Carleton with an ‘E’

By

RACHEL H. NAYLOR

Cover photograph: Planting of the Jubilee Tree 1897.

INTRODUCTION

Dear Reader,

'There being very little traffic in the village the children could play in safety in the streets. In March when the winds had blown the dust away, the whips and tops came out. Marbles were played in corners, and shuttlecocks and battledore for the girls. Hoops were rolled for miles and skipping ropes, all in together, would stretch across the streets. Games of rounders etc. We were never bored or short of something to do. We had song sheets for all the latest songs and would go for walks and sings them as we went along ....

This vivid description of one lady's childhood in the village of Carleton inspired me to find out about life in this mill village, two miles from Skipton. I originally began to do some research into the village for a project on local history for my Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award, whilst still at school. However the task grew until I had quite a selection of information about the village and its inhabitants.

All the information has been collected from the villagers, either the past or

present, and alongside the many tales and superstitions, there are plenty of facts and also traditions, some of which still exist today.

Unfortunately tales become muddled as they are passed down the

generations and my greatest difficulty was sorting out tales which had been completely contradicted by other recollections, so some memories may not be completely true, but that I feel is up to the reader to decide.

You may ask why I chose CARLETON WITH AN 'E' for the title of the book.

When I originally began the project on this village, I realised how very little I knew about the people and their history. The result, therefore, was an insatiable hunt for facts, stories and memories from whatever source was possible.

The first thing I realised was that the whole of village life appeared to be ruled by

one family from the mid-1800's and so I tried comparing life before and after the period of their supremacy in the village. However, the villagers would not let me forget that nearly every row of houses was built by that family, every society had a member from the family and not only did the head of this family order the construc-tion of the village roads but he also put the 'E' in Carleton.

To find out more read on ....................................

CHAPTER ONE EARLY

BEGINNINGS

Early History THE NAME 'CARLTON' means the farmstead of the peasants. During Saxon times was a more prosperous community than that of Skipton which was a small shepherds' settlement. At the time of the Norman Conquest it was recorded that Skipton had four carucates of land whereas Carlton had ten. In 1086 the land in and around Carlton was owned by Roger De Poiteau. The land was all open for cattle, with one main town field to grow the main crop of corn. The land was originally very fertile but it soon became exhausted as corn was the only crop grown. As Skipton grew, so did the market for corn, so the land owners felt it was important as it meant a rise in their in-come. Rumour has it that in the early 1 300's there was a series of torrential storms which ruined all the crops; the following year was no better as there were more storms and consequently flooding. As if this wasn't enough, in 1317 the Scots invaded Craven. In Carlton they drove away the cattle, burnt down the Tythe Barn and pillaged the church. As a result, heavier taxes were imposed which caused many peasant revolts over the next fifty years; these were also occasioned by the poor condition of the land which took over thirty years to bring back to cultivation.

After Skipton began to develop into a large market town, there were more

skirmishes in Craven especially near to Skipton, where the castle was situated. The Clifford family from the castle had their hunting lodge in Carlton (now Biggin Farm). This was the only building in Carlton owned by the Cliffords, as most of the land in this period, was owned by the Duke of Devonshire who had his offices at Carla Beck in Carlton. Many of the buildings were privately owned, the first buildings followed the course of the beck. The ones still remaining are the old Corn Mill, dated 1798, Wend Farm 1772, Trappes Hall 1 524, Queen Anne house on Beck Side 1672, Robin Hall (date unknown), 10 and 11 Brook View 1712, Old Hall and the Tythe Barn which was rebuilt several times on the same site. Therefore the main road ran to the side of the beck. However, on the moorside above the village there are signs of a Roman settlement. This is very likely as there is also evidence of Roman inhabitants in Elslack, Ilkley and other local places. The original main road probably ran through other local places. The original main road probably ran through the village from Colne to Elslack. Gradually the village began to expand. The Swan Inn, Grundy Farm and the church linked one side of the village to the other. In 1849 a cotton mill was built and this was succeeded by the change in occupation of many villagers. From evidence found in the Parish Records it can be seen that in 1838 weaving was a fireside pastime, producing mats, rugs and

shawls from the small flocks of sheep on the moors. However, the cotton mill provided new employment for a majority of the villagers and also for tramp weavers travelling via Carleton from Lancashire to the mills of Leeds and Bradford. There were openings as paid weavers, combers, spinners, shut-tlemakers and overlookers. A whole family was often all involved in mill work, from the elderly to the infants, as factory legislation was very permissive until later on in the century. Before 1861 the age of mortality was very young, many not reaching their early thirties. The main reasons for this are the usual ones, sanitation being poor causing illness for which there was no medical treatment. In fact all social standards were very bad, and it wasn't until the Slingsby family became interested in the villagers out of work, as well as in work, that the whole village changed. New houses were built for the workers and then in 1861 the new mill was opened employing a much larger workforce. The Mills

The oldest mill in Carleton can be found just off the Colne road on the way out of Carleton. It was built around 1 660, the earliest date stone being either 1657 or 1667. It is situated near to Carleton beck although it was not directly powered by the beck water. Parallel to the beck was an underground waterway which was originally one of the main sources of irrigation for the farmers before modern drainage systems began to be used.

At the end of the mill there was a water wheel with a diameter of thirty-three

feet. The water was diverted down a shute via a weir to the wheel. The water flowed over the top of the wooden wheel into cast iron buckets, the pressure of the water forced the buckets down and thus rotated the wheel. Today the mill is no longer used, the windows are bricked in and the old millstone lies intact nearby.

There have been many tales about why the mill stopped working but a

popular idea is that one day one of the village lads was near the mill when he decided to see how strong the buckets of the water wheel really were He threw a large stone towards the wheel hoping it would land in one of the buckets. Unfortunately, the stone became lodged between the wheel and the, mill wall, the wheel stopped immediately and it has never moved since then The wheel was eventually dismantled and was sold as scrap, but beneath the water, by the side of the mill a tenth of the wheel still remains.

The corn mill was evidently a vital part of the village and from the late

1700's it was owned and run by the same family. They were farmers who produced grain which was made into a fine powder. This was sold to villagers as a very rough flour and thus made much of the bread in the village diet.

