Wetheral, Cumberland

Historical Description

Wetheral, a village and a parish in Cumberland. The village stands on the river Eden, adjacent to the Newcastle and Carlisle railway, 4¼ miles ESE of Carlisle, enjoys charming environs, has a post, money order, and telegraph office under Carlisle, and a railway station. The parish comprises Cotehill, Cumwhinton, Great Corby, Scotby, and Warwick Bridge. Acreage, 11,331 of land and 158 of water; population of the civil parish, 3272; of the ecclesiastical, with Warwick, 1369. There is a parish council of fifteen members. Corby Castle, originally a castellated edifice, but modernized with a Grecian front, is the seat of the Howards. A Benedictine priory, a cell to St Mary's of York, was founded a little SW of the village in 1088 by Ranulph de Meschines; was given at the dissolution to the Dean and Chapter of Carlisle, and is now represented by a Later English gateway, surmounted by an embattled tower. A railway viaduct of five arches, with roadway 90 feet above the surface of the water, and another bridge of seven arches, and 480 feet in length, span the thickly wooded Eden. Delightful walks lie along the river, above the village, and lead to three caves called Wetheral Safeguards or St Constantine's Cells, cut deeply in a precipice 40 feet above the water, which tradition says were occupied by this saint as a hermitage. A house, called the Folly, stands on a high site a little farther up the river, and commands a superb view. Red freestone and alabaster are worked. The living is a rectory, united with Warwick, in the diocese of Carlisle; net value, £285 with residence. Patrons, the Dean and Chapter. The church, originally Norman, is now chiefly in the Perpendicular style, consisting of chancel, rebuilt in 1872, nave, N and S aisles, and tower. The nave was restored and the tower rebuilt in 1882.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Wetheral from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Wetheral (Holy Trinity))

Land and Property

The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Cumberland is available to browse.

Maps

Online maps of Wetheral are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Villages, Hamlets, &c

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Cumberland, 1615 is available on the Heraldry page.