Recent Posts
James Irving of Blackwell House – an unusual will
The will of James Irving (baptised 1835 Bowness-on-Solway, died 1877 Switzerland) suggests he was worthy of the description Cumbrian Character… Elsewhere on this site, you can find a general inf... Read More
Temperance – and drains – in Carlisle
November 1849 saw a lengthy inquiry into the state of sanitation in Carlisle. From a social history point of view, it gives all sorts of insights into a number of aspects relating to living conditions... Read More
Victorian Botcherby – and a load of old rubbish!
Botcherby has been part of Carlisle for just over 100 years. It’s not an area I know, really. It seems it gets its name from a Flemish man called Bochard (the Norman version of his name) who was... Read More
Victorian jokes – contain your excitement
Victorian jokes, to borrow a phrase, are no laughing matter. Ok, I’ll re-word that. Victorian jokes are no laughing matter to 21st century ears. There are many obvious things that have changed dow... Read More
Annetwell Street – resort of thieves
Annetwell Street, Carlisle, isn’t much of a street today. Running alongside the Radio Cumbria building, it seems sidelined by the busy A595 Castle Way that slices through the city in front of the ca... Read More
The treadmill – an ‘efficient engine of punishment’
Among the items on the agenda for visiting magistrates in Carlisle in October 1848 was the prison treadmill. The treadmill was down the list of topics to be discussed, but it is a reminder of this cur... Read More
Elizabeth Senhouse, a venerable lady
May 6 1890 saw the death of a venerable lady (as she was termed) from a famous Cumbrian family: Elizabeth Pocklington Senhouse. Mrs Senhouse of Netherhall, Maryport, was 86, and what had started as a ... Read More
William Pinder: punishment in the 1800s
William Pinder was a man no one would want to add to their family tree. But his life story tells us a surprising amount about crime and punishment in the mid-19th century. In Westmorland, a crime of a... Read More