Further down the beck nearer to the dwellings of the villagers, a prosperous family of millowners built a small cotton mill. The raw cotton' all imported from

abroad, at times from Egypt. It was delivered to Skipton, where it was collected by the mill workers. The cloth was all handwoven but conditions at the mill were known to be good. There is no definate reason why the Slingsbys built the mill in Carleton but it was to bring them lifetime prosperity. The cotton weaving was plain and simple and this encouraged the involvement of the tramp weavers. They travelled from Lancashire to Carleton working for about three months at a time in each mill. They stayed in three 'doss houses' in the village — Plum Tree Cotage, Robins Hall and a small house in New Street. Conditions were supposed to be excellent in this little village where they earned sixpence for each piece that they wove and besides this the meals were good, ale cheap and beds comfortable.

It is probable, though, that the Slingsbys ceased to employ weavers after

there had been a series of cloth smuggling incidents. At the top of Park Lane a barn was found to contain a quantity of cloth which had obviously been smuggled out of the village. The culprits were never found so it remained unknown whether it was the tramp weavers who were to blame. However smuggling very similar to this had occured in other mill towns in Yorkshire and Lancashire.

The cloth, once it had been woven, was packed onto mill donkeys and

taken over the moors to the cloth markets in Halifax, Bradford and Leeds. The donkeys were each known to have their own characters and became village characters in their own right.

The donkeys walked round and round in the mill yard acting as a pulley to

bring the cotton from the attic rooms to ground level. It was usually a child's job to keep the donkeys moving, but this proved difficult in thick snow when the child wasn't strong enough to plough its way through.

When cotton manufacturing in Carleton became worthwhile, the Slingsbys

decided to open a much larger mill in the centre of the village employing more people. The small mill was kept going, though, until the early 1900's so opportunities in the new mill were taken over by the old mill workers. The work was very similar and the machines were all steam powered and fed by three mill dams further up the beck.

The building of the new mill in 1860-61 coincided with the construction of a

new Wesleyan chapel and succeeded the restoration of the Parish Church in 1858.

The Church

The Church was originally built in 1120 AD and then rebuilt during the reign of Henry VII. In 1858 the floor of the nave was re-laid. The new floor covered thirteen tomb stones but these were noted before being completely concealed.

Tomb 1 Hic requiscit in

pace Anna Vidua et relicta Thomae Parkinson de Carlton Hall Ge- herosi. Horam mutui amoris charissima supersunt pignora Hanna Maria Stephaus Vero Filius praemortius est vixit anno LXX III menses ii Dies vii. Placide Obdorivit in Dno Septimo de Februarii Anno Salutis M.D.C.L. XXXIIII

Tomb 2 To the beloved memory

of Johnson Atkinson Busfield D.D Rector of St Michaels Wood Street London

and 22 years Curate of this Place o bit January 12th 1849 Atat 73 years.

Tomb 3 Hic jacet Stephanus Filius

Thomae Parkinsoni Septutus XI die Octobens An Dom 1655 Qui ante obidum spiravit hac Carmima. Lina via est vitae moriendi mille figurae. Mortures en non sum qui dormis mate is inutro. Ex tumuto damore tubae spendore resurgam Igne gravi summum mea mensquqesivit Olympium Spes salus esc Christus lux pax nichi vito perennis A Jove principium fuit et modo sum Jove tutus.

Tomb 4 Lector si quaens arumam Recessit in Caelum si corpus Thomae Parkinson hic in spe Resurrectionis invenit Requiem tertio die maii Anno Domini 1671 Felix iter a seculo ad Caelum ruc ero sarus

Tomb 5 In memory of Anne wife of

Mr Stephenson Kitching of Carleton and daughter of Mr Henr Settle citizen of London. Illa O.B.T. 25th April 1769.

Had restless time whose harvest is each hour made but a pause to view this lovely flower in pity he'd turned his scythe away And left in blooming to a future day But he alas regardless level all Both flower and weed alike promiscuous fall.

Also Katherina Kitching sister to the above Stephenson Kitching who departed this life the 24th day of March AD 1816 aged 82 years

Tomb 6 Henry Hargrave

of Carleton married Miss Mary Tempest the d. of Stephen Tempest of Broughton Esgre who died 1st of August 1686 leaving an only daughter Eliz Hargreave Who married Christopher Trapps a younger Brother of the Nidd family Yorkshire by whom he had many sons and daughters and died 8th of January 1747 aged 83. Eliz his wife died November 13 1753. Franas Trapps eldest son of Chris Trapps of Carleton married Grace Joy of Bishop Thornton Yorkshire. By whom he had issue two sons and one daughter Francis Eliza beth and Thomas. And died 10th of September 1786 aged 87. Whose eldest son Francis enjoys the family estate of Nidd. Requiam aeternam dona eis Dne et Lux perpetua wuceat eis Requieseant in Pace.

Tomb 7 Here lieth The Body of Thomas Trapps who departed this life the 20th day of Novem ber in the year of our Lord 1769 in the 26th year of his age Also he was second son of Francis Trapps of Carl- ton Esgre. In pace quiestcat.

Tomb 8 E.W.

Tomb 9 A much defaced stone (no doubt Elizabeth Wilkinsons as it corresponds with her monument which is now on the wall of the organ chamber A.D. 1761 T.E.M.).

Tomb 10 Mary Moorhouse daughter of Thomas and Mary Moorhouse of Carleton died 1769 Aged lyr 6m. Also Mary Moorhouse daughter of the above Thomas and Mary aged 6 hours.

Tomb 11 Here lies the body of Mary Moorhouse wife to Thomas Moorhouse of Carlton who died the 2nd of Aug. 1770

Aged 30 years.

Tomb 12 John Laycock of Knot died April 1710 aged 59.

Tomb 13 John Butler of Carlton Biggin died 1791 again aged 48. Peggy his daughter died 1816 Aged 36 Ann his Widow died 1824 aged 82.

