Tag: Cumbria history
Benjamin Franklin’s experiment in Cumberland
Pouring oil on troubled waters Pouring oil on troubled waters – as a metaphor – is familiar to all of us. It means trying to calm a dispute with soothing words. Benjamin Franklin’s experimen... Read More
Coughs and sneezes and Victorian ‘cures’
Victorian cures for illness were an extremely serious matter for the sick. Reading contemporary newspaper adverts for pills and potions makes one very glad modern medicine (and Trading Standards) have... Read More
Miss Havisham’s wedding feast – a real-life tragedy
Tragedies at sea, in this case on the SS West Cumberland, took their toll on loved ones at home. Charles Dickens described the room, in Great Expectations, where poor Miss Havisham’s wedding feast s... Read More
Average wages and a drunken elephant
What was the average wage in 1843, in the UK? The date is random, but the question is an important one for family history and social history research. Knowing what people earned in the past is the bes... Read More
Tracing your family history: Wills
Among William Shakespeare’s almost countless famous lines is one from his will: ‘Item, I give unto my wife my second best bed with the furniture.” If you’re tracing your family history or... Read More
Unfortunate deaths in Cumbria
‘Unfortunate deaths’ may sound a curious heading. After all, there are very few fortunate ones – unless it means avoiding ‘a fate worse than…’ The choice of title reflects that the people ... Read More