Drive & Stroll, with RON FREETHY

MY visit to Sandbach was suggested by Brian Gilders from London who had travelled to Burnley from London via the M6 "on a bad day."

He had seen a copy of the Evening Telegraph in which I described the old coach roads.

He asked about travel from East Lancashire to London in the old days. I discovered that nobody avoided Sandbach in the days before the M6. As we would say in these parts "Is there 'owt left to prove it?" I set off to find out.

Sandbach is a busy little market town dominated by a couple of eighth century crosses. There is a large open market open on Thursdays.

Before the days of motorways Sandbach was an important bus stop on the way to and from London. It had been a coach stop since the 17th century but reached its peak in the 19th century. Charles Dickens often dined and stayed at one of several old inns.

I enjoyed my long day in and around Sandbach because it allowed me to enjoy lots of history and natural history.

I started off at St Mary's Church, which stands above a tributary of the River Wheelock. This church was once the focus of a huge parish which stretched as far as the Staffordshire border. The present building only dates to around 1847 but the old stonework and much of the medieval furniture was retained.

The gentle stroll from the church up to the old market square passes a number of old inns, including the thatched Old Black Bear which carries the date of 1634. All these inns cater well for visitors.

The square itself is dominated by the Sandbach crosses, which are Saxon in origin and celebrate the conversion of the Mercian King Penda to Christianity.

Nearby is the Old Hall now converted into an hotel. This stands on the site of the ancient mansion of the Sandbache family, who were Lords of the Manor. The present building was constructed for the Radclyffe family in 1656 and it is a fine place to have a snack and soak up history. The word sandbach means a "sandy valley or stream."

Sandbach has made its living from the production of salt for more than 2,000 years. Salt extraction has caused the land to subside and this has created stretches of water called flashes.

The Sandbach flashes provide wonderful birdwatching throughout the year but especially between November and Easter.

All this is why I can now list Sandbach on my list of old roads. In future I will ignore the motorway station and have a brew and a butty at one of the historic inns.