If you see ‘bellman’ on a census entry or certificate as a person’s occupation, what did it mean? Being Cumbrian Characters, this post includes an example with a story to tell. Bellm...Read More
A near riot, with women throwing things at the bride, isn’t the best start to married life. For Jane Boak, it seems to have been a case of ‘marry in haste, repent…’ well, to some extent immedi...Read More
The Penrith brothel that wasn’t, or… who ate all the pies (and shortcake)? ‘Penrith brothel’ is not something I want in my search history, so I don’t know how things are today. And I trust a...Read More
Old Penrith pubs – an introduction Pubs are a key part of the very fabric of Britain – like tea, and Marmite, only centuries older (!). But in recent times, they have been disappearing at a rapi...Read More
Pigs in Little Dockray – who knew? Well, it seems there were some snuffling about for decades (not the same pigs, obviously!) before anyone noticed. Some background: the Richardsons 1882. Feb. P...Read More
Today is Remembrance Sunday and tomorrow the 101st anniversary of the Armistice. Here is my final reflection on the men whose names are recorded on just one memorial in one Cumbrian town. ‘After the...Read More
‘Election riots in Penrith’ has nothing to do with the European Parliament Elections of a few days ago! But as the UK today digests the results of the EU poll, it’s a timely occasion...Read More
Tom Telford is another of the men recorded on the 1920 Penrith Congregational Church memorial plaque. It’s ‘just’ one plaque among countless tributes to the dead of the First World W...Read More
Nathaniel Dean Lowthian may or may not have been responsible for the following advert, but I doubt a firm of Temple Sowerby tailors employed an advertising agency. The advert was in the Penrith...Read More
‘Victorian values’ are something that get trotted out in British politics every decade or so, as something to aspire (back) to. This post touches on the ‘value’ they placed on ...Read More