Walkley Ways, Walkley Wars, Walkley Cowboys.

I found myself in the Walkley area of Sheffield earlier this week and I called in Beeches wonderful Inner City Farmshop. where I found a volume of local history - "Walkley Ways, Walkley Wars" - which has been prepared by a group called "The Walkley Historians" and published by the Walkley Community Centre. The one thing I can never resist buying is local history books and therefore I was anxious to acquire a copy of the book. "How much?" I asked the lady behind the counter. "It's a minimum donation of £3 but you can pay what you think it is worth above that" I have to admit, this is a new approach to bookselling as far as I am concerned, but I happily handed over £10 and left the shop still believing I had got a bargain. 

I have not had time to read it yet, but I look forward dipping into what is a richly illustrated volume of local history. As I left the shop, I could not resist taking a photograph of the magnificent former Ebenezer Primative Methodist Church on the other side of the main road. I look forward to discovering if there is further information about this fine building in the book. 

And I couldn't help thinking of the "Walkley Hoard" of old large format negatives I bought on eBay earliet this week. When I got home I had a quick look through the collection to see if there were any photographs of Walkley itseld. The best I could come up with is this fine photograph of a Walkley cowboy, which must date back to the 1940s or 1950s. I am not entirely sure where it was taken, but those back yards have a distinctive Walkley look about them.