World War I, the effects in Furness

On the 28th July 1914 the 'Great War' began and was set to have a massive impact across the world, including on the home front here in the towns and villages of Furness.

From 1914 many young men enlisted in the British Army, they left their homes and went off to Europe to fight in the war. Many never returned from the trenches and fields of Europe and that, in turn, left lasting effects on the mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers left grieving at their losses. Death and loss had never been seen on this scale and so many families were left broken because of it. But, that being said, life back at home had to, and did, carry on as normal! Or at least as normal as it could.

To begin with life didn't change too dramatically as men could choose whether or not to enlist meaning many stayed home and carried on working, doing equally patriotic work in local industry. There was no immediate threat of invasion or attack and at the start it was widely believed that it would all be over by Christmas. But by December 1914 it was starting to become clear that this war was going to go on long after the 25th and life wasn't going to stay the same.

Another Christmas would come and go with no end to the blood shed insight. Work had amped up at local industry sites like Vickers shipyard in Barrow who were creating weapons and ammunition for the army when, in 1916, conscription was introduced. The government passed the Military Service Act which specified that single men aged 18-45 were liable to be called for military service unless they were widowed, with children or ministers of religion. Suddenly hundreds of men were being called up for service and local industries were to be left with a much diminished work force. But new measures were taken. Women were called up to work.

Throughout 1916 many young women moved into the area and especially to Barrow to work in the shipyard as munition girls, creating ammunition for the army. These women came to take up the work of the vast amounts of men who were being sent off to Europe. It was at this time that the population of Barrow shot up to its highest point ever with hundreds of women and girls  moving in from across the country. Yet, the town had under half the housing it does today! Due to this there was often a quest for lodging when arriving in the town. A form of billeting was in operation in Barrow where the women were paired off and given a room in locals houses. One would work a shift while the other slept, on returning the next would sleep in the same, warm, bed recently vacated by the other now on shift. A reasonable living in an over crowded town, but each would have to pay 14 shillings a week, even though they only received a pound a week in pay, which didn't leave much to spend on ones self.

Working long and tiring hours (a night shift lasting from 5pm until 7.30 the next morning) munitions girls had little time to relax and have fun but when they did they would go on dates with boyfriends, visit Walney to see the sea (many of the girls coming from cities like Manchester had never seen the sea before) and also play football! Munitions football teams started springing up across the country and Barrow was no different. A Vickers team of 11 was created and played often throughout the war years going up against various teams from across the modern county.

Although being the 'home front' there was some military activity in Furness, particularly on Walney island where there was two military encampment, one known as Hilpsford Fort and one as Fort Walney. The Fort Walney site was operational from 1881 right through the First and Second World Wars. It was improved three years previously to the First World War in 1911 as a better coastal defence. The fort was manned by the Lancashire and Cheshire Royal Garrison Artillery which no doubt would have consisted of some men from the local towns and villages, like Barrow. The fort would have sat in a patch of land that is now half way up Walney golf course, around the current coastguard tower (which once was part of the fort complex). Interestingly if you look at aerial views from today of where the fort was you can still see the faint markings of where the walls used to be. Also note you can see the markings from Medieval ridge and furrow farming around the site too!

Left: Fort Walney from the Air 1940  |  Right: Aerial view of where Fort Walney was today courtesy of Google Maps. 

Hilpsford Fort was based at the very southern tip of Walney island where the Nature Reserve and Gullary is today. This fort was built during 1914 at the start of World War 1 and provided a good amount of jobs for an area in need of labour. It was constructed as an emergency battery and would have held at least one large defensive gun. The fort was dismantled in the 1920's after the war had ended but was re-instated in 1940 during WWII. Evidence of the later fort can still be seen today amongst the gulls and grass of South Walney.

Dotted across Walney there are also three Costal Artillery Searchlight Emplacements which date back to 1914, although they were all modified during World War 2. These emplacements are easily visible today, two situated amongst the golf course (next to the site of Fort Walney) and another situated where Hipsford Fort once was. They are wonderful reminders of the areas military past and of the effects of World War 1 on the area. You can find out a little more about these emplacements on a previous blog post about Remnants of World War II here. Just imagine the men who would have stood in these structures keeping an eye out on the sea incase of invasion. It must have been a long and somewhat dull job and can't have been the easiest thing to do day on day. But if invasion were to happen they would provide early warning and create a first line of defence.

Aerial view from Google Maps
showing the trench layout.

