Category: Cumbria history
Strands Inn, Netherwasdale
The Strands Inn and Screes Inn were built in 18th century and both retain many original features, with log fires and wooden beams throughout… (they) are perfectly positioned to explore the natural b... Read More
Seathwaite riot
Seathwaite is a small hamlet in Borrowdale valley, in the Lake District (1991 population 152 people). It’s hard to imagine anywhere less likely to be a hotbed of violence, but Seathwaite has two dub... Read More
Kendal town clock
Kendal town clock has told the time on the town hall since 1861. But it had a predecessor. By 1837, the previous town clock (with a wooden face) had been marking time for 70 years. It was atop the old... Read More
Abraham Greenhow Penrith postman
Abraham Greenhow: the man who delivered the mail. Continuing a look into the lives of just a few of the thousands of people buried at Beacon Edge Cemetery, Penrith: Abraham Jacques Greenhow was baptis... Read More
Wicked Jimmy’s ghost
Wicked Jimmy’s ghost : James Lowther, the first Earl of Lonsdale, was feared and hated in life. And like all heavy-duty villains, those feelings didn’t end when he died, aged 66, in 1802. His name... Read More
Jonathan Thompson quiet Penrith hero
Jonathan Thompson wasn’t perhaps not a hero in the sense of brave deeds (though he put himself in danger as a fire fighter). But he was well-regarded by his contemporaries and deserves to be remembe... Read More
Easter in Carlisle 1803
Easter in Carlisle Easter in Carlisle has previously been mentioned on Cumbrian Characters, in a post on the public space by Carlisle Castle known as the Sorceries. The post covered the old tradition ... Read More
Lancelot Harrison, gunsmith and truss maker
The gravestone of Lancelot Harrison, is sited near the entrance to Beacon Edge Cemetery, Penrith. It stands out for two reasons: first, it looks ‘too new’ for someone who died in 1880, and; second... Read More