judith is encouraging others to find forgotten gas lamps near them and spruce them up.
She added: “My friend did some research and there are around 30 across the area. We want people who see one just to get some paint and do them up.
“It’ll keep part of our heritage.
“It is our history and it would be nice to see people looking after them and keep them going. All you need to get is a pot of paint to do it up.”
- Husteads Riding School, which has been running since 1971, offers lessons to people of all ages with well-mannered and well-schooled horses suitable for all abilities.
If you are interested in booking, or would like more information, call Judith on 01457 870904 – e-mail and a website is not available as Judith takes pride in the way she has operated from 53 years,
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