A community for 150 years
Written by Phil Pearn
ISBN: 978-1-901253-25-2
276 pages, paperback, 146mm x 208mm.
Published by Leonie Press, December 2001.
Price: £ 10.00 Postage and Packing:
25 maps & plans, 134 B/W photos, 8 colour photos, 6 drawings
Reprinted March 2007
As the new millennium approached, resident Phil Pearn started a website to collect together the relevant census and survey information along with the Association's records, privately held property indentures and, most importantly, the memories and snapshots of current and past residents.
After two years of the website, all the houses had been recorded and a vast network of past residents had been built up. As the Park entered the new millennium it was thought that a fitting celebration would be to publish a book based on all this research, which should lead to further records being unearthed for the on-going website.
The author says: "When I started I had plenty of folklore passed down through the generations. Piecing together the jigsaw of recorded facts and stories allowed me to separate the mythology from the history. The result will surprise and enlighten even those who have lived in the Park for many years."
The book is about the evolving place that is Upton Park, the people who have lived there and the factors that have combined to create such a special community. It makes fascinating reading for those who know the Park but also provides rich insights for anyone interested in social history.
Phil is a recently retired engineer who has shunned the common path of becoming a self-employed consultant marketing his previous expertise. Rather he prefers to get involved in a variety of new ventures. He is a Voluntary Warden with the Lake District National Park and loves travelling to and walking in other mountainous parts of the world. Recent trips have taken in Peru, Alaska and New Zealand.
Writing the local history book on his home territory of Upton Park, Chester started as a website early in the year 2000 after he received a wonderful stockpile of old documents from his mortgagor. Researching the history became an obsession exploiting his inquisitive and analytical skills. The contributions and enthusiasm particularly from aged past residents was a real incentive to see the job through.
He enjoys dabbling in artistic craftsmanship having played with blacksmithing and woodcarving and now getting into glass. His ultimate aim is to combine all these modest skills to produce some interesting pieces of art - and maybe this might lead to another book.
Despite having virtually no sense of rhythm he is the proud owner of an extensive drum kit but is only allowed to play when his wife Lynne is out of the house. The lack of a sense of rhythm however does not prevent her dragging him off to ballroom and Latin dancing most weeks. A future book on rhythm and dance is most unlikely.
