A river runs through the mill: We do not idly waste our time.

Monday, 17 October 2011

We do not idly waste our time.

Mavis Gibson a volunteer at Heron Corn Mill had heard of a photograph of 2 girls, Lily and Grace in a rowing boat on Lupton Mill sometime before WW2.
Grace and husband John have retired to Sandside, Grace was happy to talk on film about her memories of life in the mill. Grace talked enthusiastically of hard work and happy times before and during the war of grain arriving from Liverpool docks at 3 am, rising, unloading and starting the drying and turning of the grain. Graces memories of mill life will be part of the archive -the photograph we have yet to track down. I asked Grace if she had any memories of songs or poems and she immediately recited this.

We do not idly waste our time

As we lifes tasks fulfill

The flowing river is not lost

If it but turns the mill.

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Place and river names and meanings

The language of the place names of Westmorland is that of the Northern English dialect region.
Ackenthwaite, Accyngthwayt 1292, Akenthwaite 1577, Acquenthwaite 1669, Acconthwaite 1718, Ackenthwaite 1753 some confusion about spellings -growing with oaks.
Aikbank, Ayk[e]bank 1292, Aickbanke 1639, Oak tree bank.
Audland Far, old piece of cultivated land.
Badger Gate 1720, baggere 'hawker' gata 'road
Barkhouse Beck bark-house 'tanning shed'
Beela affluent of the Kent, spellings include Betha 1190, Byth water 1540, Byth 1577, Bethey 1647, the Bela 1702, River Beela 1754, River Beetha 1770. The river is now called Bela, by corruption as it seemeth', the origin of the late change to Beela is obscure, but maybe due to the influence of assimilated forms like Byleghton for Leighton Beck.
Beetham It is possible, though by no means certain that some occasional spellings for Beetham namely Biedun, Biethum, Beuthum, Buethum as against the regular Bethum are vestiges of Old Norse.
Brunthwaite, 1823 -thwayte 1600, clearing, bruni 'burning'
Blea Beck headwater of Lupton Beck in Lupton and Mansergh ' The blue or dark stream'
Blease Hall, Low and Over Blease le blec 1420, le Bleez 1547, Blease 1592, les Bleselandes 1540, bare spot.
Cams Gill 1686, named from local family Thomas Camm -gill 'ravine'.
Capon Crag 1857 1857, capon - hen.
Capplethwaite Old Norse kapall 'nag'
Cockrigg, Cock[e]rigg 1608-1631 'cock, woodcock'.
Crosscrake Croskrake 1275-9, Crossecrack 1310, Crostcrake 1547. 'Kraki's cross inversion.
Deepthwaite Depethwaite,-thwayte 1547.
Ellers 1762, elri 'alder -tree'
Eskrigg End, Eskrigge 1595 Ash tree ridge.
Farleton Farelton 1086, Farleton 1190 Faerela's farmstead or fern hill or clearing.
Fall Beck affluent of Peasey Beck, aptly named stream with a rapid fall.
Fleet 1848 here in the sense small stream.
Garths 1608 enclosure.
Goose Green, Goosgrene 1650.
Halfpenny 1815 pasture.
Hang Bridge 1647 Hang[e]bridge meaning not clear but could be the verbal stem hang 'hanging' referring to the construction of the bridge; but the hill could be a 'hill with a gallows' and the bridge one leading to it.
Haverbrack Scandinavian root brack-brekka is a slope where oats [haver]are grown.
Hellgill Beck beck with flat stones or stream issuing from a cave like recess.
Hincaster Hennecastre 1086, Henkastre 1210-20, Henecastre 1237-1310, Hanecastre 1260, Hinkaster 1301, Heyncaster 1417, Hyndcastell 1544, fortification haunted by wild hens.
Holmescales Holm[e]schal 1279, 'The sheilings belonging to Holme' ,Hlomescales was formerly in Holme parish.
Hutton Roof 'Farmstead near the end of a hill', Roof is a feudal affix but the person whose name it was has not been identified, changes in spelling and researched dates as follows, riof 1090-7, Roph[e] 1161-84, riwe 1184-1200, rue 1210-1235, Ruff[e] 1256, Roue 1260, Roef 1276, Rouf 1287, Reof 1355, Roof 1376.
Kitridding, 1865 Kittridinge 1688, rydding'clearing'
Mill Bridge Miln Bridges 1731, Millbridges 1750.
Milnthorpe 'Hamlet with a Mill', the Miln of Milnthorpe earliest ref 1460,Milthorp 1770.
Milton 1777, named from the mill.
Newbiggin, Newbig[h]ing 1190-1275, the new building.
New Hutton Hoton 1274, to distinguish it from Old Hutton.
Nook, Nook[e] 1650, nook of land.
Old Hutton- Hotun 1086, Hutton 1558, 'Old' to distinguish it from New Hutton 'Farmstead on the hill or spur of land'
Overthwaite Orfurth, Overfurth1575, Overforth[e] 1610, Orforth 1694, Overthwaite 1612 also Overforth 1639- 'upper clearing'.
Peasey Beck affluent of the Bela in Preston Patrick -probably a polite adaption of Middle English pyssen 'urinate'.
Popplemire Lane, popple, poppermire 1836, bubbling spring.
Puddle Mire 1729, Puddlemire, pond puddle.
Rowell, Rouhol 1335, Rowel[l]1547, probably rough hollow.
Saint Sunday's Beck affluent of the Bela in Stainton and New Hutton, also St Sunandays, St Sunday[e]s Bridge in New Hutton.Named from St Sunday, a name for St Dominic which arose from a confusion of the Saint's name in Latin.
Sealford Farm, Beck and Lane Seylforth 1517, Sealford 1865-ford near the willow.
Sellet Hall and Hill Sallat brow 1675, -borow 1727, Sellet Hall 1679.
Skettlegill 1857 skittle beck.
Spital Bridge 1825, named from Spital -hospital.
Stang 1857 pole.
Stainton Steintun, Steynton 1086, Stayntun 1180-1200 Staynton 1204-15. Stone farmstead.

