[AJR]

From “Clitheroe Today”, 11th August 2005

Keepers of Castle campaign launched

Clitheroe’s Castle is certainly not falling down, but it is quite clearly somewhat frayed around the edges. The ravages of time have caught up with the jewel in Clitheroe's crown and the opportunity has come to stop the rot.

Ribble Valley Borough Council has launched a £3m scheme to turn the Castle into a major tourist attraction. The Clitheroe Advertiser and Times is joining forces with the council in launching a huge appeal to raise £500,000 in a bid to give the Norman Castle a well-deserved facelift.

A £2m funding bid has already been submitted to the Lottery and the outcome should be known at the end of the year. If the bid is successful, a further £250,000 has been pledged by Clitheroe the Future on behalf of the North West Development Agency, along with other pots of money from key organisations. This week, the "Keepers of the Castle Campaign" was launched to meet the £500,000 shortfall. We urgently need your help in ensuring that the money is raised.

The 18-month campaign will be spearheaded by a task force comprising officers from the council's Tourism and Communications departments and the Friends of Clitheroe Castle Group. We still need community involvement. We need people with skills, but more importantly, we need people who love the Castle and want to see it go forward.

The Castle Keep and the associated buildings are set to embark on an exciting future. If nothing is done, then the implications for the site will be significant. The fabric of the buildings is in poor condition and it is highly possible that the museum could have to close.

Action is needed now.

Next week we will be giving in-depth details of the scheme and how you can help. In the meantime, anyone wishing to become involved should contact tourism and arts officer Rebecca Kay, tel. 01200 425111.

[AJR]

A vintage postcard of Clitheroe Castle from my collection.

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Some modern pictures of Clitheroe Castle.

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Two sketches of Clitheroe Castle from 1848.

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One of Clitheroe Castle in 1835.

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A picture of Clithroe Castle in 1753.

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The Buck Brothers' print of Clitheroe Castle in 1727.

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... and plans of Clitheroe Castle.


Site Plan


Plan of keep

[AJR]

From “Clitheroe Today”, 8th September 2005

One small seed from space, one giant tree for the Valley

"MOON TREES" with roots in outer space are to be planted in the Ribble Valley.
Two special "moon trees", grown from the seeds of trees whose own seeds were part of the 1972 Apollo 14 moon mission, will be planted in the grounds of Clitheroe Castle and at Clitheroe Cemetery.

Seeds from sweet gum, sycamore, redwood, Douglas fir and pine trees were taken onboard Apollo 14 to evaluate the impact of lack of atmosphere and space radiation on tree seeds and their germination rates.

The seeds were returned to earth, germinated, grown and eventually planted at selected sites across America, thus becoming known as moon trees.

Ribble Valley Council's Countryside Officer, David Hewitt, has sourced seeds from the original moon trees and hopes to plant them in the Clitheroe Cemetery Arboretum and grounds of Clitheroe Castle.

He said: "The seeds were among a small number of items that the Apollo astronauts took onboard the command module.

"After their return, the seeds were germinated and the trees planted at selected sites across the United States.

"I have been lucky enough to source seeds from these first generation moon trees and intend sowing and growing them, until they are large enough to be planted.

"This is an exciting environmental project and these trees will be a fitting monument to one of the most momentous occasions in modern history, albeit in a quiet corner of Clitheroe."

[Sir Mech]

That's pretty neat. I've never heard of Moon Trees before I think I'll do a little more research on that and see what I can come up with.

Thanks for sharing that tid-bit of info.