The church was pillaged in 1318 by the Scots and so consequently the church tax (paid to Bolton Priory) was reduced by a half up to the time that it was rebuilt. The church is of an early English style, with a tower and clock. The clock has been described as a 'mechanical wonder of Craven' as it has a thirty foot pendulum and is run by only seven cogs. (Built by the villager 'Billy' Cryer 1833(. The East window is very beautiful, created by Clayton and Bell. It is a Jesse window and depicts Jesse, King David's father asleep. Around him are members of his family, David with a harp, Solomon, who built the Temple in Jerusalem, shown carrying a model of it, and in the centre Christ himself. The other four main lights show incidents concerning St Mary. They are the Annunciation, the Birth of Jesus, Simeon's prophecy when the infant Jesus was taken to the temple by his parents and Jesus, aged twelve, among the teachers in the temple. The window to the south of the sanctuary also depicts the third subject (mentioned previously). This window was given in memory of Rev. T.E. Morris as was the altar cross and the Lynch Gate at the entrance to the churchyard.

The west window was given to the church in memory of William and Mary Anne Slingsby in 1 900 by their children. The theme of the window is the ancient hymn 'Te Deum' and depicts St John, King David, St Stephen and Ambrose, a Fourth Century bishop who wrote 'Te Deum'.

One of the old church bells which has been re-cast after becoming broken

had the legend 'Sanata Virgo Virginium Ora pronobis' inscribed upon it. There is also evidence that the tower itself also had an inscription upon it although 'Anthonie Clifford' was the only legible writing and was thought to have been added after the original inscription. The old tower was replaced in 1858 by the existing tower.

The three bells are all from the original tower and are even mounted on their

original Seventeenth Century frame. Consequently, the bells are rung by pulling the clapper onto the bell as the frame could not stand the strain of swinging bells.

There is a chronological list of the Rectors and Vicars of the church on the

north wall beginning in 1290 with Thomas Broe. 1292 John de Nessefield 1684 Thomas Wildman1324 William de Broughron 1691 John Thompson1334 Hugo de Feraunt 1731 Henry Tennent William Silesden 1779 George Markham1369 Richard Moseley 1816 Walter Levett1402 John de Scardeburgh 1849 William Edward Jelf 1421 Thomas Bron 1854 Thomas Edward Morris 1443 Richard Peacock 1885 Thomas Childe Barker 1491 John de Kechyne 1904 Edward Birch Reynardson 1 503 Richard Dawson 1920 Frank Streatfield1509 John Mason 1929 Fred Ackerley Robert Martyndale 1937 Henry Whiteman1548 James Mitchell 1943 Fred Matthias Cubben 1581 Richard Bolton 1947 Matthew I Danes1595 Edward Sparke 1957 Christopher Ackroyd 1612 Edward Watkyn 1963 C.B. Underwood1638 Edward Price 1976 G.D. Rhodes1674 Thomas Sutton

Inside the church the other interesting aspects are the old font by the south

door, the church warden's chest in the north aisle and some memorials, all of which date back from the original building. The more modern items in the church are the choir stalls and altar rail which were installed after World War Two. Thet were made by the well-known 'mouse-men' otherwise known as Thompson's of Kilburn, whose trade mark is a carved mouse.

The church is surrounded by the old churchyard which contains some very old and unusual tombstones, one dating from 1667. Some examples of these are:

Lawrence Roberts — died 1799 aged 73. 'This world's a city full of crooked sires Death is a market place Where each one meets If life was merchandise that man could buy The rich would live The poor must die'

and Frederick Marsden died 1 829 aged 2 yrs 8 months 'This lovely bud So young and fair Call'd hence by early doom Just came to show How sweet a flower in paradise would bloom

The Chapels

In the early 1800's the 'church' and the 'chapel' were rival organisations and to a certain extent this was true to Carleton. The church of England was no longer the main religious body in England. It was described as 'religion without enthusiasm' and its main opposition was the Methodists, and although they too were Christians the Bible gave these men the culture they possessed and taught them to fight injustice wherever they saw it. The north of England was the centre of the Methodist religion and Carleton soon developed two major branches of the denomination, the Wesleyans and the Primative Methodists. In general, the Methodists have been described as having 'solid and useful virtues: and respectability'. This can definitely be applied to those in Carleton.

In 1861 there was an influx of workers into the village, as the mill opened,

and they introduced their new religious beliefs. Methodism however, had already begun to play a part in village life. This began in 1827-8 when there was a Wesleyan meeting every fortnight. At the end of Vicars' Row a Wesleyan chapel was built in 1860 and within a year a Primative Methodist chapel was completed on Smithy Hill. At the Primative chapel the lay-preachers were all very staid, although very devoted. They were strict about the appearance of the people who entered the chapel, clean shoes were a favourite of the many ministers and so it was known that a second pair of shoes were often taken if it was very wet of dirty so that they could be changed before entering the chapel. Mrs Barker recalled going the chapel with her gran. She often wished that the minister would come and reprimand her gran because she always wore black kid gloves but

she never put them on properly. It didn't seem fair that she should be told off for not having the but-tons on her boots fastened correctly and yet her gran could get away with her incorrectly fastened black gloves. She remembers the chapel vividly. 'Most families had their own pew, but I sat with my gran as my mother and father played the harmonium. The chimney leading from the coke stove was up the centre of the chapel and once I put my boots on the fender, but the stoker, Mr Gibson, came and kicked me in the back so I never did it again. When it was the chapel anniversary I always wore white. We sung really happy songs and the cows used to look through the windows'.

Temperance, however, was a virtue which many of them lacked. Most of

the Methodists worked a full six days and Sunday was often their only day away from the mill in which they could enjoy drinking, one of their few pleasures. As temperance restricted this pleasure it was feared that the workers would fall away from the religion, so the denomination laid down a law which prohibited the consumption of alcohol in a public house unless it was at least three miles away. This was no problem to the working men, as the Railway Inn at Cononley was just three miles away. Consequently, every Sunday the men would walk to Cononley for their drink. Gradually, a bond between the two villages developed; they had combined services on their anniversaries and many men married girls from the other parish. Whereas the church goers had links with Lothersdale, the chapellers had links with Cononley.

Mr Brown remembers a tale that has been told in his family for generations.

'One Christmas the minister came to visit the family and mother offered him a piece of Christmas cake. The minister liked the cake so much that he asked for the recipe. He happened to glance at the ingredients before he went and found that it included rum. He promptly made himself sick and he never visited the family again!'

