The foundation stone at Hyde Library reads:
THIS STONE
WAS LAID BY ELIZABETH WIFE OF
THOMAS ASHTON OF HYDE
ON THE 3rd DAY OF JULY
1897
It was built on the site of the former Mechanics Institute
A second stone reads:
THIS BUILDING WAS OPENED BY
LETITIA MARY
WIDOW OF WILLIAM MARK ASHTON
OF HYDE
FEBRUARY 18TH 1899
A view of the side of the library can be found on Hyde Daily Photo.
Current council plans involve moving the contents of the library to the Town Hall and then selling off the building.
An e-petition opposed to those plans can be found at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/62460.
A contribution to Ruby Tuesday;
Our World Tuesday;
signs, signs and
Weekend Reflections.
Nice finds. These women are still remembered after all these years.
ReplyDeleteThose signs have been there for over 115 years, and they still look good. The original stone carver must have done something right.
ReplyDeleteYou won't find a stone like that being laid these days!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if any relatives of these two women are still in the area. I hope the buidling doesn't get torn down.
ReplyDeletei like these historical reminders.
ReplyDeletefrankly my dear
the stones make me wonder about their lives
ReplyDeleteoh very interesting.
ReplyDeletethe dispersion in the window reflection is intriguing.. thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteand the prominence of the women seems unique for that era.. great post.
great history...amazing photo....
ReplyDeleteI'm assuming Thomas and William were related - brothers, or father & son? It does seem unusual to have the women playing such a prominent role in this building.
ReplyDelete