Lost Railway at Greenodd | Snapshot Series

The small village of Greenodd, just off the A590 on the way in or out of Furness, today is a quite place with a few local amenities among the houses. Back in the 1800s though the sound of steam trains would have been heard regularly puffing by the village.

It might be hard to tell now but Greenodd once had a busy railway line running alongside it, as well as it's own station.

The line was opened in 1869 as part of the new Furness Railway, which was connecting much of Furness with Lakeside for the easy transport of goods.

The train line would have had many trains with industrial cargo hammering though but there was also a passenger train, which people could board from the station. This station once stood near the end of current Main Street with the railway running where part of the A590 now sits.

There isn't much evidence of the long lost train line but it’s nice to know that one once ran here.

Greenodd Station, image courtesy of NW Evening Mail.

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The Snapshot Series is a series of short posts on singular locations, features or artefacts found in the Furness area. Not large enough to warrant a long blog post we will explore these sites in snapshots!

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Walney Island a history and heritage

Walney has a rich and deep history that dates all the way back to prehistory!

Across the island there has been many discoveries that bring to light its prehistoric past from Neolithic stone axes to beaker pottery and even Bronze Age antlers.

At the very northern tip of Walney a variety of Neolithic items have been discovered, including a polished axe made of Langdale Tuff. Sites in the Lake District, like Langdale, were places of axe production in Neolithic times where axes would be roughed out of the stone. These rough outs would then be taken to polishing sites away from the fells, North Walney is one of such sites. Sandstone and other course stones would be used to grind the rough outs until they become polished and usable. Once finished the items would be used as tools for varying jobs; killing animals for food, processing food, cutting down trees for use in settlements and scraping skins for tanning, to name but a few. As implements like this were so treasured in this time they were often placed at ritual sites, which is where they are frequently found today. Although some, like the polished axe found on Walney, are discovered where they were worked and most likely lost or discarded.

The name of the Island also has a route in history, Viking history infact. Walney is believed to originate from Old Norse, the tongue of the Vikings, although the island wasn't always named as such. Originally it was called Hougenai and is how it is named in the Domesday book. As well as the islands name many of its site names can be traced back to Viking origins, for instance North Scale from ‘Skali’ Norse for Summer Dwelling.

Across Walney are many scars of a Medieval farming past. From the north to the south many fields are covered in archeological features known as ridge and furrow. You can discover more about these features in the article entitled ‘Marks of a Medieval Farming Landscape, Walney’. Ridge and furrow are the remains of Medieval ploughing in field systems, which the peasants of the age would work on a near daily basis. Near by Furness Abbey would have been the owners of many of these field systems and the peasants would pay a tithe (one tenth of their annual produce) to the Abbey for the support of the church. The Abbey owned much of the land around Furness as well large swathes of land in the Lake District.

Jump forward a few centuries to the late 19th to early 20th century and Walney becomes very different. A large part of the island, just over the bridge today, was turned into Vickerstown. A brand new housing estate for shipyard workers. The houses were built to last and were in the Tudor Revival style. Many new terraces were constructed for the lower end of the work force but larger houses were also built for the mangers, and these overlooked the channel. The first thousand houses were completed in 1901 on streets named after ships that had been built in the shipyard. Names such as Mikasa and Vengeance Street. This was a huge change for the island and created an influx of inhabitants, which really saw the birth of modern Walney.

Over the coming decades Walney was set to face the effects of war. During World War 1 there was two military encampments in use on the island, one known as Hilpsford Fort, to the south, and one as Fort Walney, to the north. Each providing defence on the home front and providing jobs in the area. You can find out more about these forts in our previous blog 'World War I, the effects in Furness'.

During World War 2 there were also many military defences built across the island, from pill boxes to Coastal Artillery Searchlight Emplacements. All built to protect mainland Britain in case of enemy invasion. If you want to know more about these defences then please read our previous blog 'Remnants of World War II, the Military Defences of Barrow and Walney'.

A year after World War 2 and Walney became the basis for the made up island of Sador in the Thomas the Tank Engine books.

Writer Rev. W. Awdry needed a location to base his stories around that was in Britain but also isolated enough from the main railway systems of the country. On a trip to the Isle of Man Rev. Awdry discovered the Bishop there was known as the Bishop of "Sodor and Man" and that the island was in the Diocese of Sodor and Man. He realised that there was no island of Sodor like there is of Man. This gave inspiration to create a new island, Sodor, for his books.

He decided to place this new island between mainland Britain and the Isle of Man, right where Walney Island is. He took the east side of the islands outline but expanded it out to the west creating a much larger island. He did however keep some of the local names. The bridge to Sodor comes over from Barrow, as a bridge does for Walney, and the bridge arrives at Vickerstown, as it does at Walney.

A map of the Isle of Sodor (courtesy of Wikipedia). Note Barrow and Vicarstown to the right of the map.

