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1906
“Another interesting spot is peaceful little
Wincle, nestling amongst the hills by the banks of the
river Dane, full of beauty and repose - set apart, as
it were, for mental rest, from the changes and the hurry
and rush of the outside world. Behind it rise the rugged
Derbyshire hills and moors; before, in the far distance,
are the mountains of Wales; and between lie the rolling
and fertile plains of Cheshire. I know nothing prettier
than the walk by the footway from Rushton (the nearest
railway station) to Wincle in early spring, or when
the autumn tints lend a glow of colour; nor anything
more refreshing than a cup of tea in the quiet parlour
of "The Ship" the little inn, all unchanged
since the Young Pretender, "Bonnie Prince Charlie",
made it his headquarters when he marched upon neighbouring
Macclesfield with his army of wild Highlanders. An old
musket left behind in the hasty departure, and a newspaper
of the day, are preserved at the inn to tell the tale
of their coming - and their going.”
Written by M.E.McEwen of Alsager in 1906
1991
The Aurora of 8 November 1991
The Manchester Astronomical Society visited Wincle in
November 1991, booking a holiday home on two successive
moon-free weekends with high hopes of seeing meteors.
The following is from their records:
“On Friday, 8th November, just after 9 pm, there
began a most spectacular Auroral display which continued
for over two hours. Glorious green, red, yellow rays
came shooting over the slightly raised skyline at the
back of the house which screened the Macclesfield urban
lights to the North and North West, sometimes suffusing
the entire sky with sufficient light for a newspaper
to be read. Many people throughout the UK witnessed
the exceptional display, but none can have seen a more
terrific and inspiringly beautiful sight than those
at Wincle that evening. In many nearby areas nothing
was seen because of the marauding clouds. Yet here was
a group of dedicated and experienced amateur astronomers
arriving fully equipped for a dark-sky weekend of observing
and photography, with loaded cameras, tripods (and telescopes,
but these were irrelevant), right on the spot. This
amazing good fortune was doubly rewarded. The main hope
had been to record promised and expected strong meteor
showers. Among the most senior members present was a
retired professional photographer, Mr Joe Billington.
He has a record of brilliant astrophotography over several
years. He was in the middle of a 30 second exposure
of the blood-red Auroral sky with the interesting hill-side
horizon at the base and the Pleiades showing faintly
in the top right quadrant of his 35 mm frame, when,
exactly in the middle of his viewfinder a huge fireball
exploded in a blinding white flash. This must have been
a one-in-a-million chance, albeit a chance which was
a reward of years of choosing and setting up in the
most favourable conditions year after year over many
years. Nobody went to bed that night!
The next morning Joe went down into Macclesfield, bought
the necessary chemicals and basic equipment, and spent
the afternoon processing everyone's film - so that on
Sunday, the rain plummeting down again as usual, there
was a full slide show. The pictures were shown again
on the following Thursday's ordinary weekly meeting
at the Godlee Observatory. Everyone had by then heard
the joyous news. Members crowded into the tiny room
beneath the telescope dome. Euphoria pervaded. When
the master picture of the fireball came on the screen
there were cheers and claps and excited congratulations.
Joe Billington was and for a long time will remain a
hero.”
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