The Craven Herald: News from across skipton and surrounding areas.

Could ancient mystery plays still be given modern twist?

12:10pm Saturday 3rd December 2011

Music has played a notable part in the history of Giggleswick Church. Dr CW Buck is best remembered for his friendship with Edward Elgar. Buck was also a folklorist, fascinated by the ancient Mummers’ Play. Dr Bill Mitchell, who lives in Giggleswick, recently located a file of Buck’s notes and booklets relating to the mystery play.

‘Dales church resembled an alehouse at a village feast’

11:40am Saturday 26th November 2011

A travelling writer who stopped off at Burnsall Church in 1827 was deeply unimpressed by the music on offer but, as editor Adrian Braddy found out, he was fascinated by the church’s unusual gateway, which opens under a system of weights and a pulley.

The twists and turns of firm’s long presence

12:30pm Saturday 19th November 2011

W & JR Thompson (Woodturners) Ltd had traded successfully in Sutton-in-Craven for more than 140 years. But foreign competition and increased use of plastics forced it to close in 2004 and its base in Holme Lane is now a housing estate. But sisters Elizabeth Benjamin and Christine Cumming did not want another piece of Yorkshire’s manufacturing history to disappear from the landscape without some record being made. They have just published a book giving some of the history of the firm, which was set up by their great-great uncle, William Thompson, in 1862. The story is told through letters, documents and photographs that have been passed down through the family.

Letters from the front line paint picture of Great War

1:50pm Saturday 12th November 2011

With it being Remembrance Sunday this weekend, it is fitting this week’s history feature should look at the experiences of Ingleton soldier Ernest Walling, who served in the First World War and was awarded the French Croix de Guerre just before he was killed in action in 1918. He is one of 48 men from the two world wars named on a plaque near Ingleton War Memorial. His army career is detailed in a book, called The Ingleton War Memorial, written by Andrew Brooks and published in 2004. Here, with the author’s help, we retell his story. When the Great War started in August 1914, George Walling was headmaster of the village school and among many of his other village duties he was the Ingleton correspondent for the Craven Herald.

Dramatic few moments that could lead to a soaking

2:10pm Saturday 5th November 2011

Steam locomotives on the Settle-Carlisle Railway once assuaged their thirst north of Rise Hill Tunnel. On a straight and level stretch of the line – rare on this “middle route to Scotland” – water troughs were installed at a cost of £4,396. They held between five and six thousand gallons, about a third of which might be taken up by the tender of a single train in a few dramatic moments. Dr Bill Mitchell, of Giggleswick, who has studied the history of the Settle-Carlisle, formed a special fascination for tales about the troughs, which were installed in 1907 and removed half a century later.

Restoration saves ruined farm

1:40pm Saturday 29th October 2011

Cowside, a largely unaltered 17th century farmhouse in Langstrothdale, has been restored to its former glory. The building had been uninhabited for decades and had fallen into dereliction before it was taken on by The Landmark Trust, a building preservation charity that rescues historic buildings at risk and gives them a new life as places to stay in and experience. Here, with the help of the Landmark Trust, deputy editor Lindsey Moore looks at Cowside’s history.

A picture of farming life in Craven in 18th Century

2:20pm Saturday 22nd October 2011

An agricultural survey of the West Riding from 1794 provides details of life in Craven at the time, when just about everybody was employed either in farms, mills or mines. Editor Adrian Braddy took a closer look.

Fond memories of legendary bus service raise a laugh

10:30am Saturday 15th October 2011

The well-known Pennine Bus Service, which runs between Skipton and Giggleswick, also serving part of East Lancashire, was inaugurated at Skipton towards the end of 1925. The first timetable was based on the weekday routine of Miss Bertha McKell, a schoolteacher living at Gargrave, who taught at Coniston Cold. Bertha must arrive at school by 9am. Sadly, Norman Simpson, who ran Pennine Motors efficiently for many years, and who was the authority on its history, died last June. Dr Bill Mitchell, of Giggleswick, recounts tales of the bus company he gathered almost 30 years ago from the men who were in at the start of this enduring enterprise. Pennine Motors was founded by two brothers, Arthur and Vic, who lived in Ermysted Street at Skipton. Having served in the Great War, they took up engineering. Their lives changed significantly when they visited Leyland Motors in Lancashire to acquire three Overland buses. Arthur selected the bright colour scheme – orange and black – seen on a bus parked in the Leyland yard.

Stall dispute is latest chapter in long-running market saga

12:11pm Thursday 6th October 2011

Almost exactly 50 years ago, a Skipton stall holder was facing a similar battle. The owners of the shop behind his stall claimed he was trespassing on their land after he had failed to sign a formal agreement with them and stopped paying rent for six months.

A scout trip to Scotland

12:09pm Thursday 6th October 2011

These youngsters were members of the fifth Skipton Parish Church Scout Troop.