West Wemyss … and The Walk Inn

This is Part one of my Mother and Daughter Day out.

I am ashamed to say that this picturesque village is a short bus ride a long the coast from me and is yet another place I had not visited before....West Wemyss

The word Wemyss comes from the Gaelic “weems” for the sandstone caves that are common on this part of the coastline.

The wall of this church yard dates from 1703, there is also a WWI Memorial set in to it but the actual parish church, St Adrian’s Church, within, was built in1890’s …

…it is said it was built by the Wemyss family, to save the worshipers their walk in to East Wemyss each Sunday.

There are many of those lost in mining accidents, buried within the wall along with five brave men whose act of valour was only commemorated in January 2011 ….70 years after the event.

This memorial stands out side the Churchyard near the coast line and I think is very fitting.

It is thought that in January of 1941 a special constable was told of a mine being washed towards the shore on the tide, he, a member of the Home Guard, two other miners and a young pit lad sacrificed their lives in order to move the beast away from the village, knowing that had the mine exploded along side, a greater tragedy would have occurred. The blast, it is said, was so strong that the castle orangery, standing high above the coastline, lost some of its windows. Sadly all five lost there lives but it is believed that they understood the danger they were putting themselves in.

I have come across many contradictions in dates, as I tried to research this village’s history but I have done my best to untangle them and hope I will be forgiven for any errors.

Main Street

The white tower is part of theToll Booth …first built in the late 1500’s with a two prison cell beneath ... but was rebuilt in the 1700’s…in the Dutch style by David the 4^th Earl of Wemyss, , with the Wemyss crest of a swan, made in gold, set on top as a weather vain.

Next to it is a way through to the sea front from Main Street

The sea front ...I had the camera glued to my face snapping away lol

The Coxstool ....looking on to the sea..(the large while building was a sailors rest ..)

This beautiful village started its life as a settlement for Wemyss Castle ….

...whose original construction began in the 13^th century. The castle was rebuilt and extended over the following centauries and is still used by the Wemyss family today. It was at the early castle that Mary, Queen of Scots, met Lord Darnley, who became her husband in 1566.

These are the ruins of a very early castle keep

The village and its harbour, known as "Haven Town of Wemyss" by the locals, came into its own in the early 1500’s due to salt and coal. Salt had become a major industry in Wemyss.

Sadly, towards the end of the century, a ship brought in the Plague to the harbour … it spread quickly through out Fife, dramatically reducing the population.

The Wemyss family had a new harbour constructed around 1620 ... it was to be an important port of call for ships exporting and importing goods. The early1600’s also brought the first glass making factory in Scotland, to just outside the the village.

By the end of the seventeenth century it was thought to be a major harbour for the exporting of coal. Wemyss land, itself was rich in coal and stretched far into Fife and now had many pits including at least one that stretched beneath the Forth. The ships that exported the coal and salt would return with imports of iron, timber and flax .

The middle of the 1800’s saw other docks emerge, or be increased in size, and the salt industry go into a decline.

The railway, towards the end of the century, had connected the pits to the harbours and docks and also connected many of the villages along the coast. Ships were still being built there in 1900 but the village’s decline started slowly with the opening of the new enlarged Methil Docks, further along the coast to the east, in 1907 and the demand for the West Wemyss harbour decreased.

Over the decades that followed the decline set in and by the 1970’s the pits and railways here and along the coast were gone (thanks to Lord Beeching) …the harbour was largely filled in.... and what remains I didn't get a shot of as I turned back to get a coffee at the Walk Inn…even West Wemyss’ school was demolished and the population was in total decline.

It is this decline, that the residents today are fighting to reverse, with the creation of The Walk Inn. They want to preserve the small but loyal, caring community and give themselves something to work towards,to be proud of creating and a reason to join together keeping the village of West Weymss alive and kicking.