This is an excellent example of the extremity to which religious principles

were taken in some cases. In 1902 the new Primitive Methodist Chapel was built with nearly all the money coming from the chapel-goers. The old chapel on Smithy Hill was in a bad state of repair and so was no longer used and gradually the Wesleyans, who had been practically the same as the Primitive methodists, drifted into the new chapel. Both old chapels are garages today. The School

Carleton Endowned School was founded by Elizabeth Wilkinson. She was a very caring and charitable lady who took special interest in the motherless and the poor; this was due to the fact that her own mother had died when she was only a few days' old. Elizabeth thus lived with her father, the Reverend Edward Price and her brother, Francis. They had a very Christian upbringing, their father teaching them that their duty was first to God and second to man, although it was

the trouble sometime during the Civil War and the Commonwealth in which her father became very distressed.

Elizabeth with her husband lived in the house at the east end of the Parish

Church, near the old coachway to Skipton. The school which she endowned on July 8 1709 was built onto the end of the house. It was founded 'for the benefit, advantage and preferment of male children of poor persons born and inhabiting within ye said Parish of Carlton, that the said children might be trained up and instructed in ye learning ye English tongue and be tought to write and cost accounts and afterwards be put out apprentices to trades, and that a certain number of other children of poor persons male and female be taught to read English'. However, it was also to perpetuate her father's and brother's names. In 1 710 she gave the Vicar of Carlton a Seventeenth Century silver tankard which had once belonged to her brother. She wrote that it had to be kept at the vicarage "in memory of my said dear brother, Francis Price, who was born there and of my said father, Edward Price who was Vicar of ye said Parish of Carlton and dyed their. And I will that the said Tankard be produced every St Thomas' Day . . . . when they (the Trustees) are at dinner that day.'

St Thomas' Day was an important event in Carlton for on this day the

twelve Trustees chose the boys that would attend the school. The first scholars were boys between seven and nine who were to remain at the school until they were fourteen and then they would begin a trade. When a boy no longer attended the school the trustees would chose someone to replace him on St Thomas' Day.

Elizabeth Wilkinson bequeathed eighty-eight acres of land in The Hawes

near Gargrave to the Trustees, and it was the rent and profits from this land which was to finance the school and scholars. The pupils could only attend the school if they went to church on Sunday and Sunday School regularly and they also had to be baptized. If the scholars did not abide by these regulations they were expelled.

Each was clothed in a specific outfit, namely a 'coat, waist-coat, britchers,

and a round cap of purple cloth all alike in goodness and value, also a pair of purple stockings, and a pair of shoes, two shirts, two neckcloths and two hankershiffs . . . .' They were named 'Mr Prices' boyes' after her brother.

Besides donating the previously mentioned silver tankard, Elizabeth gave a

pewter dinner service which was to be used by the Trustees at the St Thomas' Day dinner. These are now kept in the bank for safe-keeping but are occasionally brought out for displays. Elizabeth Wilkinson died in 1716 and on the west wall of the Parish church a mural tablet was placed in her memory.

In 1769 the school was rebuilt at a cost of £89. 18. 5d. as it was in a state of disrepair. It was a much larger building to accommodate twenty children. Their education was to be free however in 1818 it was decided that the parents were expected to buy the necessary books required by their sons. A year later the school was examined by the National Society and they wanted the ceiling highered so another forty children could attend the school. The extension of the school buildings was also requested in 1853 by the Vicar, Reverend W. E. Jelf, who felt 'that all the poor children in the Parish be educated.' This was a very important financial problem as the school could not afford the expense of extensive rebuilding. However, the Dean and Chapter of Christ Church, Oxford, intervened and gave the vicar permission to use the Tythe Barn as he pleased. Therefore he converted it into a rent free girls' school. The National Society stated that one hundred and sixty children could be taught there and so Reverend Jelf achieved his aim to educate all the children of the Parish.

In 1875 the idea of building a new school and house was foremost in the minds of the Trustees and by 1876 plans for its construction were under-way. The previous inspector's report stated 'the school buildings are very poor and unsatisfactory .... they consist of two small upper rooms, low in the roof and unconveniently crowded .... I have no doubt that the efficiency of the school will be much increased when projected new buildings are really completed. My Lords can not undertake to pay any further grant to the Boys' School in the Present Premices.'

The site of the new school was on an area of Glebe land near to the Church and the completion of the building cost just over £2,000. The old school and house were demolished and the land sold to the church for the extension of the church yard. The new school was used for the village boys. All the education was free but in 1880 a contribution was expected off those who could afford to pay for their child's education and those who could not afford had to apply to the Board of Guardians.

The opening of the new school was remembered vividly by the villagers.

One older inhabitant recalls her mother telling her of the splendid event. 'When the new school was opened it was a very proud day for the villagers. A bazaar tent was erected in the boys' yard. The boys marched from the old to the new school donned in new uniforms to show that they were special.' In 1902 a similar event was held, that is a bazaar and 'social' to raise money to pay off the £460 borrowed for the building of the new school. As a result of the great local effort, the debt was paid off. The school is now over one hundred years old and is still used. There have been two extensions in 1910 and 1964 and so today all the children of the village can attend the one school.

The School Log books kept by the Headmasters over the years hold some very interesting comments about the school, its teachers and its pupils. Every June, a school inspector made a report of the school and on most occasions this was extremely good; however the 1878 report was not as good as expected as the girls, who had just started the school, were noted as being 'in fair order, though too fond of talking and whispering during the examination.'

On 12 May 1871 the Headmaster received this letter:

Factory Inspector's Office 10 Whitehall

Sir, I see your motive for entering the ages of the two boys in the certificate book. But in future please keep your remarks in that book to the headings thereon. At the same time when you know that a boy of 12 is passed for 13 let me know and I will look after it.

This resulted after a number of boys were found to be working underage and over time at the mill and unfortunately this became persistent of having to be dealt with by the Headmaster. In 1875 'The New Factory Act' had come into operation and the children, instead of working a half-day at the mill now had to work on alternate days, the log book revealed that absence numbers thus decreased.

