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Brampton in Cumberland County England History and GeographyBRAMPTON, a parish in ESKDALE ward, county of CUMBERLAND, comprising the market town of Brampton, and the townships of Easeby and Naworth Castle, and containing 2921 inhabitants, of which number, 2448 are in the town of Brampton, 9½ miles (N. E. by E.) from Carlisle, and 305 (N. by W.) from London. According to Camden, this was the Roman station Bremetenracum, which some modern writers have fixed at Old Penrith. The town sustained extensive damage during the wars of Edward II., of which, as well as of its earlier importance, it still exhibits evident marks. It is situated on the river Irthing, near its junction with the Gelt, about one mile south of the Picts' wall, in a deep narrow vale embosomed in hills, and consists principally of one street irregularly built; the houses, excepting a few of modern erection, are generally of mean appearance: the inhabitants are well supplied with water. The only branch of manufacture is that of gingham, in which nearly seven hundred individuals are employed: there are two public breweries. The railway between Newcastle and Carlisle passes a mile and a half to the south; and the late Earl of Carlisle extended a railway from the collieries at Tindal Fell to Brampton, whereby coal and lime are brought hither. The market is on Wednesday, and is well supplied with corn, admitted toll-free: fairs are held annually on the 20th of April the second Wednesday after Whitsuntide, the second Wednesday in September, and the 23rd of October for horned cattle, horses, and sheep. The county magistrates hold a petty session every alternate Wednesday; and courts leet and baron for the barony of Gilsland, are held at Easter and Michaelmas, in the town-hall, a neat octagonal edifice, with a cupola, erected by the Earl of Carlisle, in 1817, on the site of the former hall, in the market-place, the lower part being formed into a piazza, under which butter, eggs, poultry, &c., are sold on the market-day. The living is a vicarage, in the archdeaconry and diocese of Carlisle, rated in the king's books at £8, and in the patronage of the Earl of Carlisle. The present church was built in 1788, out of the chapel and four tenements of an almshouse, and with the materials of the old church, dedicated to St. Martin, the chancel of which is still remaining on the eastern bank of the river Irthing, about a mile west of the town, being only used for the performance of the funeral service for those who inter in the cemetery: the new church was greatly enlarged in 1827, at an expense of £1800. There are places of worship for Independents, Primitive and Wesleyan Methodists and Presbyterians. A National school, built by the Earl of Carlisle in 1817, is supported by voluntary contributions: an infant school was established in 1825. Edward, Earl of Carlisle, built an hospital for six aged men and as many women, in 1688, to each of whom he assigned £5 per annum, besides fuel; and by will dated in 1691, bequeathed £500 to purchase lands for its endowment; but this benevolent purpose was never carried into effect: at present, there are only eight apartments, one of which is used as a grammar school-room, the master receiving an annuity of £5 from the present earl. Two miles south of Brampton is Naworth castle, the ancient baronial seat of the lords of Gilsland, the earliest notice of which occurs in the 18th of Richard II. It stands upon the summit of a lofty precipice overhanging the river Irthing; the walls, including two large square towers in the front, besides others at the angles, enclose a quadrangular area, each side being forty paces in length: the entrance is through an embrasured gateway. The hall, seventy or eighty feet in length, and of proportionate width and height, displays all the magnificence of feudal grandeur, and is embellished with portraits brought from Kirk-Oswald castle, of the kings of England prior to the union of the houses of York and Lancaster. The chapel, to which there is a descent of several steps, is very ancient, and is decorated with paintings of the patriarchs and kings of Israel and Judah; the pulpit and stalls are of carved oak. The apartments of Lord William Howard, the terror of the moss-troopers in the reign of Elizabeth, are still preserved, with their ancient furniture: they consist of a bed-room, an oratory, and a library containing several books and manuscripts, some of them bearing his autograph, and an account of the foundation of Glastonbury abbey by Joseph of Arimathea: the approach to these apartments is by a very narrow winding staircase, secured by doors of amazing strength. The dungcons of the castle, which were the prison for the barony, are still in their original state: they consist of three cells underground, and one above, and the strong iron rings to which the prisoners were chained, are still remaining. To the north-east of Brampton is a high conical hill, from the summit whereof, now planted with trees, a most extensive view of the surrounding country is obtained; at some distance from the base there are vestiges of an intrenchment, and a breast-work of considerable strength: it is supposed to have been a Danish encampment, or probably a place of security for the removal of property in case of invasion, as, from the steepness of the acclivity, a small number of men on the summit might overpower an assailing multitude. At present it forms a link in the chain of telegraphie communication between the northern parts of England and the southern parts of Scotland. To the south of the town is a fine quarry of freestone, where the Romans obtained part of the materials for building the great wall; and on the rocky banks of the Gelt, are some Roman inscriptions of the time of Agricola, one of whose legions was stationed at Brampton. From Lewis's Topographical Dictionary of England 1831, courtesy of Databases 4 Sale |
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