Recent Posts
Thomas Martindale: saved by a sheep
Thomas Martindale was a few days short of his tenth birthday when he got lost on the Cumbrian fells in 1907. The search for a drowned pony was to lead to his name appearing in newspapers the length of... Read More
Brunswick Square Penrith – and the First World War
Brunswick Square, Penrith, isn’t famous, or remarkable. On the Penrith Town Trail, it is described as: Brunswick Square, a Victorian housing development commenced about 1850 and built around an ... Read More
Most Haunted fake ghost: debunked by research
A Most Haunted fake ghost didn’t take much to debunk, thanks to some basic research of the facts… With nowt else on, I happened to watch an episode of Most Haunted on Friday night, exploring H... Read More
Brig Robert Burns – 51 years before Titanic
This painting of the brig Robert Burns, at Port Carlisle, is fairly well-known. I suspect most people who are aware of it like it because it shows Port Carlisle in its heyday as a busy port. The house... Read More
Mary Pears: a painful calamity
The story of poor Mary Pears is a tragic one. And while it may be unkind to use it as an illustration for family historians, it does show you should never take anything for granted. It also ties in wi... Read More
Attitudes to suicide down the centuries
Attitudes to suicide is a tricky topic to cover. I have seen the impact it can have on those ‘left behind,’ and witnessed reactions and attitudes in modern Britain. This piece on attitudes to su... Read More
Twelfth Night – and twelfth cakes
Twelfth Night these days just means ‘time to take down the Christmas decorations’ – and a Shakespeare play – right? Well perhaps, but it used to mean a lot more. Twelfth cakes It is st... Read More