For many years this village has not even had a shop, café or public house but the community took on the challenge to buy the empty Wemyss Arms and create a café, a bistro, a shop and a small walkers hostel. They applied for a lottery grant and after some hard work, actually were awarded one … and work began.

When I visited, the café only was open and they were having teething problems with the power …well it was only a few days after opening after all …but I can’t wait to return when everything is up and running. Our tea and homemade cakes were delicious and the service and friendly atmosphere was one which many may have thought was long gone … the young might never even have realized it ever existed. It will be a wonderful community meeting place but also a fantastic place for visitors, regular or casual, to partake of refreshments during a day out.

Hope you enjoyed the trip to West Wemyss .... Part 2 ...Dysart .... next week.

Take Care xx

Wk 116 ...and things.

I am trying not to make this too long this week... little hope of that ... lol
I have an even messier desk…

and I only finally got round to finishing the LO tonight (Tuesday eve) …sorry its a rubbish photo of the LO …I actually like it in real but not sure about it in the photo. Its another using a grid method from the class

It is of my Mum and her twin brother ( same chap as in LO wk114) ... in 1982, on their 65^th Birthday. She managed to make the journey to Norfolk for the first time, as he had not long moved, on her own, dragging her shopping trolley rather than carrying a case. …maybe she started the trend of cases on wheels lol.

I wasn’t invited as I had had a row with my uncle, 14 years before hand, and both of us were determined not to take the blame for it….sadly I don’t think we ever spoke again.

The sun did shine last Wednesday and for those who enjoy my historical trips, I shall be blogging my day out during the week.

...but as a taster ....this is what met me as I got off the bus

…and this is looking out to sea.

It was a great day out with DD …a proper mother and daughter day … but without any shops....and we strolled for about 3 miles along the coast, which is a long stroll for me...and enjoyed our coffee in The Walk Inn ... and later, in another village, our stop for a late lunch.

I have been researching the history of this village but the dates are so very different in every thing I read on the net, that it is quite hard to work out what is correct ….maybe I need a real book.

Take Care xx

PS I only got round to about 30 of you last week …somehow taking Wednesday out of the equation threw me totally and I never caught up ….will try to do better this week xx

WOYWW 115 …and its raining …no pouring, up here….

Little tip for travellers …don’t visit Scotland around the end July/early August and expect a summer. I dread to think how many inches of rain we have had in the past two weeks and if I remember correctly, it was as bad in previous years.

Sorry the desk is still in a mess but I have managed to prep a LO …another from the 'Grid class'… so that is what lies amongst the chaos. The classes are great fun to watch …more new ones this week …may try one that is more adventurous soon …but is that really me?

I tried the printing on material again …using a cotton tape ….and I think I’ve broken my printer now!!

I shall finish my LO in a couple of days but I’m out today. …weather permitting … (I wrote this late last night so don’t know yet … the forecast keeps changing). Hopefully I’m off to visit a tiny costal village that has recently opened a community run café/shop …will report back in a later post.

Yesterday was ‘Back to School’ up here in Scotland.

For Kris it was the beginning of his last year at Nursery but for Robbie it was his first day at big school …Primary 1… He looks so grown up all dressed up.

I think he is ready to cope now, after being offered the extra year in nursery. The 6 weeks holiday gave Vicki and Jay time to prepare him for this milestone event…. 7 weeks ago he would not even try the school jumper on …just the suggestion stressed him …but last week he even let the hair dresser… at last … use the clippers on him when having a hair cut. “Well done Robbie”.

Take Care xx

Week 114 ... Baring all.

OK I know …I chickened out last week …but I was made to feel so guilty that here it is this week ... in all its glory …actually it’s tidier than last week.
I can hear many of you groan … “How is that possible” …well it is …it was piled even higher with non-crafty bits as well, last week. lol

.

The only things here that really show I have actually been messing around crafting, is my note book that I am using to jot down LO’s and tips from the Miss Arty classes … and an experiment…. the paper with the red thing in the middle.

