Blindcrake
Encyclopedia
Blindcrake is a village and civil parish
within the Isel Valley, in the Lake District National Park
and in the Allerdale
district of Cumbria
, England
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 287. The village is some four miles north-east of Cockermouth
off the old roman road to Carlisle (A595) and above the River Derwent
. It is 12 miles from Keswick
and, along the A66, it is 29 miles from the M6 motorway at Penrith. It lies near the northern-most boundary of the Lake District
National Park. The parish includes Blindcrake village and the hamlets of Redmain, Isel and Sunderland, The whole parish lies within the Lake District National Park and, since 2001, Blindcrake village http://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/index/planning/conservation_areas/blindcrake.htm is one of 23 designated conservation areas of the National Park Planning Authority. This status is largely based on its mediaeval strip field pattern which is described as "undoubtedly the finest example of its type in the Lake District". The parish boundary is approximately defined by the A595 in the west, by the Lake District National Park boundary in the north, by a line 2 km to the west of the A591 in the east and by the River Derwent in the south. It is one of the smallest parishes within the Allerdale district of Cumbria. The parish has a website providing local information and lists of events.
The village is situated in an elevated position (max 558 ft; 170m) on the south facing slopes of the Isel Valley, giving the area panoramas across the Derwent Valley and to the Skiddaw and Buttermere fells of the Lake District.
The 11th Century parish church, St Michael and All Angels
, that serves the community is located in Isel, about a mile south-east of Blindcrake on the banks of the Derwent. It holds a harvest festival. Isel School that served the community since 1674 (now a private home) is located halfway between the two villages. The main village pub, the Ghyll Yeat Inn, was formerly the toll house to the Isel Estate but closed as a pub in 2000 and is now a private home.
Isel Hall is the centre of the Isel Estate and stands on a steep slope above the River Derwent, with its south facing terraces overlooking the river. The oldest part is the Border pele tower, a fortified structure built around 1400 on the site of a much older structure probably destroyed when the Scots raided Cockermouth in 1387. The house was lived in by the Leigh family from the early 14th century to 1573 when the house passed to the Lawsons who lived there until 1986. It is now the private home of Miss Mary Burkett OBE, formerly Director of Abbot Hall in Kendal, but is open to the public for guided tours on Monday afternoons from the last Monday in March to the first Monday in October.
Miss Burkett compiled a memoir of a former parlourmaid at Isel Hall, Miss May Moore (I Was Only A Maid - the life of a remarkable woman, Firpress Ltd., Workington), who also featured in a Border TV documentary filmed at the Hall in 1997. May Moore was in service to Sir Wilfred and Lady Lawson in the 1920s, from the age of 13. As well as cleaning and other duties, she was persuaded to drive the family Daimler to Carlisle to collect provisions when she was 14 years old. May was later head housemaid in Coniston, regularly cycling the 39 miles across the Lake District to visit her mother in Blindcrake. Whilst at Coniston she was befriended by Beatrix Potter (Mrs. Heelis), cutting her hair, sewing clothes and cleaning at Hilltop. May finally returned to Skiddaw View, Blindcrake, to help her sister in looking after her mother and spent the rest of the 17 years of her working life as a machinist at a local clothing factory. After retirement she helped out at Isel Hall as a guide - recounting at first hand, with a remarkable facility to relive past events, the way of life in the early part of the last century. The village hosted a 90th birthday party for her in the village hall in 1997. May Moore died in 2003 at the age of 96.
Blindcrake has 7 grade-II listed dwellings, mostly built in the early 18th century. In 1750 the Isel estate built a row of cottages in Blindcrake. The two end cottages were used in the 19th century for bacon curing (downstairs) and a primitive Methodist meeting room (upstairs). In 1894 the Methodist group bought the building and made it into a chapel; it is now a private home. The village hall is housed in the remainder of this row. Allison House, a large farmhouse built in 1724, is named after the Allison family who were prominent in the area. Blindcrake Hall, in the middle of the village, is another large house that dates from the same period (1728). Thorneycroft is reputedly the oldest building in the village, bearing a datestone of 1613.
