I was first introduced to the carvings on the gatepost on Serpentine Road by Andrew Crawford, now a (slightly) older man who enjoys sharing his times of old Kendal through the eyes of one who once roamed the streets, a young and exploratory boy, at the time he was unable to tell me anything about the carvings other than, "Thers' not many folk know they're ere". Even today few venture from the centre of town be they local or tourist unless they have specific business in that area.
Today when off in search of them to provide the fotographs for this BLOG I have to admit to having no slight difficulty in locating them even then, not without getting a little lost in the ancient walkways of Kentbank, what a fascinating part of Town.
Arthur R Nicholls historian and vice chairman of Kendal Civic Society however provides the information to go with the carvings and echoes my earlier comments on the pace of peoples lives forcing them to be missing out on some little treasures.
BYGONE DAYS - by A.R.Nicholls
We are so often in a hurry or taken up with private thoughts and worries that we fail to notice strange and interesting things on our way.
A gatepost of a house in Serpentine Road is a case in point. There, carved in stone by John Watton are the faces of the remarkable mans four children.
He was chosen by the K Shoes Company in 1949 to be the first editor of their house magazine, The Eyelet. It illustrated the work of the different departments and factories, tellin gabout the hobbies, holidays and the like of the employees, to foster a family feeling.
John was so successful in his task that he remained as editor until 1975 when an economy drive saw the magazine was discontinued.
But this wasn't his first outing in print.
Watton joined the Border Regiment as a Territorial before the outbreak of the Second World War and received a commission.
During Dunkirk he was taken prisoner at the nearby village of Incheville, becoming a prisoner of war.
Yet he was never content to remain in prison, making several abortive attempts to escape, and was eventually moved to a more secure place. As an officer he was incarcerated in the infamous Colditz Castle where he used his artistic skills in forging German documents and passports for fellow officers to use in their escape attempts.
He also acted as an official artist and unbelievably, was able to send drawings of life in the castle for publication in The Illustrated London News.
End of news piece.
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