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View Full Version : Subterranean Secret of the Scousers.

thomascovenant
13-07-2007, 04:00 AM
In the first couple of decades of the 19th century, a man called Joseph Williamson comissioned the building of a huge labyrinth of tunnels under the Edge Hill area of Liverpool.

The purpose of the tunnels is widely speculated upon, the most common argument being pure philanthropy.It is said that he built the tunnels purely to provide work for soldiers returning from the Crimean war into a city with serious unemployment problems.

Joseph Williamson was born in March 1769 in Warrington (this is not proven) and left home when he was 11 to seek employment.He found work with the "Tate" tobacco company (Wolstenholme sq.)He rose through the ranks and into the upper echelons in1802 when he married Elizabeth Tate, sister of Thomas who had inherited the company upon the death of his father in 1787.

One year later, Joseph Williamson bought the entire company (probably on profits from the slave trade).

Around 1806, he started construction of the tunnels in secret, employing hundreds of men to dig through miles of rock (dunno what type, sorry).Some of the tunnels were said to be built at the same times as some of the railway tunnels.The work gangs in these projects employed people to listen for the sound of other underground work (such as rail tunnel construction) and upon hearing this all work would stop for fear of being discovered.Not even his wife was aware of the project and it has been suggested that the whole system was just an elaborate method of sneaking about with mistresses (as if).The third (and for me, the most likely) school of thought was that Williamson was a member of a cult that was expecting some kind of catastrophic doomsday scenario.

I`ve heard a few rumours of "things" climbing up into peoples houses through the floor.And I`ve seen photographs of holes in peoples floors that lead into dark tunnels.People in the Relevant areas of Liverpool (being working-class, practical types) used these tunnels to discard rubbish, some of which is 150 yrs old.

There is loads more stuff around if you`d care to have a surf but I really can`t be arsed typing any more.

Heres the pics.

http://img459.imageshack.us/img459/3985/spa0034fk9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Shot with SAMSUNG (http://profile.imageshack.us/camerabuy.php?model=SAMSUNG&make=CoreLogic) at 2007-07-13

One of many entrances.

http://img365.imageshack.us/img365/4265/spa0040ed8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Shot with SAMSUNG (http://profile.imageshack.us/camerabuy.php?model=SAMSUNG&make=CoreLogic) at 2007-07-12

Just inside the entrance.

http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/4599/lfa5c54936b8f0367b067a4zc0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
Shot at 2007-07-12

This is a publicity shot for the Liverpool band secondnature.
The video was shot in a section of Williamsons tunnels and would have been a lot less cool had I not been in it.Can post that another time.:cool:
hagbard_celine
13-07-2007, 11:09 AM
On the surface you could say it was just a folly, but I've stopped believing in follies lately. This warents further investigation.

Many cities have catacombs under them, including my home, Oxford. An underground chamber was discovered beneath a busy shopping street a few years ago and the University sealed it off. Very little has been released about it.

Remember those templar tunnels in Hertford?
2013
14-07-2007, 01:51 AM
just did a quick google and found this will look more later
,
http://www.williamsontunnels.com/virtour.htm

a map of the tunnels known and sumised but it runs beneath Mason street ! that says a lot right there , deffo worth a closer look .Hey hagbard what are the names of the streets around the tunnels in oxford ? :D
tickles
14-07-2007, 01:59 AM
Great post.
Is anyone allowed access to those tunnels.
How far can you go through them?

When i was about 12 i used to play in the tunnels on North Head, Auckland NZ. The tunnels in north head were built during ww11 and contained rooms, hospital, quarters etc. In those days you could go through the whole hill but its now sealed off except for a small section thats open for tours.
thomascovenant
14-07-2007, 02:16 AM
Cheers Tickles.Funnily enough theres a bit of an action plan going on at the mo.Theres a visitor centre and stuff at one part.The entrance can be seen on one of the websites.Bit strange though, its a tunnel inside a tunnel.No idea why, maybe to create more work, who knows?I`m not even going to attempt to guess, theres too many possibles.As for access, its possible to get into parts of the network, in fact, during the making of the vid that I mentioned, we had to enter through the entrance pictured.Beyond that and down a long curving ramp was.............a garage! I shit you not.Cars, mechanics, tools, just a normal day at the office.This extended about 150ft east.After that just half a mile of nearly empty tunnel.very strange.Spent 2 weird days down there.
thomascovenant
14-07-2007, 02:18 AM
gonna check the map, let you know which one if your interested.
tickles
14-07-2007, 02:31 AM
A garage!. Do you know why the garage was there, who was running it.

Theres some tunnels over on Waiheke Island in the Hauraki gulf (auckland nz) and its said that in the tunnels over there are planes, jeeps, old motorcycles, amunition, etc thats been left over from world war 2. The place is sealed up tight with huge steel plate doors and theres no getting in. I know, i tried :D
thomascovenant
14-07-2007, 02:43 AM
Who could possibly know that and not try?

There were cars and stuff down there.Think I might be on dodgy ground here, pm me if you wanna know details tickles.
graflok
14-07-2007, 03:54 AM
There's something really fascinating about this underground stuff. I love it.
tickles
14-07-2007, 04:01 AM
Yeah is interesting. I've always been interested in underground tunnels.

I downloaded a TV program off a torrent site about secret under gound tunnels in and around the UK. It was one part in a series that was showed on Sky i think.
2013
14-07-2007, 03:40 PM
http://www.williamsontunnels.com/index.htm

this site has video clips as well as some good info worth a look :D
hagbard_celine
15-07-2007, 11:53 AM
just did a quick google and found this will look more later
,
http://www.williamsontunnels.com/virtour.htm

a map of the tunnels known and sumised but it runs beneath Mason street ! that says a lot right there , deffo worth a closer look .Hey hagbard what are the names of the streets around the tunnels in oxford ? :D

I'm not sure. Many are just rumours. EG: There's a secret tunnel under a 400 year-old pub called "The Jolly Famers", according to the landlord. There's a friend of mine who's gone into the mysteries of Oxford more deeply and he knows more then me about the catacombs:

http://http://www.ellisctaylor.com/headlines.html
thomascovenant
17-07-2007, 05:35 AM
Just been looking for the pictured tunnel on a map of Liverpool.
Actually, the map that 2013 posted the link to.I was initially thrown by the fact that I expected the map to be the right way up (North up I mean).
After kicking into gear another of the tiny, rusting cogs that make up my brain.And after sitting in a dark room for 30 mins to clear the fuzz, I realised that the tunnel that I was in isn`t on the published map.In fact, I don`t think its even connected.Its about 2 miles south.For anyone interested in having a look, the entrance is off Park Road on Kedleston St.Not sure about permission but its open for buisness during the day.