As you can see Walney has a very vivid history, one that I have barely scratched the surface of in this blog. Hopefully, though, what I have shown is some of the interesting features and moments in this small islands history. Moments that helped to shape the island we know today.

Hoad Monument, Ulverston | Snapshot Series

One of the most prominent features visible from the Furness town of Ulverston is the random lighthouse that sits upon a hill above the town - the Hoad Monument.

Even though it appears as such the monument is not a lighthouse, well not a working one at any rate. It is in fact a monument to Sir John Barrow, a man born in Ulverston during the 18th Century, who went on to be a founding member of the Royal Geographical Society.

The monument, real name the Sir John Barrow Monument, was designed in the style of a lighthouse and built on the top of hoad hill on the outskirts of Ulverston. It was built using local limestone in 1850 and stands 100ft tall.

It cost £1250 to build and was paid for mainly by public subscription. It soon became an iconic image of the town and held a special place in the hearts of locals.

This still stands today with the view of the 'Pepper Pot', as it is also refereed to, when driving home is an instant reminder that you are almost there. Many people walk up the hill to wander around the monument every day and enjoy the views up the tower or out across Ulverston.

It really is adored by everyone and will continue to be a lasting symbol of Ulverston and, indeed, the Furness peninsula.

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The Snapshot Series is a series of short posts on singular locations, features or artefacts found in the Furness area. Not large enough to warrant a long blog post we will explore these sites in snapshots!

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A spire seen across the town - St. James' Church, Barrow

Across the town of Barrow-in-Furness, if you look across the skyline, there is one heritage building that can almost always be seen - the spire of St. James' Church.

This lovely looking church was built, along with many other historic building in Barrow, during the Victorian period and sits in the Hindpool area of the town.

The site for the church was gifted from the Duke of Devonshire - one of the major players in the town at the time. Soon after this the Directors of the Iron and Steelworks, big businesses in the town, provided the money to build the church.

Once money was obtained the architects Edward Paley and Herbert Austin were hired to design the building. The two went on to become famous for their many church designs across Northern England.

The building was constructed using local bricks, in the familiar red hue that one associated with the town, and has contrasting yellow sandstone forming the windows and decorative features. The final construction is large and grandiose but has a beauty of it's own. It's 150ft tower rising up to touch the sky and create a landmark seen across the town.

This is something that was used to the advantage of the Germans during the Second World War.

Incoming bomber planes, destined to hit the shipyard, are said to have used the tower of St. James' as a marker. They would fly towards the tower, turning on reaching it to gain a direct line to the shipyard.

During the German air raids of 1941 the church sadly received damage. Several stained glass windows were destroyed, the organ was damaged and a floor in the spire collapsed onto the bells inside. Unfortunately many of the surrounding buildings were completely destroyed in the air raids but the church managed to stay mostly intact and remained as a symbol of hope for the local townsfolk.

One interesting fact I'd like to leave you with is about the organ just mentioned. This organ is rather special, it started life in 1837 when King William the Fourth commissioned it's construction. The organ was built inside the Chapel Royal of St. James Palace - the royal palace at the time.

Here the organ was played at many royal occasions including at the marriage of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg.

Several years later, in 1868, the organ was to be replaced so was sent to Barrow to be installed in St. James Church, where it still stands today.

St. James' Church is a wonderful building on the skyline of Barrow, it stands as a lasting reminder of the towns incredible Victorian past and is well worth a look around if you're ever in the area.

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The Churches of Furness Series does what it says on the tin, it takes a look at the many and varied churches of the Furness area of South Cumbria. From churches with Norman origins to Victorian houses of worship there certainly is an array of religious buildings to discover! 

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A ram's head and a chimney - Ramsden Hall, Barrow

What do you think of when you see an image like the one to the right? 

Industry maybe? Mills and factories of the Victorian age perhaps?

Well, if so, you would only be partly right!

This lovely chimney is from the Victorian period, built in the typical red brick of the Furness area, but it is not attached to an industrial mill, nor is it from a large factory. or yard

It is in fact attached to a rather fine building which once housed something of a much more gentile nature, a community bath house, gifted to the town by the first mayor of Barrow, Sir James Ramsden.

Ramsden commissioned and funded the building of this, quite small, public bath house in 1872 and it was constructed in that same year.

On completion the building was given the name 'Ramsden Hall', a reminder of who funded it. Another reminder of this is situated above the main entrance to the hall. Carved into yellow sandstone is an inscription that reads 'Presented to the town by James Ramsden Esq. First Mayor'.

Just below this is another interesting feature of the building, and something I personally have always associated with the building since childhood, a ram's head. This ornate carving forms the centre part of the archway above the main entrance door and is rather wonderful. The ram of course being a symbol for Ramsden.

