Past & Present

Refinement fast to follow after arrival of cotton

Cotton roller machine graphic When Edward Hughes wrote in 1965 about the calico printing industry in Carlisle he stated, “unfortunately a search for further evidence as to the names and number of firms engaged in this branch has so far been unrewarding”.

Last updated 6 January 2012
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

When Cumbria had it made

When the lease for Woodbank Printworks was offered for sale in the Cumberland Pacquet in August 1797, it stated, “the buildings consist of a bleaching house, dye house for six coppers, a large three story printing house with a large water wheel, a large drying house and about 42 acres of bleaching grounds.” The advertiser added, “the buildings are all new and in complete repair.”

Last updated 23 December 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Is Carlisle tram car renovation back on track?

In The Cumberland News obituary for Kitty Charters in February 2007 it explains that, when she was a child, her father built a bungalow at Sandy Brow, Rosley, which was “a dwelling with a difference”.

Last updated 16 December 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Sons of a gun: Ancestry of a Cumbrian firearms family

An advertisement on a commercial map of Carlisle, published in 1913, is for “DH Wallas, Gun, Cartridge and Fishing Tackle Manufacturer” of King Street, Wigton and Blackfriars Street, Carlisle, which had been “established over a century.”

Last updated 9 December 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Many lives of the Irish Gate in Carlisle's West Walls

The Caldew Gate, sometimes called the Calder Tower and later the Irish Gate, was one of two gates in the West Walls of Carlisle.

Last updated 2 December 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Remarkable friendships of artistic curate

Originally it was thought the Rev Joseph Wilkinson was born in Carlisle but research by Donald Cook proves that he was born at Whitechapel, London, in 1765, where his father (also Joseph) was in business.

Last updated 25 November 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Cumbria's part in Churchill's daring escape

Briefly reported in the West Cumberland Times in March 1907 was the meeting of Winston Churchill “in the lobby of the House of Commons with one of the men who helped after he escaped from Pretoria”.

Last updated 11 November 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Carlisle prison with a grisly past

In February 1815 the Carlisle Journal reported: “Workmen began to take down the Scotch Gate, the removal of which will be a very material accommodation to that part of the city.”

Last updated 4 November 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

When Cumbrian villages went off the rails forever

In September 1906 the West Cumberland Times suggested that High Blaithwaite was “perhaps the most antiquated station in Cumberland”.

Last updated 28 October 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Carlisle churchman remembered through rare cups found at car boot sale

At a Portsmouth car boot sale earlier this year were three mid-18th century wine glasses which were offered for a total of £1.20p.

Last updated 21 October 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Carlisle Cathedral cupboard reveals its vested interests

A lavishly illustrated book by William Bell Scott (1811-1890), a Newcastle-based artist, has the inscription on the fly-leaf “Presented for the library of the Society of Antiquities of London by Philip Henry Howard of Corby Castle”.

Last updated 14 October 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

On the prosperous side of the Carlisle street

In the Georgian period, Castle Street was largely residential, Dr John Heysham in 1787 listing 731 adults in the street: 320 males and 411 females.

Last updated 7 October 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Settle and Carlisle Railway: Dangerous work, if you could get it

While an Act for the construction of the Settle and Carlisle (S and C) Railway was passed in July 1866 little more was done until an agreement over running rights on the London and North Western Railway made the line unnecessary.

Last updated 30 September 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk

Rehabilitation of central Carlisle site

When HM Prison Carlisle closed in March 1922, the Carlisle Journal reported “a few years hence, when monetary conditions are easier, the reopening of the prison will be considered and in the meantime the building will remain the possession of the Government”.

Last updated 23 September 2011
Published by http://www.cumberlandnews.co.uk