Storth le Storth 1534, the Storthe 1542, ' plantation land overgrown with brushwood'.
Strickley 1823 stirk clearing.
Summerlands summer pasture.
Thrang End, Throng End 1845 narrow place.
Tosca, Toskerth 1231, Toscar 1466, Tosca Beck and Bridge 1809 'sheiling'.
Urchin Rigg, 1815, urchon- hedgehog.
Viver, Hencastre Viver [a pool], Viuere 1540, vivere 'pond': this was a pool on the Hincaster boundary.
Wath Sutton Bridge , Warth, Wett -Sutton Bridge 1799, 'ford'
Westmorland district of those living West of the moors, the moors being the moorlands of the North Yorkshire Pennines.
Whasset Whassheed 1360, Whassed 1446, Whasset[t] 1524, Wasset[e] 1534, Wasseit nyh Betham 1537 probably sharp pointed headland.
Information above is from:-
The Place Names of Westmorland A H Smith Cambridge University Press 1967

BOOKS

Books can be found in Kendal Records Office, Kendal Library local collection and The Armitt Library Ambleside.

Water Powered Mills of South Westmorland by J Somervell 1930 this formative text lists the evidence of mills on the Bela river at that time, they are the starting point for the project research.

Kendal's Port by Leonard Smith 2009
A formative link in the trade and supply of raw materials and finished goods from the hinterland and mills of South Lakeland to the ports of Lancaster and Liverpool and beyond.

The Chronicles of Milnthorpe Roger K Bingham 1987
Roger is the Chairman of the trustees of Heron Corn Mill, his book is an in depth look at Milnthorpe with useful references to milling.
Shattering Gindstone Accident p167

Dobson Family Combmakers compiled by Rupert Nicholson.

The Annals of Beetham and Hale by Rob Hilton member of the Carlisle Advisory Committee 1937, lists millers and victuallers.

Watermills of Cumbria Mike Davies-Shiel 1978
p116 Heron Corn Mill.

The Gunpowder Mills of Westmorland and Furness P N Wilson 1963/4

Westmorland Notebook Vol 1 1888-1889
relates The Great Flood of 1771 p 310
At a place called Beetham graves were washed open........

Westmorland Agriculture 1800-1900
The food of the farmers p8
Crops grown in S Westmorland p20
Railways and Cattle Markets p46
Milnthorpe Markets and Fairs p129

A history of Cumberland and Westmorland Bill Rollinson
Milnthorpe Port p103
Gunpowder p115

Life and Tradition in the Lake District William Rollinson

Bygone Cumberland and Westmorland Daniel Scott
Fairies p137

Milnthorpe J F Curwen Titus Wilson 1930
Port and sands p74
Birketts Farm- about the port p77

History of Westmorland Nicolson & Burn vol 1 1847
Beetham Sands p330
Bela River p316
Beetham Hall & Tower, Dallam Tower

A river runs through the mill

Monday, 17 October 2011

We do not idly waste our time.

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