The chimney, mentioned at the opening of this post, sits to the rear of the building and would have sat directly above a boiler room of some variety. This boiler would have heated water which would be used for bathing, a steam engine most likely being used to do this pumping. The chimney would be used to vent out smoke from coal or wood which would be burnt to heat the water and operate the steam engine - something which would be a common site across the town at the time.

The building sadly did not remain as a bath house for long as in 1886 it was converted into a public hall. It also went on to become an annex of the technical college, which stands next to the hall, before becoming the Citizens Advice Bureau, which it remains to this day.

Ramsden Hall is a wonderfully cute building on the streets of Barrow. Sitting on Abbey road between the former Houses of Parliament Pub and the now Nan-Tate Centre this building is one of a kind. It is the last remaining public bathhouse from the 19th Century left in the town and is a beautiful piece of Victorian architecture, one I hope remains out of harms way for many, many more years to come!

A Lost Medieval Priory Beneath a Grand Country House, Conishead Priory

Conishead Priory today is a well visited attraction, home to Buddhist monks and an impressive and “…very important Gothic revival country house with few peers in the north west” (English Heritage). But beneath the grand manor house and its well kept lawns are the foundations of a 12th Century Augustinian Priory.

In 1160 Gamel de Pennington, a local lord living at Pennington Castle, founded a hospital here for the poor of the Ulverston area. Monks from the Order of St. Augustine ran the hospital and lived within it. They also founded a school here to help educated local children. Later, in 1188, the hospital was raised to the status of a Priory and was dedicated to the Virgin Mary. A holy relic kept at the site was said to be a girdle, a type of waist tie, of Mary.

The newly appointed priory soon was given new land and rights which, in turn, brought conflict with the nearby Furness Abbey. Furness was an ever growing power house at the time and would be unhappy with a new priory taking land and tithes from areas they could potentially cultivate. Disputes between Conishead and Furness carried on until 1338 when Edward II gave a royal charter to Conishead, which confirmed all earlier grants of land and rights. This brought to an end all disputes, although one does wonder if the monks at Furness were ever completely happy with the Priories existence!

In the mid 1500’s, as part of the ‘Act for the Dissolution of the Lesser Monasteries’, Conishead was dissolved. The monks were moved on and the lead from the roofs stripped, melted down and sold. The walls were dismantled as well leaving the site all but empty.

If you visit the site today it is hard to see any evidence of this early priory. No ruined walls are left to give an idea of its size or shape, nor any markings on the ground. But, thankfully, there has been some archaeological excavation at the site. This work found the priory church to be beneath the south lawn of the current manor house and to be in the typical cruciform shape with a 100 foot nave and crossing transepts. The domestic buildings of the priory are believed to be beneath the current manor house, inaccessible for research and confirmation of size and shape.

It is a shame that this religious house of old is no longer in existence or that there is no evidence of it left to see. It must have been a peaceful and beautiful place in it’s time and would have been a wonderful place to visit today if still in some form of existence.

After the priories dissolution the estate was given to a man called Lord Mounteagle who built a country house here from what was left of the Priories stone walls. The estate then went on to pass through various hands until eventually coming into the hands of the Braddylls family. They held Conishead for just under two centuries, living in the country house. In 1821 the house was to undergo a drastic change, a change brought about by Colonel Thomas Braddyll - High Sheriff of Lancashire.

The Colonel hired architect Philip Wyatt to rebuild Conishead to a brand new design. From here the current house was demolished and fifteen years later the brand new Conishead manor house was finished and was, and is, stunning. Wyatt had blended different architectural styles to produce a unique and exciting building. The houses distinctive octagonal towers, which stand at the front of the building, are truly impressive at 100 feet tall and make Conishead stand out amongst the surrounding trees and, indeed, amongst other local stately homes and country houses.

Unfortunately for Colonel Braddyll he was, in 1848, declared bankrupt and he lost his newly built Conishead. The site once again passed through various hands until eventually becoming a hydropathical hotel, soon being known as ‘The Paradise of Furness’. The hotel could hold 240 guests and provided a host of different facilities including a huge library, tennis courts, pleasure boating and salt baths.

Fifty years later and the house changed hands again, this time bought by the Durham Miners Welfare Committee. They turned the site into a convalescent home for Durham coal miners who became ill from there work. During the Second World War the site became a military hospital, the largest in the North, and looked after many thousands of patients over the war years.

Today Buddhist monks own and look after the house, which has become the Manjushri Kadampa Meditation Centre. The former walled garden of the country house now holds a beautifully decorative Buddhist temple and the site is a hub for spiritual activity in the area.

Visiting the site today you can get a sense of the tranquillity that the original Augustinian monks would have had being here and that the many families, hotel guests, miners and Buddhists have experienced here over the centuries. The site is well worth a visit for a cup of tea and a slice of cake in the café, a wander around the impressive garden and grounds and a look inside the temple. But while there be sure to take a look at the grand stately home and think of the humble beginning of the site as a medieval hospital turned priory.