, Curlew
, Lapwing
, Skylark
, Cuckoo
, Wheatear
, Pied Flycatcher, Siskin
and Hawfinch
are just some of the 88 species of birds seen in the area. There are a large variety of butterflies in the countryside around the village, most notably the nationally rare Pearl-bordered Fritillary
and the Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
due to the mixture of upland, woodland and meadow habitats that are found.Common Blue
, Wall Brown
, Speckled Wood
, and Small Copper
can also be regularly seen as well as many of the more common Butterflies. There are many Mammals in the area too, Red Squirrels, Roe Deer
, Foxes and Badgers can all be regularly seen in Woodland.
range to the south east. Its ascent is included in one of Alfred Wainwright's books, The Outlying Fells of Lakeland, which he dedicated to "the old-timers on the fells" (Frances Lincoln Press Ltd., 2007). The Allerdale Ramble walking route also traverses the parish from west to east following the north bank of the Derwent down towards Bassenthwaite Lake.
. Summers are typically warm with some rain, with late Spring tending to be the driest time of the year. Winters can be mild and wet, but due to the areas topography, a cold winter such as the Winter of 2009-2010 in the United Kingdom will give the area lower temperatures and much more snow than surrounding areas.
The south facing slopes of the valley will generally achieve warmer temperatures in summer than surrounding areas, but this is lost after a certain elevation on the valley
slopes due to the cooling effects of increasing height above sea level.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
within the Isel Valley, in the Lake District National Park
Lake District National Park
The Lake District National Park is located in the north-west of England and is the largest of the English National Parks and the second largest in the United Kingdom. It is in the central and most-visited part of the Lake District....
and in the Allerdale
Allerdale
Allerdale is a non-metropolitan district of Cumbria, England, with borough status. Its council is based in Workington and the borough has a population of 93,492 according to the 2001 census....
district of Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 287. The village is some four miles north-east of Cockermouth
Cockermouth
-History:The Romans created a fort at Derventio, now the adjoining village of Papcastle, to protect the river crossing, which had become located on a major route for troops heading towards Hadrian's Wall....
off the old roman road to Carlisle (A595) and above the River Derwent
River Derwent
River Derwent is the name of several rivers in England:*River Derwent, Derbyshire*River Derwent, North East England on the border between County Durham and Northumberland*River Derwent, Cumbria in the Lake District*River Derwent, Yorkshire in Yorkshire...
. It is 12 miles from Keswick
Keswick, Cumbria
Keswick is a market town and civil parish within the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England. It had a population of 4,984, according to the 2001 census, and is situated just north of Derwent Water, and a short distance from Bassenthwaite Lake, both in the Lake District National Park...
and, along the A66, it is 29 miles from the M6 motorway at Penrith. It lies near the northern-most boundary of the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
National Park. The parish includes Blindcrake village and the hamlets of Redmain, Isel and Sunderland, The whole parish lies within the Lake District National Park and, since 2001, Blindcrake village http://www.lakedistrict.gov.uk/index/planning/conservation_areas/blindcrake.htm is one of 23 designated conservation areas of the National Park Planning Authority. This status is largely based on its mediaeval strip field pattern which is described as "undoubtedly the finest example of its type in the Lake District". The parish boundary is approximately defined by the A595 in the west, by the Lake District National Park boundary in the north, by a line 2 km to the west of the A591 in the east and by the River Derwent in the south. It is one of the smallest parishes within the Allerdale district of Cumbria. The parish has a website providing local information and lists of events.
The village is situated in an elevated position (max 558 ft; 170m) on the south facing slopes of the Isel Valley, giving the area panoramas across the Derwent Valley and to the Skiddaw and Buttermere fells of the Lake District.
History
Blindcrake is on the site of an Ancient Settlement (possibly dating back to the Iron Age), and a mediaeval field system is in evidence in the northwest sector of the village. Its name is an anglicised derivation of the old Celtic Blaen-craig (known as Blencraic in the middle ages), meaning at the summit of (blaen) a rocky outcrop (craig), in reference to the nearby Clints Crag. Its 70-odd houses are spread on either side of the main street through the village and date from the 18th century. Four working farms are currently functioning in the village. There is a village green and a smaller green with a mediaeval well (which has Grade II listed status). The village features regularly in the annual Cumbria in Bloom awards and also holds its own open garden festival - the Garden Safari - every July. Blindcrake Village won the 1999 Environment Millennium Heritage Award (Green Apple Awards) for "The Top Beauty Spot in the British Isles" for the traditional village that retains tradition whilst looking towards the future. Its history was commemorated in a book, now out of print - A History and Survey of Blindcrake, Isel and Redmain (H.E. Winter, 2nd ed., 1988) and a photographic survey of the houses and then residents of the Parish was also published privately for the millennium.The 11th Century parish church, St Michael and All Angels
St Michael's Church, Blindcrake
St Michael's Church, Blindcrake, stands in the Isel Valley on the north bank of the River Derwent, some 2 km to the southeast of the village of Blindcrake, Cumbria, England. It is an active Anglican church in the deanery of Solway, the archdeaconry of West Cumberland, and the diocese of...