Towards the end of 1 878 scarlet fever broke out in the village and over the

next few years there were a series of serious epidemics. Jan 1879 'Scarlet fever still on the increase.' Aug 1879 'Another outbreak of fever.' March 1880 'The fever once again broke out.' May 1880 'A pupil died on Wednesday and was this day interred in the churchyard. Mr Eddy sent for the names of all the children who are away sick, or reported sick, with the name of their residence for the use of the medical officer of health.' Oc t1880 'Whooping cough in village.'

The attendance at school dropped drastically, many of the pupils being

unaccounted for. It was found that many families were keeping their children at home either to help them do chores or because they felt that school was the cause of the spread of disease. However, it was more than likely that the disease was spread in the mill, but still some still sent their children to work at the mill to replace absentees. Mr Smith (the Headmaster) made some more entries concerning the problem. Oct 1 880 'Mr Eddy came .... asked me to warn the children that if they did not continue to come regularly the Board would prosecute the parents of the negligent.' Jan 1881 'I told the children that according to the act they must be present every time the school was open, and that if they absented themselves from any

cause except sickness their names would be forwarded to the Local Authorities.'

Attendance was improved and gradually the epidemics disappeared.

Another phase of illness broke out though in January 1898, in April, the log shows the extent of the illness. 'I received the following dated April 1st 1898. Officer of Health's Department Settle Influenza and Measles Under the circumstances I have to recommend that the school should be closed for 3 weeks. The school should also be fumigated and no child allowed back to school if there had been a fresh case within the past three weeks.'

In August there was another outbreak of Scarlet Fever and once again the

school had to be closed in January to be disinfected, but reopened soon after as many children had recovered. On a slightly lighter note, George Langley became the headmaster in 1890 and he was renowned for his ideas on cleanliness and strictness and this is reflected in his noting his clogs cleaned. He was in a disgraceful condition—he has not returned.' 20 February 1899 'I have received numerous complaints from Miss Walton and from parents of scholars that an offensive smell comes from one of the pupils. I have told his mother but the smell is as disagreeable as ever this morning. It was thus decided with J. Slingsby Esq., that the lad should be excluded from school until there was some change. I sent a note with the lad to his father telling him the reason for his son's exclusion from school and advising him to call a doctor.'

21 February 1899 'Received word from Mrs .... that the Doctor said there was no ailment. I saw the doctor who said the smell arose probably from uncleanness. Sent lad home again until there was an alteration.'

Throughout the history of the school there were other problems, some although serious at the time are now quite amusing.

8 March 1893 'Whilst detaining some scholars last night to finish their work, Mrs G, one of the girls' mothers, came into school and created a disturbance by abusing me and ordering the girl to go home at once. I objected but the girl went, and on her coming the afternoon, I sent her home to fetch her father. She has not returned.'

9 March 1893 'Last evening I visited her father and placed the matter before him. He promised to ask his wife to come to school in the morning with the girl.

This morning the girl came and said her mother was in bed ill. Under the circumstances I allowed the girl to remain at school.' 10 March 1893 'J. Slingsby Esq., visited the school and I acquainted him with the whole matter. He endorsed my action and promised to see the father. After morning school he came to say that he had seen him, but no satisfactory result had been arrived at. In any similar occurrence he advises me to expel the intruder and report the matter to the managers for further action.

Mr J. Arthur Slingsby often visited the school and he was a greatly respected village character. Many of the people were employed by him at the mill and in most cases they were treated very well by him and his family. On August 4th 1882 he married the Vicar's daughter, Amelia Morris and as both the Slingsbys and the Morrises were important families in the village and the school, the children were allowed to have a day on holiday. Other days when holidays were allowed were for Skipton Show in August, the 'Thanksgiving Day for the Recovery of the Prince of Wales' on March 1 1872, the cricket match at Skipton — 'United South v Skipton and district on 24 June 1879 and the occasional circus at Skipton. Other days when attendance was low were sheep-washing, the hunt, weddings, haymaking and the week before the Feast Day when the girls stayed at home to assist their mothers in 'cleaning down.'

The St Thomas' Day tradition was remembered each year with a church service in remembrance of Elizabeth Wilkinson. Today the Trustees still meet and the church service is held. The only difference is that the purple outfit of 'Mr Price's boyes' disappeared years ago, as did the Thomas' Day meal.

CHAPTER TWO

THE GROWTH OF THE VILLAGE

In 1841 the first Ordnance Survey map of Carleton was completed. From this map the development of the houses can be seen. The oldest houses are Trappes Hall (1524), Old Hall (1584), Robin Hall (1500's), the Swan Inn (1693), and the Queen Anne House (late 1600's). These are all situated by the main water course through the village except for the Swan Inn. It was believed that between the Swan and Trappes Hall there were extensive orchards. Through the middle of this was a path which lead to a thatched cottage situated near to the Post Office (that is today). (There is no evidence that this is true but there was a building on this site).The farm which is now situated on the right, adjacent to the Swan Inn, was once the Airedale Inn. There is no date for the building of this although it is known to have had various extensions and alterations over the years. The coaches which brought custom to the Inn were kept in the coach house which can now be found opposite the school on the lane leading to the Church.

The Swan Inn had its own coach house adjoining the Inn as well as stables for the horses and some of the livestock as it was also a small holding. In 1815 South View was built. As this was between the Airedale Inn and the Swan Inn it was probably used to house workers such as stable hands and perhaps the extra travellers who couldn't be accomodated at either Inn. Another possible reason for its site could be due to its closeness to the church or good land.Other houses which appear on this map and still remain today are Beck Side Farm and its outbuildings, Glebe House and its outbuildings, Dale House, Gala Stones, and many barns and outbuildings. Today houses have been rebuilt on the sites of the old ones; Sunny Bank for instance, which was originally Dog Row and Vicar's Row which was built in 1852 by Dr Jelf, the vicar, hence the name. Gradually the village began to expand. In 1836 Plum Tree Cottage was built by a family of weavers, and more people began to inhabit the area. Many houses were renewed, rebuilt or even pulled down, but the biggest change of all began with the rebuilding of the church in 1859. This was followed by the Wesleyan Chapel 1860, Primitive Chapel 1861, the New Mill 1861, and the Grange 1862.New workers were accommodated in the three 'doss houses' and then eventually the tramp weavers began to settle. The school became more pro-sperous with new Acts of Parliament trying to encourage more education and less manual labour for children.

