Cobblestone Roads

photo taken by me – A steep cobbled street in the village of Barnoldswick
Preston, England
June 5, 2016 2:05pm CST
I love walking on cobbled or cobblestone road surfaces, which are a real blast from the past. Such roads, paths, alleyways and canal paths are still common, especially in Lancashire & Yorkshire mill towns. Cobbles are actually naturally rounded pebble stones stuck together with sand and mortar. They are a very durable surface with good grip for horses, cartwheels, and people on foot. Cars and bikes rattle on them, but cobblestones are noisy to walk or ride on. Workers in wooden clogs made a lot of noise walking on cobbles and pedestrians know when cars are approaching. They make ninja stealth nearly impossible. The photo is of a steep cobbled street in the village of Barnoldswick which seems to have more cobbles than just about anywhere I ever saw. Arthur Chappell
20 people like this
21 responses
• United States
7 Jun 16
the main street here'n town still's cobblestone. i love't! 'course, moss'n such don't grow'n 'em, i find that quite interestin'. there's a lil town down'n south texas where the whole town's nothin' but cobblestone 'xcept fer folks driveways. i found that horses aint too fond'f the noise made whilst travelin' 'long those.
1 person likes this
• Preston, England
7 Jun 16
@crazyhorseladycx horses getting a grip on cobbles on towpaths is often a major reason for their use but the noise would drive you crazy after a while
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• Preston, England
9 Jun 16
@crazyhorseladycx I'm sure they appreciated the carrots anyway at least
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• United States
7 Jun 16
@arthurchappell the poor dears were'n a trailer i was haulin' :( the sound most unnervin' to 'em since they'd ne'er 'xperienced such. i did stop't a lil farmers market once we'd gotten'n the other side'f that town - got'em bunches'f carrots's a peace offerin'.
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• Midland, Michigan
12 Jun 16
When I visited Guatemala a few years ago, they had cobbled streets that looked just like this. I found it difficult for walking since my knees bother me especially since I don't seem to pick up my feet when I walk as much as I did when younger. I kept catching my shoe on the rim of some of the stones. Our town has made brick walkways which are similar in nature, which brings back the past to a degree. I've seen roads done in brick too, but not so much these days as in years past, unless it's the downtown areas trying to remain fresh and keeping themselves separate from the advance of technology or something.
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• Preston, England
12 Jun 16
they can be awkward to walk on especially in heels or shoes with little grip or tread
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• Preston, England
17 Jun 16
@MarshaMusselman I sometimes don't pick my feet up enough too
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• Midland, Michigan
17 Jun 16
@arthurchappell I'm sure I was wearing good shoes with grip, but I don't pick up my feet as high as I did when younger, so that causes me to trip a bit sometimes.
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@marguicha (214294)
• Chile
5 Jun 16
I love them too. There used to be a lot of old streets here with cobblestone. Some enterprising mayor covered them with that petrol based pavement.
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@marguicha (214294)
• Chile
5 Jun 16
I read the answers. The name is asphalt
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• Preston, England
6 Jun 16
@marguicha yes, ashphalt tends to be a road surfacing agent - I love the smell of freshly laid ashphalt
@Poppylicious (11133)
6 Jun 16
I'm not keen on cobblestones because I tend to fall over on them! They do look very pretty though, especially when coupled with beautiful old buildings. :)
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@JudyEv (323672)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Jun 16
These cobblestone roads looks great, don't they? Centuries ago, Australian jarrah was used in London to pave roads. I think they were called cobblestones too.
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• Preston, England
11 Jun 16
not heard of Australian Jarrah before
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6 Jun 16
They are great
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@celticeagle (157593)
• Boise, Idaho
5 Jun 16
They are nice aren't they? They were doing some work on the roads down town here and they found some cobble stones so they unearthed them and we have that attractive mix on some of the roads down town.
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@maezee (42003)
• United States
5 Jun 16
Nice. We have only a few roads like this. I think they are awesome, they always remind me of the "olden" days even though of course I wasn't around back when everything was cobblestone (if that was even a thing). Definitely picturesque.
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@valmnz (17100)
• New Zealand
5 Jun 16
We don't appear to have cobblestone paths here, unless they're recently constructed. I guess NZ is just not an old enough country. I've seen them in Australia though.
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@jaboUK (64363)
• United Kingdom
5 Jun 16
Cobblestones are very evocative of the past, I agree.
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@amadeo (111956)
• United States
5 Jun 16
did you know that cobblestones are good for your health.Help your balance
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@Lucky15 (37346)
• Philippines
5 Jun 16
We have here. Where calesa or horse driven carriage is only allowed to pass
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@trivia79 (7828)
• El Segundo, California
5 Jun 16
some things of the past are good to see at the present times and preseve for the future.
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@teamfreak16 (43451)
• Denver, Colorado
5 Jun 16
And these crazies race bicycles on them. That can't be fun.
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@Asylum (47893)
• Manchester, England
5 Jun 16
Like yourself I can remember the time when cobbled streets were normal.
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@marlina (154183)
• Canada
5 Jun 16
I have always liked the look of cobblestones.
@Jessicalynnt (50525)
• Centralia, Missouri
6 Jun 16
I think they are cool, but do not like walking on them, end up with stone bruises on the bottom of my feet, at least did in Japan (I have better walking shoes now)
@Inlemay (17714)
• South Africa
6 Jun 16
That was one thing I noticed in Europe - most of the roads are cobbled, as well as the walkways. For us that have very smooth pavements and tarred roads, it make for difficult walking at first and eventually we were like waves over the stones, hobble here and hobble there. When we arrived back home, our walks were different . . . we looked as if we were lifting our legs higher than normal. HA HA
@OKennedy (1130)
• United States
6 Jun 16
Cobblestone is really cool to see as you mentioned not the most noise friendly thing. I guess being able to hear a car coming is not a bad thing
@puddleglum (1380)
• United States
5 Jun 16
I haven't had the opportunity to encounter many genuine cobblestone roads, but I love how they look. Pictures of cobblestones always conjure up the sound of wagon or carriage wheels rattling.
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