by Steve Tanham
I’ve written about it, before. The Saltpetre is a gunpowder store that was used to house the produce of the local gunpowder factory by the river Kent. The ‘black powder’ as it used to be called, was brought up through the village, slowly, by horse and cart – the cart having dressed wheels to help prevent sparks. There were many deaths in the village from explosions, so everyone was deeply conscious of the danger.
Old (black) gunpowder was mixed in the following proportions (by weight): 75% potassium nitrate (saltpetre), 15% softwood charcoal, and 10% sulphur. Our quirky outbuilding was named after the component with the greater part by volume – 75%. We suspect that gunpowder was also generally known as ‘saltpeter’ in those days when the bargemen would collect it from the canal wharf that is now our garden and take it south.
The photo was taken from the lower part of the garden. It’s lower because it was the canal bed. The Saltpetre was constructed in about 1820, the year the local Quaker banker and gunpowder entrepreneur, the first John Wakefield, persuaded the canal trust to change their route and run as close to his works as possible.
The simple stone structure has been there ever since, enjoying many incarnations, but none as exciting as its original use. For the past decade, we have been filling it up with our ‘stuff’. It’s bigger than it looks and has taken a lot of filling! But, with the Covid-19 lockdown in place, it made sense to spend some of the time doing the long-promised clean out.
Right at the back were three shoe boxes, each one carefully taped closed so that not even dust could get in. I had packed them – several house-moves ago, but any knowledge of their contents had long vaporised.
Grubby from the day’s dusty excavations and disposal into a mountain of ‘black bags’, I reached for a my knife and sliced open the tape, feeling intrigued as to what was in there.
Much of it was instantly binable. But an inner ‘jiffy pack’ contained two items: a vintage pocket watch, bought on a business trip to The Hague, and a passport sized photo of me taken approximately 25 years ago. I had thought the watch was long lost, and was delighted to be reunited with an object I loved. It cost me the equivalent of £150 back then. Not a huge investment, but I found its slim and elegant lines very pleasing, and simply wanted to keep it.
The second item was more shocking. There’s nothing quite so sobering as seeing yourself as you were a quarter of a century ago… Ageing is inevitable, but such a brutal confrontation across the years requires a deep breath.
The day was ending in a lovely and still-warm sunset when, freshly showered, I brought the two objects to our patio table, where Bernie had made us each a long gin and tonic.
We sat in silence, gazing at the evening gold reflected in drink and watch, and laughing at the young man. Talk about a time capsule!
©Copyright Stephen Tanham
Stephen Tanham is a Director of the Silent Eye School of Consciousness, a not-for-profit teaching school of modern mysticism that helps people find a personal path to a deeper place within their internal and external lives.
The Silent Eye provides home-based, practical courses which are low-cost and personally supervised. The course materials and corresponding supervision are provided month by month without further commitment.
Steve’s personal blog, Sun in Gemini, is at stevetanham.wordpress.com.
Sun in Gemini 
I remember your post about the building and your garden. How lovely to have found the watch and photo. It’s interesting how we react to age (okay for watches, but not so much for ourselves!) Lol.
Steve, your link from Reader isn’t working – still directs me to stevetanham@wordpress.com which doesn’t exist. Let me know if you need help finding where it needs to be fixed.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Diana. It was a lovely shock to find the watch, that’s for sure! Sue was trying to help with the WordPress issue but she said she had similar problems when her site was renamed. I upgraded mine and though WP would automatically redirect it. Any help would be gratefully received. Thank you.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Here’s a post that should solve your challenge in minutes! I’m happy to test it for you when you’re ready. https://mythsofthemirror.com/2019/04/06/7-steps-to-a-user-friendly-blog/
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Diana. I hope to try that out tomorrow – I have the Thursday post to fret over, first!
I’ll certainly take up your kind offer of testing it’s efficacy! 😎
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hello Diana. Thanks for the assistance. I’ve checked the WordPress side and that la okay. I need to find out how to handle the Gravatar bit! I’ll keep you posted! Thanks once again.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lovely! I find it curious that a Quaker was a ‘gunpowder entrepreneur’. There’s no accounting, sometimes. Just imagining those years that have come back to you with the watch and the photo.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It was quite a moment! I was momentarily speechless with the import of it… The Quakers were okay with John Wakefield because the main use of gunpowder was for industrial purposes. The local Quaker record is not a clean one. Sunderland Point, near Heysham, was once the second largest port in England and was built on the basis of the slave trade.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a lovely pocket watch, Steve, and a delightful discovery. I have a fondness for them. They’re a little nostalgic but still perfectly functional. I still use one, mostly at the weekends when it’s nice to be leisurely about consulting the time.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you, Micheal. I remember the antique jewellery shop in a small but bustling arcade in The Hague. Like you, I love watches, as did my father. It was a joy to find it, again. I shall be sure to use it. As you say, a leisurely day involving a jacket would be wonderful!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I caught the bug from my father too. I still have some of his pocket-watches. He worked in the mines, where they were preferable to a wristwatch. And I recall only mechanical watches were allowed underground.
LikeLiked by 2 people
The love of them is a happy inheritance. I look forward to your watch-based posts. To see them brought back to life is wonderful. I don’t have those skills but I loved watching my Dad do it.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Come to think of it, I’m lacking an inexpensive old ticker to rescue. I shall have a look on Ebay!
LikeLiked by 1 person