, that serves the community is located in Isel, about a mile south-east of Blindcrake on the banks of the Derwent. It holds a harvest festival. Isel School that served the community since 1674 (now a private home) is located halfway between the two villages. The main village pub, the Ghyll Yeat Inn, was formerly the toll house to the Isel Estate but closed as a pub in 2000 and is now a private home.
Isel Hall is the centre of the Isel Estate and stands on a steep slope above the River Derwent, with its south facing terraces overlooking the river. The oldest part is the Border pele tower, a fortified structure built around 1400 on the site of a much older structure probably destroyed when the Scots raided Cockermouth in 1387. The house was lived in by the Leigh family from the early 14th century to 1573 when the house passed to the Lawsons who lived there until 1986. It is now the private home of Miss Mary Burkett OBE, formerly Director of Abbot Hall in Kendal, but is open to the public for guided tours on Monday afternoons from the last Monday in March to the first Monday in October.
Miss Burkett compiled a memoir of a former parlourmaid at Isel Hall, Miss May Moore (I Was Only A Maid - the life of a remarkable woman, Firpress Ltd., Workington), who also featured in a Border TV documentary filmed at the Hall in 1997. May Moore was in service to Sir Wilfred and Lady Lawson in the 1920s, from the age of 13. As well as cleaning and other duties, she was persuaded to drive the family Daimler to Carlisle to collect provisions when she was 14 years old. May was later head housemaid in Coniston, regularly cycling the 39 miles across the Lake District to visit her mother in Blindcrake. Whilst at Coniston she was befriended by Beatrix Potter (Mrs. Heelis), cutting her hair, sewing clothes and cleaning at Hilltop. May finally returned to Skiddaw View, Blindcrake, to help her sister in looking after her mother and spent the rest of the 17 years of her working life as a machinist at a local clothing factory. After retirement she helped out at Isel Hall as a guide - recounting at first hand, with a remarkable facility to relive past events, the way of life in the early part of the last century. The village hosted a 90th birthday party for her in the village hall in 1997. May Moore died in 2003 at the age of 96.
Blindcrake has 7 grade-II listed dwellings, mostly built in the early 18th century. In 1750 the Isel estate built a row of cottages in Blindcrake. The two end cottages were used in the 19th century for bacon curing (downstairs) and a primitive Methodist meeting room (upstairs). In 1894 the Methodist group bought the building and made it into a chapel; it is now a private home. The village hall is housed in the remainder of this row. Allison House, a large farmhouse built in 1724, is named after the Allison family who were prominent in the area. Blindcrake Hall, in the middle of the village, is another large house that dates from the same period (1728). Thorneycroft is reputedly the oldest building in the village, bearing a datestone of 1613.
Wildlife
OystercatcherOystercatcher
The oystercatchers are a group of waders; they form the family Haematopodidae, which has a single genus, Haematopus. They are found on coasts worldwide apart from the polar regions and some tropical regions of Africa and South East Asia...
, Curlew
Curlew
The curlews , genus Numenius, are a group of eight species of birds, characterised by long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. They are one of the most ancient lineages of scolopacid waders, together with the godwits which look similar but have straight bills...
, Lapwing
Lapwing
Vanellinae are any of various crested plovers, family Charadriidae, noted for its slow, irregular wingbeat in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. Its length is 10-16 inches. They are a subfamily of medium-sized wading birds which also includes the plovers and dotterels. The Vanellinae are...
, Skylark
Skylark
The Skylark is a small passerine bird species. This lark breeds across most of Europe and Asia and in the mountains of north Africa. It is mainly resident in the west of its range, but eastern populations are more migratory, moving further south in winter. Even in the milder west of its range,...