The Remnants of a Lakeland Industry, the Haverthwaite Charcoal Burner's Huts

To the top of Furness and inside the Lake District National Park, just before reaching Windermere, is the quaint village of Haverthwaite, a village best known for its steam railway.

To the south of the village is a large area of woodland known as Haverthwaite Heights. Although now a peaceful, isolated and beautiful area of wildlife this woodland would once have been alive with industry, the industry of charcoal burning.

Charcoal was a product in demand during the Victorian era with many large industries, like steelworks, requiring large amounts of charcoal to burn and produce high heats. Due to this many of the woodlands in the area and across the Lake District would be littered with charcoal burners and the huts they stayed in.

Photo of a charcoal burner's hut  (with charcoal burners)
at Backbarrow a mile or so away.

Charcoal burning takes along time and requires overnight attention so the men who undertook the process would build shelters out of stone and wood often using thatch or turf as a roof. These shelters could then be used as a base while working and somewhere for the men to lay their head down when they had a moment.

The remains of several of such structures can be found dotted across the woodlands on Haverthwaite Heights. These examples were created with a low stone wall as a base which would most likely have then had wooden posts stretching up around the wall to meet in a point creating a tepee structure.This would then be covered with thatch or turf - turf being a better option as it isn't flammable.

Interestingly many of these structures have sizable holes through their walls opposite their entrance. These may well have been for a metal extraction pipe/chimney for a log burner, something to bring a bit of comfort to the otherwise rustic accommodation.

All that now remains of these once well used structures are the low level ruined walls which created the foundation of the wooden structure above. They are a wonder to stumble across and certainly evoke an image in ones mind of days long gone when the men, in their waist coats and flat caps, faces blackened from the charcoal and soot, would emerge from their huts to check their wood burn. Producing masses of charcoal ready to be sold to the steel works or the iron furnaces, working long hours to make ends meet and provide for their families. It certainly can't have been an easy life but I am sure it had many joys.

Several footpaths run through Haverthwaite Heights but I found the best walk was to park up in near by Backbarrow, walk under the railway, through a small tunnel, and head up onto the top of the heights to descend down onto Lanes End, the charcoal burner's huts being found as you make your descent. There is a relatively steep ascent but it is certainly well worth the effort of climbing, not only to find the huts on the way down but for the stunning views from the heights.

A beautiful building gutted by fire, the House of Lords pub, Barrow

Sat on Abbey Road, which stretches through the centre of Barrow-in-Furness, stands a beautiful Victorian building. Built in 1870-71 the building served as a working mens club and later went on to become a public house called Lords Tavern or the House of Lords.

Image Courtesy of Google Maps (https://www.google.co.uk/maps/)

The building was designed by architect HA Darbishire. Derbishire served as the architect to the Peabody Trust from 1864 to 1885. The Peabody trust was set up by an American man, George Peabody, who had gained an affection for London. The trusts aim was to, in London, "ameliorate the condition of the poor and needy of this great metropolis, and to promote their comfort and happiness".

This charitable goal must have been something Darbishire was passionate about as much of his work, even outside of the trust and the capital, aimed to promote the welfare of others. The designing of a social club for working men, such as that in Barrow, is a natural fit for this philanthropic architect.

The building is exquisite with its large windows, ornate architectural features and cute oval dormer windows projecting out of the steep roof. The whole place looks grand, impressive and slightly gothic. It surely is a fine building on the streets of Barrow.

Sadly, just a few weeks ago, this building was nearly lost to a large, destructive and harrowing fire. The fire ripped through the property destroying the roof, causing walls to collapse and nearly  condemning this edifice, which has stood 146 years.

Luckily this may not be the end for this fine building, it may have life after the fire but only time will tell. 

It is always a saddening affair when something like this happens. Fire is so destructive and in an instant it can nearly destroy a part of our local history. But it does shine a spotlight on the need to look after these wonderful buildings. Not to let them fall in to disrepair or be left empty and abandoned. These buildings were built to be used, built to serve a purpose and it is a crying shame for them to be left to rot and for inevitably something like this to happen.

We are all guilty of ignoring these buildings, we see them every day, they become part of the background, something nice but something we don't take time to think about. But maybe we should all spend a bit more time looking at these old structures, seeing them for their beauty, their design and for what they are - places to be used, to be admired and loved, places to create safe havens for all.

Furness Ghost Stories pt2 - Halloween Special!

In our 2013 Halloween Special we took a look at several spooky tales from the Furness Peninsula, now, three years later, we will take another look into the mysterious side of this beautiful area with even more ghost stories! So turn the lights off and let's get started...

