Looking down from the sky

I came across these pictures by chance when researching for a blog post. Details and link to the site is further down the page. So looking at the picture below you can see a canal but as the shot dates back to 1938 there are not many clues as to the location.

With my overwriting on the image and my saying it`s Leighton Buzzard all has become clear. I guess at this point I must apologise to those who have no idea of  the area. If you have never been to Leighton Buzzard this post will have no interest but the canal makes it a suitable subject for a blog post.

Zooming in on the same image.

 

Zoom in even more. Brantoms wharf, now filled in although the bridge remains, could hold three full length working boats. I guess the wharf was the reason the winding hole came about.

 

Now looking from the opposite bank. Notice the very small arm, roughly opposite the pedestrian gate from the towpath into Tesco. This section was called Whichello`s Wharf.

 

Same shot zoomed in

 

Back across to the opposite bank and the arm is to the left. The buildings at the bottom of the page are on the road into L. Buzz. next to the bridge over the canal.

The site to view aerial photos of the UK is Britain From Above. The `browse by  map` link shows the UK as a mass of markers but you can zoom in to your required area as in my screen shot on the right.  The Blue flags are images that can be viewed. You will only get the photo as taken. See first 2 images above.
To zoom in you must register. NO CHARGE just click register and you will see they want almost nothing from you by way of information.

 Another very old (1949) view of Apsley and many boaters will have walked across the bridge to shop at Sainsburys. All the buildings in the picture were the John Dickenson works. Just one small brick building remains the rest fell to make way for a retail park.(Mall)

Notice the bottle kilns to the right of bridge 8. Stoke on Trent. There are about 8 visible on the zoomed in image. Also to the left are more kilns and 4/5 tall chimneys. During the heyday of pottery making it is estimated up to 4,000 kilns were in use. On the lower left is the electricity generating works. Image taken 1933.

With luck you might get an aerial shot of your home or a canal you are familiar with but to get a good view with the zoom feature remember to register.
This post came about from searching for information on the `cargo of sand` blog post. Then Jaq and I spent a couple of hours in the local library looking for answers to other questions that arose from  the Internet search. Jaq so loves libraries and always has since her first library card in Alaska at the age of six.  "A universe of ideas and knowledge is available for free to anyone with a library card" is how she explains it to me. We both hold library cards.
I remember when Jaq first stepped foot on English soil before we went to the U.S. to marry. She turned down my offer to see the usual touristy places like Buckingham Palace etc saying plenty of time for that, just take me into an English library!
So now I have some more snippets for my next blog post.