Walney, along with it's forts and emplacements, has had practice trenches built sometime in the early months of World War 1. These trenches were situated in the northern part of Walney near to the coastline. They were used for soldiers to practice in ahead of going out to the Western Front to fight. Exact details of what might have happened in these trenches is uncertain as there is a distinct lack of documented evidence along with many embargoes on Ordnance Survey maps from the time. But suffice to say many of our ancestors from the area could well have trained in these trenches. You can see the layout of the trench system in the picture to the left, they appear in a crenellated design.

On November 11th 1918 peace was finally announced and the war was over.

There is no doubt that the war had a great impact on Furness and its people. Military bases being built formed jobs but also brought concern. Men going to war brought hope but also fear and, of course, heartbreaking sorrow. Women came to the fore with many flocking to towns like Barrow to work but this, in turn, brought a population boom causing new issues for the area.

War is a terrible thing which brings much destruction both physically and emotionally and can leave lasting effects across the planet. Furness, as everywhere in Britain, Europe and the world, felt the effects of World War 1 and things never were quite the same again but life, as ever, went on. 

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"Your Country Needs You"

Below is a short film that was created by myself for a heritage project called One Day in Cumbria, it is a sensitive look at what many young men across Furness were struggling with; whether to enlist or not. Follow Ben as he tries to come to a decision on the 5th December 1914. You can choose whether he enlists or not by watching on YouTube to see what the options were.

Furness Heritage Sites by Night

The heritage sites across Furness are beautiful and captivating by day but of the night they become even more awe inspiring!

In this post I will showcase a variety of images taken at nighttime of different heritage sites from across the area. All these sites can be easily viewed at night and they truly are stunning! So take a moment and enjoy these 5 starry photos.

Birkrigg Stone Circle

A magical site in the day but visiting the ancient stones of a night-time brings a whole new dimension to this amazing place. Well worth a visit if you are willing to brace the cold!

Ulverston Canal

The mile long stretch of water is quite the tranquil setting and it is even more so come the night. Silence takes over with just the faint sounds of night-time wildlife and the lapping of water.

Dalton Castle

This small but imposing Medieval peel tower is a lasting reminder of Dalton's ancient heritage and is a great attraction to look around. Come the night though it seems that little more impressive in front of the star filled sky. 

Gleaston Castle

The ruins of Gleaston Castle that lie in a field just outside the village are lovely by day but by night become something even more enchanting. The stars above, the clouds passing by and the fiery orange glow from the distant towns burning up the horizon! 

Furness Abbey

Furness Abbey is the jewel in the crown of Furness heritage and is stunning, tranquil and dominating in the day but at night it becomes spell binding and magical with stars glistening above and the moon lighting the earthy red stone. You can't enter the site of a night but you can see the ruins from the road that rings around it, that is where this photo was taken from. Although I strongly advise visiting in the day for a proper look around inside.

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The final three sites featured here are attractions or privately owned and thus are not accessible by night. Dalton Castle is open for viewing inside on a selection of days throughout the summer and is certainly worth a look, it can though be viewed from the outside whenever. Furness Abbey is open to view inside on Saturday and Sunday during the winter and 7 days a week in the summer but can be seen from the roadside. Gleaston Castle is privately owned and is not accessible to the public at all but is easily viewed from the road that runs by it.
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All images Copyright © Iron Shepherds Living History/Stuart Appley

A Hill Fort and Farmsteads, Neolithic to Iron Age Urswick and Furness

Urswick today is a quaint little village near to Ulverston but it has had a particularly vivid history of its own. On the outskirts of Urswick village can be found some of the earliest history of the area, a hill fort and Iron Age farmstead!

To the north of Great Urswick, sitting on a hill overlooking the land below, stands Skelmore Heads Hill Fort. In the picture above you can see the hill fort sat upon the limestone outcrops that adorn the top of the hill. You can see where earth has been lain to create a flattened platform, this platform is roughly 1.4 hectares in size. An earth bank and timber fence would have surrounded the platform creating a form similar to that typically associated with a fortification.

Skelmore Heads is thought to date back to the Neolithic period, around 4000 BC - 2500 BC, but would have been used and updated through to the Bronze and possibly Iron Age. Large sites like this were often used for centuries, which may give an indication to their importance.

Although called a hill fort this site in reality was no such thing. It is believed that it was in fact a site of ritual importance for the early inhabitants of Furness. The enclosed platform has no evidence of buildings or habitation. It appears that the site was used for ritual purposes, a place where offerings could be placed or buried in the ground or even inserted into the limestone outcrops. It is also speculated that gatherings and celebrations could have been held here. It seems that high lands, like the hills surrounding Urswick, were important to prehistoric man, as this is where they had their ritual and burial sites. Birkrigg common, which we spoke about previously, was a large burial and ritual site that sits on the next hilltop along from Skelmore Heads.

