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Carlisle
A brief guide to Carlisle, particularly those locations associated with the Farndale family
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Introduction
Dates are in red.
Hyperlinks to other pages are in dark blue.
Headlines of the history of Bradford are
in brown.
References and citations are in turquoise.
Contextual history is in purple.
The Farndales of Carlisle
The Carlisle Line is a
small family who are descendants of Thomas Farndell
(born 1822), who married Mary Jones and settled in Carlisle.
Carlisle
The early history of Carlisle is marked by its
status as a Roman settlement, established to serve the forts
on Hadrian's Wall.
During the Middle Ages, because of its
proximity to the Kingdom of Scotland, Carlisle became an important
military stronghold. Carlisle Castle, still relatively intact, was built
in 1092 by William Rufus, and once served as a prison for Mary, Queen
of Scots. In the early 12th century, Henry I allowed the foundation
of a priory in Carlisle. The town gained the status of a city when
its diocese was formed in 1133, and the priory became Carlisle
Cathedral.
The introduction of textile manufacture
during the Industrial Revolution began a process
of socioeconomic transformation in Carlisle, which developed into a
densely populated mill town. This, combined with its strategic position, allowed
for the development of Carlisle as an important railway town, with seven
railway companies sharing Carlisle railway station.
Although Carlisle continued to garrison
soldiers, becoming the headquarters of the Border Regiment, the city's
importance as a military town decreased as the industrial age took
over. The post of Governor of Carlisle as garrison commander was
abolished in 1838.
In the early nineteenth century textile mills,
engineering works and food manufacturers built
factories in the city mostly in the Denton Holme, Caldewgate
and Wapping suburbs in the Caldew Valley. These included Carr's of
Carlisle, Kangol, Metal Box and Cowans
Sheldon. Shaddon Mill, in Denton Holme, became famous for having the
world’s eighth tallest chimney and was the largest cotton mill in England.
The expanding industries brought about an
increase in population as jobs shifted from rural farms towards the cities.
This produced a housing shortage where at one point 25,000 people in the city
only had 5,000 houses to live in. People were said to be herded together with
animal houses, slaughter houses and communal
lavatories with open drains running between them. Living conditions were so bad
that riots were common and some people emigrated. The
problem wasn't solved until the end of the nineteenth century when mass housing
was built west of the city walls.
In 1823 a canal was built to Fisher's Cross or Port
Carlisle to transport goods produced in the city. This enabled other industrial
centres such as Liverpool to link with Carlisle via the Solway.
This was short-lived and when the canal operators ran into financial difficulty
the waterway was filled in. A railway was built in place of the
canal.
Carlisle became a major railway centre
on the West Coast Main Line with connections to the east. At one time
seven companies used Carlisle Citadel railway station. Before the building
of the Citadel railway station the city had several other railway stations,
including London Road railway station. Carlisle had the largest railway
marshalling yard in Europe, Kingmoor, which, reduced
in size, is operational and used by railfreight
companies.
The Strand Road drill hall opened in
1874.
Botchergate
Historically a
suburb outside of the gates of Carlisle, Botchergate was
swallowed by the southerly expansion of the city. Originally a linear
development on the approach to the walled city, Botchergate
became increasingly urban and commercial during the nineteenth century. Firstly narrow lanes, and later, spur roads were developed
along its length serving new development, until it became fully enmeshed as the
heart of the web of streets that survive today.
Carlisle's
gradual expansion during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries saw the linear
strip of Botchergate develop adjoining streets of working class housing, interspersed with the industrial
enterprises these residents served. The mixed residential and commercial nature
of the main street became increasingly commercial, with an eclectic range of
public houses, hotels, manufacturing, entertainment
and retailers present. The proximity to Carlisle Citadel Station will have
stimulated this growth, and in particular that of the
grander hotels which developed at the northern extremity.