Caldbeck
| Caldbeck | |
| Cumberland | |
|---|---|
 St Kentigern's Church, Caldbeck | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NY323377 |
| Location: | 54°43’48"N, 3°3’-0"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 737 (2011) |
| Post town: | Wigton |
| Postcode: | CA7 |
| Dialling code: | 016974 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Cumberland |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Penrith and The Border |
Caldbeck is a village in Cumberland; a place of 737 souls according to the 2011 census. It stands at the northern edge of the Caldbeck Fells, themselves, the northernmost extent of the Lake District.
The northern part of the village centred on a large green is called Ratten Row. South-west of the village is a hamlet known as Upton, and it is here that the village primary school is found.
The parish church is dedicated to St Kentigern.
The nearest town is Wigton, six miles north-west of the village. In the last few years it has seen a massive house price boom, with many properties more than doubling their value over a couple of years.
Name
The name of the village is just as it seems: a "cold stream", which may be straight from the Old Norse kald bekkr. The stream in question gives a name to the village.[1]
Princes, huntsmen and actresses
The village is popular with tourists from across the globe. Caldbeck's most famous former resident is the huntsman John Peel, whose grave is in the local churchyard. The hunting song "Dya Ken John Peel" was written by friends over an evening at his home in Caldbeck. The American Shakespearean actress Julia Marlowe was born in Caldbeck, daughter of the 1860s village shoemaker.[2]
Prince Charles has visited the village several times in the last ten years, overseeing the launch of the Northern Fells Rural Project, and in later years the end of the project, which became the Northern Fells Group. A famous resident is the climber Chris Bonington.
About the village
The Caldbeck Fells rise to the south of the village, reaching their highest at Carrock Fell (2,165 feet). The closest fell to the village is High Pike, which is a popular walk from Caldbeck. The village is also the starting point for many other fell walking routes.
Within the Parish of Caldbeck is also the village and former market town of Hesket Newmarket.
Approximately two miles from the village is the Caldbeck transmitting station, a television and radio broadcasting station with a mast standing at 1,106 feet, that covers most of Cumberland and Galloway and Dumfriesshire.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Caldbeck) |
References
- ↑ Whaley, Diana (2006). A dictionary of Lake District place-names. Nottingham: English Place-Name Society. pp. lx,423 p.63. ISBN 0904889726.
- ↑ Caldbeck Characters 1995 p.25 ISBN 0952600900