PLUMPTON HALL, nr ULVERSTON

THE PLUMPTON DOBBY

Plumpton Hall just outside of Ulverston is a lovely 17th Century manor house but it is believed that a manor would have been here since the 1500s. With such a long history there are of course some ghost stories surrounding the property. One of the most notable is that of the Haunted Lantern, which I will speak of shortly, but first lets take a look at the spooky, yet sadly defunct, story of the Plumpton Dobby!

The Whitehaven News printed an article in 1899 which told of 'A Genuine Ghost: Caught on Christmas Eve' at Plumpton Hall. The tales of a haunted room had long been know at Plumpton, a room where the horrible sounds of chains clanking, shrieks and groans which would scare even the most hardy of folk. The room was so famous that many were desperate to spend a night in the room. The ghost was said to be so terrifying that the owner of the farm only charged a small rent from the tenant. One year though two servants from a near by farm were walking home on Christmas Eve when they spotted the fabled ghost; white from head to toe with a grinning human skull, groaning loudly. Un-deterred the two pursued the ghost. They followed it through some woodland until suddenly the ghost disappeared. Curious? The two ran forward to where the ghost had been to discover a hole. Inside the hole was a head shaped turnip lantern with a candle with in it, chains and a white sheet with, not so surprisingly, the farmer of Plumpton Hall wrapped up inside it. After all that the Plumpton Dobby was in fact the farmer trying to, no doubt, make a bob or two by creating a terrifying ghost!

THE HAUNTED LANTERN OF PLUMPTON HALL

Another interesting tale from Plumpton is that the hall possesses a haunted brass lamp which will always find its way home should it be removed from the building.

The brass lamp was said to have washed up on shore from the wreck of a ship from the Spanish Armada (although experts have now said that it is much more recent in date). For many a year the lantern has hung in the hall and often lit to help guide travellers across the sands. It has also been the centre of some mystical behaviour and if ever it is removed from the hall it always finds its way home and is discovered hanging back in it's rightful place, even when extreme lengths are gone to to remove it; like the time it was sealed inside a barrel and thrown out to sea.

Who knows what is going on with the lamp and why it is so determined to remain in the hall! Is it paranormal or is it just a fanciful tale? I'll let you be the judge of that.

DALTON-IN-FURNESS

A SINISTER SOUND INSIDE THE OLD POLICE STATION

Many years ago now myself, my brother and some friends had the opportunity to stay the night in the Old Police Station and Courthouse in Dalton. At the time the site was being renovated into a cafe and apartments and the place was, especially at night, quite spooky!

We were set to sleep in a small room to the front of the building but during the night we went for a wander around in the pitch black. Eventually we ventured into the Police Inspectors house, which is attached to the station, and were situated in a large room on the first floor. Whilst in the room some loud and strange noises started to emanate from the floor above us. Prolonged scraping noises were clear to hear, it sounded like someone dragging heavy furniture across the floor, or something more sinister. All in the room were, quite reasonably, scared and panicked about this. We were the only ones in the building at the time, what on earth could be making this sound!? It carried on for a while until seeming to stop. We built up some courage and, slowly, moved up the stairs to the room which the noise had come from.

As we entered we were met with a large empty room. No one was in there, nothing was there which would obviously explain the sound and everything was a little eerie. To this day we don't know what caused that strange and scary sound. All we do know though is that when the station was still in use the wife of one of the Police Inspectors had tragically fallen on a set of stairs while taking food to the prisoners. This fall killed the woman and some may say that her spirit still haunts the station. As we were in what was once her house who's to say that the noise we heard wasn't from her long dead spirit?

 

FURNESS ABBEY / ABBOTS WOOD

A RECENT, MYSTERIOUS, SIGHTING OF A MONK

It was the 14th of September 2014 when two women were walking near the abbey, they stopped for a moment to enjoy a view across the ancient ruins towards the abbot's house when they noticed something a little strange. There was some movement in the woodland behind the abbot's house, they looked closely and there was a hooded figure, "Oh god, it's a monk!" one of the ladies gasps. The figure wore white robes with a black scapula and hood, the typical look of a Cistercian monk. The figure stood for a moment before walking a little to the right and stopping again, it looked out over the abbey before moveing away into the bushes.

The ladies weren't to worried at this point as they thought it was probably one of the Iron Shepherds, a local living history group, but they still decided to go and have a look where they had seen the hooded vision. They rushed up the hill and into the woods. When they arrived there was nothing,, no sign of anyone, the woods was eerily empty save two ladies with toddlers on the road ahead. Slightly puzzled they went in search of the Iron Shepherds but they were nowhere to be found, and as they later found out hadn't even been in the area that day.

The ladies went to see where the figure had been, as they arrive though they start to feel cold and the hairs stand up on the back of their necks, nothing was around. They decided to leave a tissue on the fence where they had seen the monk and wandered back down to the roadside where they had originially been stood. As they looked up once again they are met with a completely different scene, the whole area looks different from before as if they had been looking at a completely different place or, indeed, time!