Then in 1888 the Slingsby family undertook a massive building programme Dog Row was completely rebuilt and new rows of terraced houses were but along East

View and Orchard Hills. The houses were more spacious with adequate facilities, being much better than the previous one-up-one-down style.

The Slingsbys s also built West Road to accommodate workers for the smaller

mill, Garden Terrace, West View and most of the houses leading off Vicar's Row across the orchard land of Trappes Hall. This area in the centre of the village became the most densely populated, especially by the mill workers. The main street of Carleton was dominated by the mill building and the huge mill chimney which loomed over the small terraces. However, there was still much 'green' land left in Carleton. Opposite The Swan Inn was a sloping field named the Gala Field by the villagers. The name was obviously because every year a fete was held here on the feast day. However, like the land in the centre of the village, houses eventually spread here too. Wheatsheaf House, best known today as the Co-op was built here. This was a meeting place and later a large village store. The land of the Gala Field was sold and Park Lane and Park View built here.

Across the road, at the bottom of Park Lane are Church Villas. This was

originally just the one cottage. It was then extended at each end to form two cottages. The old cornerstones, hayloft and old roofing are now obvious on the building.

Before World War One, The Swan had gardens and allotments on the land

between the Inn and the church, between the old buildings belonging to Airedale Inn and the Tythe Barn. There was originally one row of houses opposite the Tythe Barn called Batten Row, supposedly because it was rat infested. This row extended almost as far as Vicar's Row and was rebuilt because of the bad state of repair. Next to the Tythe Barn was a huge old tree and was often the gathering place of all the village children.

After the war The Swan sold off some of its land and Louvain Terrace was

built, the name derived from the famous world war battlefield. The old tree was cut down and Oxford Terrace was built. To complete the modernisation programme Church Street was built adjoining the corner shop at the end of Vicar's Row. This new terrace was built on some of the land of Catlow Gardens where the village trades were centered. Eventually there was no call for the little wooden huts which housed the once prosperous traders and so they were demolished. Between Catlow Gardens and the Primitive Chapel was another row of houses. There were the notably small houses of Fox Croft, with the one-up- one-down 'corner cupboard' on one end. There was also a little cottage here which dated before the 1 840's as it appears on the Tythe map.

Working round to Beck Side, again, more houses had been constructed. In 1853 the Slingsbys purchased Robin Hall which was a large building on the beck side between Dale House and the Queen Anne House. The lower part of the Hall, however, was demolished and in its place a cottage was built. Sometime between the building of this cottage and 1900 a row of five houses existed between the cottage and the Queen Anne House because the house numbers along Beck Side are not consecutive. The cottage is number nine and the Queen Anne House is number fifteen. These five cottages were demolished in order for the new chapel to be constructed.

There is, however, a row of cottages which seems to have disappeared completely. It was called Robin Row and was obviously situated near Robin Hall. It is known that the row was in existence around 1 889 and there have been various suggestions as to where it may have been but the most likely position is where one to seven Beck Side is now situated because in 1841 the Tythe map shows a building here, so perhaps Beck Side replaced it. Trappes Hall

This house was built around 1524 (although this date has been queried) along side the village beck and is the oldest inhabited house in Carleton. It was owned by Christopher Trappes of Nidd Hall who married Elizabeth Tempest and thus moved to Carleton.

The exterior of the house is very well preserved still having the original mullion windows and drip moulds, although over the centuries there have been alterations. These are evident in two straight joints on the north side showing a possible site for the main door and there is also a drip mould and this was likely to have been over another mullioned window. On the ground floor there is a huge ten-light mullion. Above this are the two-light windows and the two small attic windows. In 1696 a window tax was imposed and as Trappes Hall had many, some of the minor ones were blocked up. The tax was abolished in 1851 but the windows remained blocked.

The interior is even more interesting, especially the huge chamfered

arch fireplace. This is made from two gritstone blocks with no key-stone. To each side of the fireplace there are two chamfered archways. The northern one leads into a lobby where the original door may have been, this can be justified as two of the original hinges remain on the outside wall. Also in this lobby there are signs of a spiral staircase which reaches the attic. The other archway leads into the dining room, however the arch is not original because when the doorway was blocked up the stone was used from this arch.

The dining room has also got a huge fireplace. The central chimney stack appears to originate from these large fireplaces and thus it suggests that this was once one fireplace, which was probably big enough to have a spit running right across it.

The most interesting part of the house, however, are the attics,

with two spiral staircases leading to them. The attic rooms are positioned around the central chimney and they are divided by hair and plaster partitions. On the east and s des. the eaves slope to the floor but the bases are walled off. In the south east corner however there is a small triangular opening leading to a space in the eaves behind the wall. Here is the space for one man to sit or lie. In the floor there is a grooved wooden slat which would completely cut off the space. To the south of the chimney stack is a room which was thought to be the chapel and beneath the chapel, next to the spiral staircase is another space about five square feet and two feet high. When it was found, old chaff was scattered on the floor and this illustrates how discreet this priests hiding place was, as it hadn't been disturbed for many years. Trappes Hall dosen't have any cellars, but on the west side of the house a large lean-to was added (probably as a wood seasoning shed) and cellars were found beneath this. Outside the house are the original foundations of the courtyard, all the cobbles are the originals. The house also had an extensive orchard. This decreased in size at first because more houses were built and then most of it was taken over for the building of air raid shelters during the war.

The design of Trappes Hall has a definite mysterious air and this shows that Trappes family must have been involved in some very strange doings the.

Old Hall In 1 5 8 4 Roger Ferrand built the Old Hall on the outskirts of the village.

The Ferrand lived in this area before this date though as five generations earlier Roger Ferrand had married Isabel de Altaripa of Carleton and the Ferrands were originally the gate keepers of Skipton Castle and so were involved, to a certain extent with the Cliffords who had their hunting lodge at Carleton Biggin. The Old Hall I is another building situated close to the beck, more than likely for the water supply but unlike Trappes Hall only the remains of this ancient building can be seen. There are a few of the original features left though of this presumed manor house. The floor is formed by a number of huge paving stones placed in a diamond formation on a very solid earth base. Some of the original oak beams remain in perfect condition, as do the mullion windows on the front gable of the house. Above the five-light window the 'Ferrand stone' used to be situated but since the Hall has been deserted and left in ruin for so long, the stone was removed and preserved at Harden Grange near Bingley

Thomas Parkinson bought the Carleton Hall estate in 1651 from the Fer-rands who originally purchased some of the estate as early as 1454. Thomas Parkinson passed on the Hall to Dr Martin Lister, his son-in-law, a celebrated naturalist and court physician. In 1670 the Hall passed from the hands of the Lister family and was sold to Mr Lane Fox of Bingley.

