Recent Posts
Bog Hall on the Solway
Bog Hall, or Boghall*, hasn’t the same cachet as, say, ‘Larkfield House,’ or ‘Sea View’. Being more in the ‘Gasworks Lane’ vein of nomenclature. But it’s not without interest. For it w... Read More
Hutchin Graham and the free pardon
Hutchin Graham thought he had a ‘get out of jail free card’ in 1605. The reason shows up in Pacification document 17 and 17b. This is another post in a series, transcribing the documents p... Read More
Princes in the Tower – a logical look
Richard III counts as a ‘Cumbrian Character’ because for a time when he was Duke of Gloucester, ‘the north’ was his power base. Richard was, for a while, Constable of Carlisle Castle and Warde... Read More
Hutton in the Forest Christmas 1808
Hutton in the Forest (the parish church, not the pictured hall) was the venue for ‘an uncommon occurrence’ just before Christmas 1808. Hutton in the Forest parish register, 1808. December ... Read More
Sad letters to soldier husband
‘Sad letters to soldier husband’ is the story of how war tore apart a marriage. And how looking closely at census returns can provide or lead to surprising information. It’s also the... Read More
1597 plague in Cumbria
In 1597, plague swept across Cumberland and Westmorland. Some of it is well-recorded, but in parishes like Greystoke, you have to read between the lines. 1597 plague The plague of 1597/1598 may be les... Read More
Foster brothers remembered
A gravestone at St Michael’s, Bowness on Solway, records three brothers who lost their lives on active service in the First World War. Curiously, perhaps, the ‘main name’ (that on the front) is ... Read More
Parish registers and the Notorious Jade
Parish registers, if you get the chance to see them ‘in person,’ can tell you so much more than you get from using a search box on commercial (or free) genealogy websites. Sometimes the vicar of t... Read More