, Cuckoo
Cuckoo
The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...
, Wheatear
Wheatear
The wheatears are passerine birds of the genus Oenanthe. They were formerly considered to be members of the thrush family Turdidae, but are now more commonly placed in the flycatcher family Muscicapidae...
, Pied Flycatcher, Siskin
Siskin
-Birds:The name siskin when referring to a bird is derived from an adaptation of the German dialect words sisschen, zeischen, which are diminuative forms of Middle High German and Middle Low German words, which are themselves apparently of Slavic origin...
and Hawfinch
Hawfinch
The Hawfinch, Coccothraustes coccothraustes, is a passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. Its closest living relatives are the Evening Grosbeak from North America and the Hooded Grosbeak from Central America especially Mexico.This bird breeds across Europe and temperate Asia...
are just some of the 88 species of birds seen in the area. There are a large variety of butterflies in the countryside around the village, most notably the nationally rare Pearl-bordered Fritillary
Pearl-bordered Fritillary
The Pearl-bordered Fritillary is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family.It is orange with black spots on the upperside of its wing and has a wingspan of 38–46 mm. On the underside of the wings there is a row of silver pearly markings along the edge, which give the species its name...
and the Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary
The Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary , called the Silver-bordered Fritillary in North America, is a butterfly of the Nymphalidae family...
due to the mixture of upland, woodland and meadow habitats that are found.Common Blue
Common Blue
The Common Blue is a small butterfly in the family Lycaenidae, widespread over much of the Palaearctic. Recently, Polyommatus icarus was discovered in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada by Ara Sarafian, an amateur entomologist who observed the butterfly from 2005 to 2008...
, Wall Brown
Wall Brown
The Wall Brown, Lasiommata megera, is a butterfly in the family Nymphalidae . It is widespread in the Palearctic ecozone with a large variety of habitats and a number of generations a year.-Range:...
, Speckled Wood
Speckled Wood
The Speckled Wood is a butterfly found in and on the borders of woodland throughout much of the Palearctic ecozone.In North Europe, Central Europe , Asia Minor, Syria, Russia and Central Asia where subspecies P. a. tircis occurs it is brown with pale yellow or cream spots and darker upperwing...
, and Small Copper
Small Copper
The Small Copper, American Copper, or the Common Copper is a butterfly of the Lycaenids or gossamer-winged butterfly family.- Description :thumb|left|Larva...
can also be regularly seen as well as many of the more common Butterflies. There are many Mammals in the area too, Red Squirrels, Roe Deer
Roe Deer
The European Roe Deer , also known as the Western Roe Deer, chevreuil or just Roe Deer, is a Eurasian species of deer. It is relatively small, reddish and grey-brown, and well-adapted to cold environments. Roe Deer are widespread in Western Europe, from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia, and from...
, Foxes and Badgers can all be regularly seen in Woodland.
Walking
Clints Crags and its limestone pavement (807 ft; 252m), an area of special scientific interest, is located about a mile from the village up a public Footpath. The summit has outstanding views across the whole Lake District, with a vista from the Ennerdale Fells in the west, to the HelvellynHelvellyn
Helvellyn is a mountain in the English Lake District, the apex of the Eastern Fells. At above sea level, it is the third highest peak in both the Lake District and England...
range to the south east. Its ascent is included in one of Alfred Wainwright's books, The Outlying Fells of Lakeland, which he dedicated to "the old-timers on the fells" (Frances Lincoln Press Ltd., 2007). The Allerdale Ramble walking route also traverses the parish from west to east following the north bank of the Derwent down towards Bassenthwaite Lake.
Climate
The Isel Valley has a temperate climate like much of the UK. However it is one of the driest and sunniest parts of the Lake DistrictLake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
. Summers are typically warm with some rain, with late Spring tending to be the driest time of the year. Winters can be mild and wet, but due to the areas topography, a cold winter such as the Winter of 2009-2010 in the United Kingdom will give the area lower temperatures and much more snow than surrounding areas.
The south facing slopes of the valley will generally achieve warmer temperatures in summer than surrounding areas, but this is lost after a certain elevation on the valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
slopes due to the cooling effects of increasing height above sea level.