To this day the ladies do not know what they witnessed that afternoon but it certainly is something that will remain with them always.

A 1930's BOY MEETS A MONK

In the Autumn of 1934 a young butchers boy was cycling through Abbots Wood towards the road having made a delivery. Suddenly he heard a strange noise and the temperature dramatically dropped. He skidded, came to a halt and hopped off his bike. Looking up the boy was confronted with a mysterious figure, a figure in long robes, a monk! Petrified he scrambled back onto his bike and raced off down the hill to get away.

The boy maintained this story for the rest of his life until his passing at the age of 81. The incident must have been truly terrifying!

THE FURNESS FELLS

THE CLAIFE CRIER

This tale is from a little further up into the Furness Fells at Claife Heights on the west side of Windermere but relates to the monastic site of Furness.

Many years ago now a ferryman, quite new to the job, was shored up on the east side of Windermere at Ferry Nab awaiting passengers to take over the mere. It was a dark and stormey night with not many people to aid when cries from across the lake started to echo over the water; "Boat! Boat!". The ferry man was quick to head out, if slightly reluctant, and rowed off over the water to the west. He was gone for sometime. Awaiting passengers started to gather on the east shore when the ferry man returned. All awaiting were surprised to see that he had no passengers. When he finally made it back to shore the ferry man was so terrified he couldn't speak and had gone mad. He could not say what had happened whilst he was at Claife but the incident must have frightened him so as a few days later he passed away.

Following this faitful night more cries of "Boat! Boat!" were heard but no ferryman was brave enough or foolish enough to listen and all stayed moored on the east. Eventually the cries got to much and were loosing the ferrymen business so a monk from Lady Holme Island was called to exorcise whatever spirit lay to the west. The monk duely responded and performed an exorcism, he banished the Claife Crier, as the spirit had become known, to a quarry in the area, now known as Claife Crier Quarry, ‘until men should walk dryshod across the lake’.

The Crier is believed to be that of a Monk from Furness Abbey who's job was to save the souls of deborched women in the area. He fell for one of his clients, a lady of Claife, and one day followed her back to her home at the heights, she then regected him. The monk was so distraught that he cried and wailed until eventually dropping dead. His spirit then lingered and continued to cry out eventually calling out for "Boat! Boat!".

Although apparently exorcised the Claife Crier is still said to be roaming the heights and has often been heard crying out across the lake to this day as the night draws in...

I hope you have enjoyed this spooky special and haven't been too scared. If you want to read some more ghostly stories from Furness then do take a look at our 2013 Halloween Special and until next time, sleep well!

Victorian Emergency Services Series - Ulverston

Today we take Emergency Services like hospitals, the police and the fire brigade for granted. They are engrained in our modern world, if we need them they are there and we can always rely on them. Back in the Victorian Era though things were very different. In this post we conclude our series on Victorian Emergency Services by looking at Ulverston.

Town Jails and Police Station

The Town Gaol

One of the earliest law enforcement sites in Ulverston is, and was, tucked down a side ally now known as Smithy Close, just off of King Street. This building was used as the Town Gaol (jail) where people found under the influence were placed to sober up. At the time this building was used anyone found committing a more serious crime would have been sent to Lancaster for trial.

By 1836 Ulverston had a new custom build Town Jail, often referred to as the 'Black Hole' by locals, to fulfill the need for a police station. This lock up was situated on The Gill, not that you would know today, a toilet block now sits where the jail used to be. The jail was a square building standing alone in the middle of the Gill. It held three cells, at about 6 feet by 3 feet, where wrong doers would be imprisoned. Above the cells were living space and bedrooms, this is most likely where a Police Officer would have lived. It can't have been the most pleasant place to live but needs must when you are a Victorian Policeman.

Several years later and land was bought on Neville Street to build a new, larger, Police station. The new station  opened in 1888 having been designed by local Architect James W Grundy. Grundy was also responsible for some proposed developments to the Town Jail, planning to add a new living area. The new Police Station was much bigger than anything the town had had before, standing taller and looking much grander. Inside the building, just through the main door, there was a Superintendents Office to the left with a Clerks Office to the right. Beyond this was a passage leading to 4 large cells, awaiting the detention  of criminals from Ulverston streets. As well as these rooms there was also a Constables Parade Room, where constables would be briefed before going on duty, two bedrooms upstairs with living quarters in separate buildings to the rear. This Station had everything a growing Victorian Police Force would need to carry out its work. Before this the town, much like Barrow and Dalton, was making do with small lock ups and one manned stations. As towns grew and the population of Furness rose, more stations of this size were needed to handle the rise in crime.

The Police Station is still in use by the Ulverston constabulary and is one of the only Victorian built stations in Furness that is still in use today. How much longer it will remain in use is uncertain at this time but one hopes that this building has a long life ahead of it.