Roughly 1 mile south west of Skelmore Heads is a large area of mounds and ditches forming the site known as Urswick Stone Walls, an ancient Bronze to Iron Age farmstead or township.

This site is hidden in plain sight really, it is situated next to a public footpath, not far from a road entering Urswick, but many may walk right by the heritage at their feet. It is, admittedly, tricky to spot some of the features that make up the township but with a bit of moving around you will start to find the curving walls that create the enclosures.

The township was built atop a natural limestone outcrop, much like the hill fort. In the picture above you can see the limestone outcrop visible to the left, just next to this you can make out the raised embankment sweeping around into the distance behind, as well as running across to the right in the foreground. In the far distance you can just about make out the hill fort also, on top of the hill above the trees.

The section pictured would have been the living area of the township with several round houses inside with a series of walls partitioning the different clusters of houses. There are six known dwellings in the farmstead but there may well have been more that have yet to be unearthed. The whole living section of the site would have had a wall surrounding it, made from the local limestone with a large wooden palisade adorning the top of it. An image showing the remains of these walls can be seen bellow.

The houses of the town would have been the typical Bronze and Iron Age roundhouse design, with curved stone built walls and thatched roofs. One of the houses here was a lot bigger than the rest with a total diameter of about 12 metres. The rest had diameters somewhere in the region of 8-9 metres each. This large house was no doubt that of the chieftain or main family.

To the south west of the dwellings is a square enclosure where livestock would have been kept. This is thought to be a later addition to the site but is hard to determine exactly when it was added.

In the Bronze and early Iron Age livestock were often kept inside the houses with the people. It might seem odd now but the animals would have provided well-needed warmth, they would also have been kept safe inside the house rather than outside. It is not until later that enclosures, pens and even buildings were introduced to hold the animals.

Running alongside Stone Walls is a vein of iron ore with a length of around 400 metres. The vein has been quarried from the surface; this is clearly evident from the large ditches left today, which suggests that iron smelting was taking place at or near to the site sometime in its lifetime.

Impressive as Stone Walls is it was not the only settlement of its type in the area, although it is the biggest of those known. Roughly 1 kilometre south east of Great Urswick is another Iron Age settlement. It is situated in a field just off the road leading from Birkrigg Common to the village of Scales. The field is accessible by footpath from the roadside if you want to go in search of the site. This settlement is not as large or as grand as Stone Walls but the earthwork remains are clear as day (see below). There is a large ditch with a mound protruding from the ground creating the living enclosure. Within the enclosure are the visible outlines of two round houses, although there most certainly would have been more.

Another known settlement of this type was near Stainton with Adgarley. The site here has been recorded as being of a substantial size and it yielded many finds dating to the Bronze Age, such as bronze axe heads. Unfortunately much of this large site has been lost leaving little evidence. Having said that though there is one part of it, or what may have been a later edition next to the original site, still intact today. The site that is left appears to have a curving outer mound or wall, much like the other two sites, and has the remains of three round houses within (see below). There could also be a square animal enclosure to the southwest but it is hard to tell without archeological excavation. The original, larger, site showed evidence of iron smelting much like at Stone Walls.

All three sites are similar in the respect that they are built next to or into limestone outcrops. This is no doubt to aid in the construction of the settlements. Some utilise the limestone in forming part of the enclosure, others may sit on top of it to provide sturdy foundations. Or it could simply be that they are built next to or on top of limestone because, well, that was the stone that was around them.

It’s hard to say for certain exactly what is going on at these wonderful sites, as they haven’t been fully examined by modern archeology. Some of them, such as Stone Walls, have been excavated in part during the 19^th-early 20^th century when little was really known about prehistory. This means many of their secrets have yet to be brought to light!

I, for one, would love for more work to be undertaken at all these settlements.  To gain a better understanding of the people who lived here during prehistory and to see artifacts used in their every day lives uncovered for all to see would be a wonder to behold.

The prehistoric periods of Furness history are little explored and thus little known about and that is a true shame.

These plans are estimates of how the settlements may have been laid out. Mapped using aerial images with visible marks as well as trips to the sites, plotting out the walls and buildings then drawing over the aerial images. The Urswick Stone Walls plan is more accurate as the marks are very visible and there has been archeological surveys done to produce similar plans.