“One from the Archives” – Astley Hall (26th January 2025)
Back in June 2024 members of the Museum team accompanied the Leyland Cub Fire Engine to Astley Hall to celebrate the centenary of the Hall becoming a museum and War Memorial for the people of Chorley.
The Leyland Cub
The Leyland Cub was manufactured alongside the Lynx at Kingston upon Thames and shares many common components with it.
The model was introduced in 1937 and was designed to take optimum advantage of the 30 mph maximum speed limit allowed for lorries weighing under 2 and a half tonnes unladen.
Payload was around 6 tonnes, and, with modifications, the chassis was also used for Cheetah public service vehicles and for fire appliances.
This particular Cub was fitted with a Rees-Roturbo 500 gpm pump and additional equipment by Leyland at Chorley and served the factory brigade until 1976. It has a Leyland 6-cylinder, 4.7-litre petrol engine.
The Cub spends the majority of the year on display at the Leyland Assembly Plant in the plant’s exhibition area.
Archive Photos – Capturing A Moment in History
The Museum’s on-site archive department recently discovered these photographs (below) showing firefighters testing their auxiliary water pumps at Astley Hall in 1923.
Astley Hall made the perfect place for them to test their equipment due to there being a readily available source of water in the form of the lake found beside the Hall.
Astley Hall
Astley Hall is a historic country house located in Chorley, Lancashire. The Grade I listed building dates back to the 1570s, with major additions to the Hall being made during the early 17th century.
The Hall showcases impressive architectural elements of both the Tudor and Jacobean eras. Notable design elements within the interior of the building include elaborate plasterwork ceilings, rare painted panelling, and fine period oak furniture.
Over the years, four families have lived at the Hall: the Charnocks, the Brookes, the Townley-Parkers, and the Tattons. The interior of the building reflects the preferences of the four families; their tastes can be found in the furniture and paintings which adorn the Hall.
Astley Hall is now a museum and local heritage site, depicting the architectural and social history of Lancashire. The Hall is managed by Chorley Council.
