D6130
Established Member
Cheddar in Somerset is another settlement after which is named a type of cheese.
Wychbury in Worcestershire also has an obelisk.
JAMES BRINDLEY lies amongst these Rocks,
He made Canals, Bridges, and Locks,
To convey Water; he made Tunnels
for Barges, Boats, and Air-Vessels;
He erected several Banks,
Mills, Pumps, Machines, with Wheels and Cranks;
He was famous t'invent Engines,
Calculated for working Mines;
He knew Water, its Weight and Strength,
Turn'd Brooks, made Soughs to a great Length;
While he used the Miners' Blast,
He stopp'd Currents from running too fast;
There ne'er was paid such Attention
As he did to Navigation.
But while busy with Pit or Well,
His Spirits sunk below Level;
And, when too late, his Doctor found,
Water sent him to the Ground.
James Brindley, famed as the engineer of the Bridgewater Canal and facilitator and designer of many other schemes, lived in Leek in his early adulthood. He later became one of the most renowned engineers of the 18th Century. He died and was buried at Turnhurst, Staffordshire. The epitaph appearing in the Cheshire Courant seems very appropriate although of doubtful merit poetically:
Ewell in Surrey also lies on the route of the Roman road known as Stane Street.