When industry came to the village the Hall seemed to lose its importance. It

was taken over by Wormer, a Quaker, but by around 1860 the farm became uninhabited and consequently fell to ruin.

Today the Hall remains a ruin. However, a new farm was built and some of the land belonging to the Old Hall is still farmed today. At the end of the original farm there was a cottage which deteriorated over the years and was eventually used as pigstys. This no longer remains as it was pulled down in order for a track to the new farm house to be laid.

Robin Hall

The actual date of construction of this building is not known but its ar-chitecture reveals that it is about four hundred years old. The house originally stood on its own, almost on the beck side. To each side was a croft, except at the top was a fruit orchard. There are no records of the Hall's owners either, and this leaves the unanswered question of who Robin was! The first noted owners were the Tempests of Broughton Hall. They owned Robin Hall and the surrounding land in the early 1800's and then in 1853 it was sold along with eight acres to the Slingsby family who had recently become involved in village trade.

The Hall was very firmly constructed even though only wooden pins were

used. However for some some reason the Slingsbys decided to build a more modern cottage and therefore pulled down half of the Hall. Fortunately they left a huge inglenook fireplace and spiral staircase intact. The spiral staircase was built on the side of the house giving a curved exterior wall. There is a small peep-hole in this wall which gives a remarkably clear view of Skipton and the castle. The situation of this hole must be significant but, because the history of the house is unknown, the reason is uncertain.

Robin Hall, after the building of the cottage, was then used as a 'doss

house' for the tramp weavers until 1871 when Thomas Fattorini bought it and the tramp weavers were encouraged to settle in the village. Fattorini then leased the Hall out to villagers. It appears that many families lived here during the late 1800's and early 1 900's. The Garnetts lived here and ran a pig farm in the croft and so it was often referred to as the 'Piggery', an unpleasant name for such a pretty building. The last residents of the Hall were the Wisemans, but they moved on to the new estate which had been built in the fields above Robin Hall. The houses were modern and more comfortable than fireplace had been bricked

up and mullion windows had been taken out and so much of its appeal had disappeared but now without trace.

The building is on very strong foundations and has characteristic thick walls. There are still a few mullion windows complete with drip moulds. The original s t i l l ex is ts as does the spiral staircase. Recently the inglenook fireplace has been opened up and all the keystones were found intact as was the warming oven and huge chimney. The Queen Anne House

The history of this house is unfortunately very vague: most important is the fact that the date stone above the front door is a much later addition to the h o u s e and although it says 1672 the house was built sometime between 1710 and 1 730. The evidence to support this is the old inglenook fireplace found in the front room, which dates from this era. It was believed that this house was a good example of a 'passage house' with a front door opening into a passage which led directly through to a back door, then at each side there was a large room. To the left was a living room and to the right the sleeping room, and upstairs was a loft for hay and straw. Each room had a mullioned window and huge oak beams across the ceilings.

Throughout the years various changes have taken place in this house. It is

unlikely that the building was originally a farm house, by the outline on the 1841 map, and as there are no corner stones on one end of the house, probably because stables or an extra barn was once situated here.

An excellent example of a beehive oven can be found in this house on the

right side of the inglenook fireplace. This, as suggested by the name, is beehive shaped with no chimney. It was kept heated by the main fire, obviously becoming cooler throughout the day. This latter fact probably influenced the house becoming the village bakery with fresh bread being made every morning.

This house was used as the mill manager's residence and originally the barn and perhaps a courtyard at the back all belonged to the mill. Then three adjoining cottages were built in the place of the barn. To the other side some cottages were also built, again for the mill workers, but these were demolished to make way for the new Methodist chapel in 1902. The unusual thing though was that the house adjoining the Queen Anne building was only partly demolished leaving a minute one-up-one-down building.

The house then had a new roof put on. This was about two feet higher than

the previous one and was therefore at a much steeper angle. There was no obvious reason for this except that it was the fashion at this time to have higher rooms. The many alterations in the house make it difficult to understand the layout of rooms as extra doors, windows and walls have been added. However, at the back of the house is the scullery which still has the old meat hooks from

the roof, and there are similar hooks in the kitchen which was once the main bakery.

In 1902 when the Chapel was built there appears to have been a drastic

change in the land behind the house. One old Carletoner remembers a track running behind the house, through a gate into a field. Today this track can-not be found because there is a garden which is literally as deep as the first floor of the house. The garden has more than likely covered a ground floor mullion window as well as a courtyard of some type.

At the turn of the century the house became the baker's shop run by the Farnells and again the house was adapted to this purpose. Glebe House

This is another old house of the village, although its exact date is not known its architecture is not unlike that of The Swan Inn and this may give a possible date of its construction. It is likely that this house was originally a 'yeoman farm'. It was just a rectangular building with thick exterior stone walls. There were two large mullioned windows on the ground floor and this suggests that there was just one large room when the house was built, this being typical of a yeoman farm. Everything would take place in this one room, it would be living, sleeping and cooking quarters for the whole family.

There was a first floor as well, but this would have been kept especially for

the storage of straw, hay and provisions, the original forking hole is still visible at one end of the house. Originally there would have been at least two large beams between the two floors to support the weight of the store.

The farm would have been in the church's possession but there are very few

records concerning its ownership and its eventual sale by the church. Unfortunately like many buildings Glebe House underwent a series of changes during the 1800's. This was the time when country-folk tried to produce a fashionable town house from their country abode. The mullion windows, then unfashionable, were knocked out, false partitions were added as were new extensions and the house took a whole new appearance, but then town-folk gradually moved into the village, appreciated its heritage and restored its authenticity by replacing the mullions and unboxing the beams. The Alms Houses

On the road leading into Carleton from Skipton are the Alms Houses. The buildings occupy three sides of a small stone-flagged quadrangle, the fourth side being an impressive gateway. Originally the downstairs opposite the gates was a communal dining room. To each side were twelve separate bed-sits in two storeys, the upper rooms being reached by a wooden staircase and balcony.

