Burneside

Burneside
Westmorland
Burneside Hall
Location
Grid reference:	SD515925
Location:	54°21’20"N, 2°45’46"W
Data
Population:	1,888  (2011)
Post town:	Kendal
Postcode:	LA9
Dialling code:	01539
Local Government
Council:	Westmorland & Furness
Parliamentary constituency:	Westmorland and Lonsdale

Burneside is a small village in Westmorland, to the north of Kendal and south-east of Staveley. It is beside the River Kent, just upstream from the confluence of the River Sprint.

This is a sizable village by Westmorland standards, with about 3,000 inhabitants.

Economy

Burneside's economy is based upon the paper mill James Cropper plc, founded in 1845 by James Cropper. Originally, most villagers worked in the factory. Until the year 2000, James Cropper (a descendant of the original James Cropper) owned a large proportion of the village; it was then sold to housing agencies.

New Routes Adventure Company is run from Burneside, offering climbing and walking in the surrounding area.

Parish church

St Oswald's Church

The parish church, and the only church in the village, is St Oswald's. The church as seen today is mainly the product of rebuilding in the 1880s, but there was an earlier church on the present site designed by George Webster.

The village school is St Oswald's Primary School, which is a Church of England school.

About the village

Burneside has two main estates, Hall Park and Chapel Fields, which have a mix of private and rented accommodation.

The village has one grocery store and one bakery. It has a pub named the Jolly Anglers and a chip shop. The village also has a cricket club with a licensed club house on Hollins Lane as well as a football club situated opposite that uses the cricket club facilities after games.

The Bryce Institute is a key feature of the village allowing locals to participate in many social events. The Bryce Institute was built in 1896 and in 1918 was used as a bathhouse; it is now used for many local events.

Burneside Hall

Main article: Burneside Hall

Burneside Hall stands just on the outskirts of Burneside. It is a ruined 14th-century pele tower now attached to a farm house and outbuildings. The fortification of the house was licensed in 1341 when the tower and a gatehouse were built.

There is a long south wing, and a shorter oblong north wing, which is in fact a pele tower. There are two tunnel-vaulted chambers at ground level, separated by a narrow tunnel-vaulted passage. The hall became the property of Richard de Bellingham of Northumberland when he married Margaret, the heiress of Gilbert de Burneshead. Their descendants remained living in the hall for the next 200 years or so.

Most of the 14th-century tower still survives, together with some of the original enclosing wall of the barmkin, or fortified courtyard. This area would have been used to house and protect cattle in the event of a raid or an attack. Today, the hall and its grounds are accessed along a narrow driveway from the road below it. Entrance would have been through a gatehouse from the 16th century onwards; that still stands intact but with broken windows. The original heavy oak doors to the gatehouse can still be seen, albeit off their hinges now and leaning against the interior wall.

The hall and its attendant buildings are from different dates. The pele tower was built by the Burnesheads in the 14th century. Its basement is divided into two cellars, connected by a tunnel passing right through the tower. Apparently this is an architecturally unique feature for a pele tower. The walls of the pele tower were originally around four feet thick. No traces of the embattled parapets survive. There was a special enclosure directly outside the tower, possibly for the protection of horses.

Attached to the rear of the pele tower is the Great Hall, probably built during the 16th century. This part of the building was built by the Bellinghams, and was enlarged during the 17th century by the Braithwaites.

Transport links

Burneside railway station is on the Windermere Branch Line, with services to Windermere to the north west, Oxenholme on the West Coast Main Line, and Lancaster to the south. Burneside is around ten miles from the M6 motorway.

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Burneside)