Ulverston Cottage Hospital

In 1873 a brand new Cottage Hospital opened on Newton Street, near the Swan Inn. The hospital was built to mainly cater for casualty patients. It did later, in 1906, take on surgical cases and develop a maternity department. The hospital was funded by voluntary contributions, as was the norm in Victorian England, and fundraising were undertaken through annual parades that took place in the town centre. The hospital building was designed, like the later Police Station, by James W Grundy, in 1871. The building contained two wards able to hold three beds, a convalescent ward and a special ward. It also had a small surgery, nurse's room and operation room. Upstairs there was a room for children's cots, presumably to hold any sick children brought to the establishment, along with two bedrooms. Everything was tailored for the healing and care of the ill and wounded, from the purpose built wards to the large exterior garden. Of course along with healing, unfortunately, also comes death. A reminder of this stood to the rear of the hospital in a separate out-building. This building was the mortuary chamber. Here anyone who passed away in the hospital would be brought for autopsy.

Today the only evidence left of this hospital is a wall and fence on Newton Street, which the hospital would have stood behind. The hospital building itself has, sadly, been replaced by housing.

The hospital served the town until 1971 when it was demolished. A new hospital soon opened in Stanley Street with in an old workhouse building. This building was also demolished at a later date to make way for a new purpose built hospital, which still stands on the site today.

Fire Station

Sitting on The Ellers is a small building currently being used by the St. Johns ambulance, but back in 1886 this building was just opening as Ulverston's first, purpose built, Fire Station! Armed with an old manual engine the Fire Brigade would set out to tackle the fires of Ulverston town. Some years after the Brigade purchased a brand new Greenwich Gem fire engine. The engine went through several testings, one memorable one being witnessed by Councillors and locals alike. This test included the engines water jet blasting 360 gallons of water a minute at the walls of the Workhouse on Stanley Street. This must have been quite a display for the onlookers, possibly something they had never seen before. A small boiler at the rear of the machine powered the engines water jet. The Fire Station on The Ellers continued to serve the town for many many years, under going several alterations and extensions in the 1900s, until eventually closing in 1974 when a new station was built just next door.

Conclusion

The Victorian period really saw the birth of modern emergency services. The expansion of the police force and fire brigades brought to the fore well run services ready to cope with whatever was thrown at them. Criminals could be apprehended sooner, fires could be fought quicker and more efficiently. The building of hospitals to aid the public saw an advance in medical care and treatment; medicines would become more and more accessible. People injured in accidents would be treated quicker and in a safer environment, which led to less deaths and longer lives. These hospitals also paved the way for the welfare state and eventually the NHS we know today. Without the Victorian advances in emergency services Britain could be a very different place today! 

Site of the Town Jail, now a toilet block.

A Chapel, A Hotel and A Lost Railway Station - A Walk By Furness Abbey

In our previous post Fading Faces and Medieval Quarries we took a look at the interesting features in the Amphitheatre next to Furness Abbey. In this post we will look at the other intriguing sites and features that lie elsewhere around the Abbey complex by taking a little walk.

To the West of the Abbey itself is Manor Road, this is where we start our walk. As you go along Manor Road, towards the Abbey, thick sandstone walls tower up above you on either side of the track below. These imposing remains are that of the West Gate, one of but a few entrances to the Abbey complex. Looking closely at these ruins you can see the indentations where the Medieval gates would once have been. Looking up you can also see evidence of a first floor above the gates. There are spaces for windows and/or doors. Quite how one would enter the room above is unclear, there isn't any remaining stone stairs but maybe a wooden stair case or ladders were used to reach the first floor. Extending off of these impressive ruins is the boundary wall that stretches around the entire Abbey precinct.

As you carry on along Manor Road you reach the Abbey itself, at this point we will take a left and walk along Abbey Approach. Not long down this road you will see a quaint little building sitting just inside the iron fence surrounding the Abbey. This is the Victorian ticket office where tourists of the period, and locals alike, would enter the ruins, paying at this office. This little hut has become as synonymous with the Abbey as the ruins. Even though it is such a small building it does have a fire place to provide heat for whoever was sitting inside, you can see the chimney on the roof giving evidence to this. Imagine what  it must have looked like with smoke billowing from the chimney as people dressed in their finery walked by into the Abbey.

Carrying on along the road you come to the Abbey car park and next to this on either side of the road are the remains of the Abbey's main gate. Although there are only low ruins left this must have been an impressive building in it's day holding several gates within. It appears as if there would have been some sort of three gate system which visitors to the Abbey would have to pass through. There are doorways between each gate presumable for visitors to leave through having dismounted their horse or left their carriage. On the right of the road, heading away from the Abbey, are the best preserved and most visible parts of the ruin but to the left, hidden amongst the undergrowth, is even more remains of this building. There appears to be at least one large room expanding away from the road which one would imagine lay people might be stationed to assist any visitors attempting to enter by this gate. It is a shame that these covered parts of the ruin aren't more exposed for us all to see but at the same time the fact they are covered could well be protecting them. It is also a shame that the modern road runs through the gate house as cars often clip the ruins causing a fair amount of damage.