In her class, Julie Winks prints from the printer onto material…then cuts and frays etc for use on her LO’s. It sort of worked …and sort of got stuck !!!…needs fine tuning on my printer I think but could be a very useful technique.

The odds and ends of material are a little pack of Christmas oddments that I picked up at Very Crafty the other week, for £1.99 …thought they might be useful for cards but the brain cells are still pondering on their actual usefulness….oh yes there is a large box of Ibroprofen ….a necessity for all those crafters with dodgy backs. …and a box of Cheddars just out of shot …also a necessity as I ran out of chocolate lol

Here is the LO I was working on a couple of weeks ago …simple, but then that’s me.

It shows my Mums twin brother on his wedding day…I have been meaning to do it for ages and thought this paper worked, mounted on black. I love the ribbon that matches another of the sheets in the set and I think works here too. (Must stick those letters down better ... I can see in the photo, that they seem to be lifting)

I spent a few hours reading and wave watching yesterday as the rain had stopped and the sun was showing its face….probably should have done some sorting out of my desk or some crafting …but it will all be here tomorrow and the sun might not.

I’ll try to get round to as many of you as I can …promise.

Take Care xx

PS. I can’t believe what has happened in England since the weekend and in the south in particular. I worked in Croydon and lived just out side, until 2005. There are many I know who still live there and are close to where the trouble was, in fact one friend saw looters passing her window with their arms full.

The looters and petrol bombers hit the older parts of the town …Reeves corner, which was the worst hit and the pictures were shown in the news, had managed to stand there for many generations (over 150 years) of the same family ...survive the depression and the bombing of the Second World War ....only to be abliterated by hooligans having fun.

Not a great Ending.

I spied these sparrows playing at the end of my neighbours garden.... thank goodness for my zoom which allowed me to capture their antics.



Unfortunately .... half an hour later, HP (Honey Pot) sat wailing at the back door and then shot through the house ...holding a trophy in her mouth.

Take care xx

Desk too untidy to show ...wk 113 ..August.

First an apology for getting round to only about 50 …everyone in the last half of the list was unreachable as it wouldn’t let me click on the name…..no idea why the list moved over and under the side bar of JD’s blog set up.

WO my W thisW …..ummm …a large pile of things … aka total chaos…and not a square inch of desk top visible … so sorry ladies …no photo of it this week …too ashamed…will try to have a few square inches of desk next week.

I have had a great time listening to and watching the classes I won …so far I have tried one …well one of the three LO’s that are suggested in the ‘Grid’ class by Jamie Harder …this was my take on it….

I also have noted down loads of tips from the other classes and will go back and follow some of them later …this is an amazing web school for those who are not too advanced and are suffering with a lagging Mojo….and that me.

It actually has been a busy week at ‘Chez Shozzy’ getting organized for Robbie’s 6th birthday party. Vicki has been beavering away in the kitchen making Flapjacks ….her marshmallow ones are to die for … and Rocky Road squares, along with ‘Winnie the Poo’ cheese biscuits. The air was quite blue that afternoon as the ears kept falling off some of the shapes….and we must not forget the cake …a Pirate Galleon ….vanilla and purple inside …covered in the best chocolate butter cream icing I have ever tasted. I didn’t get a good shot so photo to follow.

I left the deep cleaning …or ‘de catting’ as we call it … to the girls and I organized all the shopping …I’m not stupid lol …but I did prep the food on the day.

Robbie loves vegetables and fruit so I made sure there were large platters of both. Here is a collage for you to get the feel of Robbie’s day …Birthday Boy in the centre.

Take Care xx

PS ….Quick moan …

What is up with the weather reports over the past few days?? …Weather websites have said sunny and/or cloudy but definitely DRY. I have been trying to line dry two huge covers since Friday and they are out there still … again soaking after torrential rain all day and night …probably now too heavy to remove from the line and spin. … they only just push into the machine when dry … one at a time…not that I’m holding out much hope for any dry weather any time soon..glad I got that off my chest lol