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Local History Group
The next meeting of the Local History Group takes place on Tues, March 23rd @ 7.30pm in the Institute, when we welcome Sydney Richardson from Kirkby Lonsdale who will give an illustrated talk entitled “Grandfather’s Schooldays”. It is about his grandfather John Richardson of Brampton who attended Long Marton School in the 1880’s. Everyone is welcome to attend. The evening costs £2.50, including refreshments, payable at the door.
The Group had a mention on the Radio Cumbria afternoon show on Thursday, February 26th when Keith Spence, the Secretary of the Group, was interviewed by Kevin Fernihough. He spoke about how the Group started, & some of the interesting discoveries, like letters from members of the Simpson family of Red House in the 1830’s sent from America & Canada when they emigrated.
The Group is always interested to hear from people with Long Marton connections.
The Gelders Reunion
Marianne Henderson & Ian Gelder - related but unaware of each other’s existence & connection.
Marianne writes, “I was very pleased to be put in touch with Ian Gelder. Richard Gelder, my grandfather, and Jonathan, one of his younger brothers, are both buried in Long Marton Churchyard. I knew there was a descendant of one of Jonathan's sons out there somewhere - but where? Now I know! Jonathan's other son, Thomas, who was killed in October 1918 is the Gelder on the War Memorial in the Churchyard. “
We put them in touch with each other following their individual interest in the Long Marton web site & tracing family history. If you are or were a Gelder, drop us a line & we can put you in touch with these two!
THE LOCAL HISTORY GROUP
The Long Marton Local History Group started in 2005 with a small group of residents-some new to the area and others brought up here- who were interested in the past life of the village.
The early history of the Norman church and the Parish of Long Marton is well documented in G.H.Winterburn ‘Long Marton - a Story of a Cumbrian Fellside Parish” published in 1983. The church has its own amusing story told in ‘Old Sandy’s Tale’. Tribute should be paid to the work of Jack Bickerstaff who has researched the church’s history in some detail and handed his work over to the Group. Jack still lives in the village. The Archives in Kendal, Carlisle, and Penrith contain all the important papers, old maps, and articles as well as books about the old Westmorland region.
Our Local History Group focussed on collecting items of recent history, including oral recordings of village people who had spent much of their lives here, and who have a fund of stories concerning farming, mining, and the railway which arrived in the 1870s and was an important influence on the village until the station closed in 1968. A regular bi-monthly meeting in the Parish Institute was established with items being shared by the members. Old photographs, newspaper cuttings, talks on the school,the railway station, and a chance to hear some of the recordings.
Meetings are a lively exchange of memories, funny and sad, about the people who have lived and worked here. New members joined from Knock and Appleby, and through the Long Marton website emails started arriving from as far away as Australia asking about former family members who had lived in the village or the area. We have had a regular dip into the records of the Parish Institute, which tells the story of the people who ran it from 1893 to the present.
We have now joined the Cumbria Local History Federation.They can be found at www.cumbrialocalhistory.org.uk The organization links the many local history societies around Cumbria with a regular newsletter and annual Conference at the University of Cumbria. This year (2009) they agreed to support the Victoria County History of Cumbria project, and have helped set up a new Trust body, the
Cumbria County History Trust (CCHT) which will raise the funds to restart and complete the massive project. The Project Leader is Dr.Angus Winchester of Lancaster University.
New material is constantly coming to light, like some beautiful old photographs of Appleby, Dufton and Warcop from the early 1900s. We are always pleased to
be handed photographs, newspaper cuttings, or other items telling the history of this area. The Secretary is Keith Spence. Contact him on 017683 62642 or email at : kspence@phonecoop.coop.
The Local History Group meets every two months on the last Tuesday evening of the month at 7.30pm in the Institute.We are always pleased to hear from people who have links with Long Marton, & to receive items such as photos or films of past events & people who were part of village life. We occasionally have outside speakers & publicise these locally & in the Cumberland Westmorland Herald. We welcome new members.
Anyone doing research on family history?
Contact Keith Spence on 017683 62642 or email kspence@phonecoop.coop
Local History Group Archive
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