Past the gatehouse sitting next to the Abbey car park stands the impressive sandstone building known as the Abbey Tavern. What can be seen today is in fact only one wing of what was a much larger building. In the 17th Century the current building wasn't in existence but a similar looking building, although with more decoration, was situated around where the Abbey visitor centre is today. This building was the manor house of the Preston Family. The Prestons left the house by the 19th Century and it remained empty until 1847 when the Furness Railway Company bought it. In Victorian times the Abbey became a hot spot for tourism so when the Railway Company bought the building they transformed it into a hotel which was, unsurprisingly, called the Furness Abbey Hotel. In 1846 the Furness Abbey Railway Station was opened next to the brand new Furness Railway. This station was situated a few meters from the Hotel. By 1862 the Station started receiving passengers from further afield and with this the hotel was extended north to meet with the Station. The Abbey Tavern was part of this extension and was built to mirror the earlier building. The two buildings were joined on their east side by a smaller building running south. If you look at the rear of the Tavern, from the Abbey car park, you can see the roof line of the joining building which is now long gone. Both the Station and the Hotel shut sometime during the 1900s and were both demolished soon after. Of course the North Wing of the Furness Abbey Hotel was left and this is what can be seen today.

Carrying on past the Abbey Tavern we come to some more Medieval ruins, these particular ruins are that of the Abbey's public chapel and associated gates. The precinct wall would have joined the chapel and carried on past the attached gates. The gates, one large for horse drawn carts and one small for humans, allowed access into part of the Abbey complex. Although there was a further wall extending south off of the Chapel to meet with the larger main gate, this was to prevent the general public from getting into the main Abbey

site. The public were aloud into this area though so that they could go to services led by the monks in the Chapel. The monks could enter from a separate door behind the boundary wall. You can freely enter the Chapel ruins today and see the various features with in. The modern road also runs through the arched gateway next to the Chapel. The Chapel and gates are wonderful fragments of history and are great to look around but they only give a taste of what lies inside the Abbey, so why not pop into the Abbey while you are here? 

From the Chapel by the gate we will now head back by the Abbey and when we reach the Manor Road turing we will carry on straight along the Abbey fence. As we go we pass the trackway, on the right, that once led to a quarry, which we spoke of in our Amphitheatre blog. We then reach the Custodian's Cottage, which we also spoke about last time but since then a photo has been obtained by Jackie, who currently runs the cafe there, of a family in front of the Cottage around 1890-1900. We have been given permission to show this image so here it is. Amazing to see a family who once lived in the Cottage. It is reasonable to assume that the man in the picture was in fact a Custodian at the Abbey, as this was the house for Custodians, but, of course, we can't say for certain. Either way it is a lovely photo showing the building in an earlier life.

It is also worth noting that to the front of the Cottage, just before the car park, hidden beneath the ground is a Medieval track way! The track was discovered several years ago when a new cycle path was being put in. Not far beneath the surface was a wide stone cobbled track or road leading in a diagonal direction across the cut of the new cycle path. This track would once have been part of the Abbey complex most likely leading to and from the ancillary buildings that would have once sat in the Amphitheatre. Picture courtesy of Gill Jepson.

From the Cottage we take a right down a footpath which soon crosses the railway. Having crossed the railway we enter a large field of which we will also walk though. In this field is where the Abbey fish ponds once were and part way through the field is the precinct wall cutting it in two. We carry on past the wall along the edge of Mill Beck stream until we reach the three arched Bow Bridge. This bridge was built in the 15th Century and would have carried a packhorse route. This route may well have lead to the Abbey but quite where it would enter the complex is uncertain. There doesn't appear to be a gateway or gate house in the precinct wall in the adjoining field but there could well have been. Because the railway's construction has cut part of the precinct wall out means we will never know for certain what the wall once did in that spot. There may well have been a gate there.

It is at Bow Bridge that we end our little walk around the Furness Abbey site to look at some more of the lesser known features. This area is bursting at the seams with history from Medieval times through to the present. There is no doubt earlier history too but it is less explored by archaeology. Recently though prehistoric flints were found while stabilisation work was being undertaken at the Abbey and in the past a carved metal Viking head as well as a Roman statuette have been found in the area. This may give evidence of earlier occupation in the valley but it is by no means concrete.

Join us next time when we will be taking a look at a Medieval Priory set in the idilic village of Cartmel.

Old Photos of the Furness Abbey Hotel and Station

Left: Furness Abbey Hotel    Right: Furness Abbey Low Station

Left: Furness Abbey with Hotel and Station Behind    Right: Furness Abbey Hotel with Station

Promotional Material for Furness Abbey Hotel showing images of the interior