Here is the inscription on the wall of the Alms Houses, and to any visitor it gives a brief history of this quaint building (although it is confusing in places). However more details about its history are known, the Alms Houses were originally a form of hospital. In 1 707 it became an official charity with eight trustees. Ferrand Spence left his money to be used in the building of a hospital here for the poor, half of these being from Market Bosworth in Leicestershire. There were originally twelve 'in pensioners' all being over the age of sixty.

SPENCES COURT

The Carleton Hospital and Spence's Charity. This Almshouse and an endowment for out-pensioners of Carleton and Lothersdale was founded in the year 1698 by Ferrand Spence of London and provided with a further generous endowment by Agnes Vardill Niven of Carleton in the year 1872. The tablet perpetuates the memory of FERRAND SPENCE the founder of the charity Anna Jane Niven and Agnes Vardill the mother and maternal grandmother of the benefactress

Agnes Vardill Niven and the restoration of the Almshouses by Jessie Blossom Coulthurst of Gargrave House, Gargrave, formerly of Ravenshaw, Carleton

and the Coulthurst Trust in the year 1955.

TO THE GLORY OF GOD

There were several rules which had to be accepted by the inhabitants of the hospital. Each had to attend church every Sunday, there were three inspections of the hospital every year and no visitors were allowed to stay. In return the inhabitants received 30s. per year and each had a small garden.

This charity was financed by the profits made from various pieces of land

which Ferrand Spence also bequeathed. Although each room was well equipped in 1825 a report was made revealing that the building was 'old and in-adequate'. Apparently the dining room was disused, as were the gardens. More important, though, was that pensioners from Market Bosworth only numbered four instead of six. This was because of the tiresome and gruelling journey from Market Bosworth which most of the elderly could not manage alone, and an escort would have nowhere to stay due to the terms of the charity.

In 1872 Agnes Niven gave £17,000 to the charity and so a programme of

modernisation could be carried out. Because of some of the architectural features the charity did not want to destroy the old building. By 1888 the gardens had been put back into action, but as the pensioners could not manage them they were rented by the villagers.

The rooms were all modernised and it was accepted by the trustees that the

elderly persons of Market Bosworth would not especially want to travel such a

distance and so two more places were opened to inhabitants of Carleton. Gradually the residential qualification changed to five years spent in Carleton. Village Shops

Over the past century Carleton has never lacked a village shop. There has always been a grocer, butcher, baker, tinner and many shoe makers; the list could be endless. Many of the shops were very basic often found within the front room of a house.

Perhaps the most well-known village shop was that belonging to Sarah

Farnell at the Queen Anne House on Beckside. The shop, was in the front room at the right of the house. The villagers remember several different things about the shop. The sweets obviously attracted many of the young eyes.

'There was Charlie rock, all stripey'. We used to have really black spanish'. 'It always smelt of freshly made bread'

Above the door inside as a door bell and often Sarah had to break from her chores to attend to the customers. The pwners of this shop had to competed with other shopkeepers in the village. The Post Office could boast some tasty confectionary, Mrs Middleton couldn't be excelled when it came to fruit pies and John Jody (John Joseph Smith) had some of the freshest vegetables available in his shop in George Street.

In fact the village appeared to be self-sufficient in its services. For many

years there were four butchers in the village. Two, Mr Dean and John Peel, shared a slaughter house on Park Lane. They were both farmers but Mr Dean had a butcher's shop on Park Lane and Mr Peel one at the farm on the corner of The Wend. Mr Peel also had a business selling meat in the Dales. He travelled many miles carrying the meat on a cart with J.A.S ............PEEL along the side. Billy Archer had a butcher's shop on Brook View by the foot bridge and the other butcher's shop was in The Swan buildings and was owned by the Overends.

Before World War Carleton had its own row of wooden huts opposite to

Orchard Hill Terrace. The goods on sale were quite luxurious for this village. The Whiteoaks and Smiths had a fish shop and green grocers. Mr Whiteoak took his goods around in a hand cart too, this was very handy for the housewife but the children prefered the barrow owned by Mr Smith. From this barrow home made ice cream could be bought. 'It was delicious' was one exclamation ' . . . . home made from eggs and milk.' As most children had very little money the running rate for an ice cream was a ha'penny and a penny or tuppence for a wafer.

There was Jubbs' shop selling chocolates, chews and candles, and also a

wool shop run by Victor Hartley on Catlow Gardens. Many of the women were knitters and made their families' clothes but there were also four tailors in the village (around the turn of the century) and numerous show makers. Clogs were

the commonest form of footwear, worn by the youngest to the oldest member of the family for almost every occasion.

When Carleton was used as a stop for drovers, Coddy Fold was used as a

shodder's and a cobbler's yard as was one of the barns by Smithy Bridge. Gala Stones was the clog ironers and the cottage next to the Queen Anne House was a clog repairers.

There is no doubt who was the most well-known clogger, 'Tedger Smith'. He had a little hut behind Swan Street. Here he repaired the villagers' clogs, ironed them and polished them. His small industry was the most prosperous in the trade because gradually many more villagers brought their clogs to him and the other shoemakers disappeared. His fine and precise skills were not forgotten because his sons, Vint and Herbert, followed their father's footsteps and continued for over sixty years.

It is hard to believe that trade in Carleton was so extensive that it included a

painting and decorating business, and store run by Norman Hind in Park Lane, a joiner's and undertaker's business in Park Lane, owned by the Whiteoak family, and a tin smith's run by the Hodgsons. This shop was in Church Villas but Mr Hodgson also had a cart which he took into the Dales full of all sorts of metal goods.

As Mr Peel, Mr Archer and Mr Hodgen travelled with their goods to other

villages, so other traders came to Carleton. Mr Potts came with his horse-drawn cart with a fancy canopy selling hardwear such as pots and pans.

"Pots'! shouted Potts'.' One villager laughed at his appropriate name which used to amuse the children. Mr Potts was not as welcome though as a Skipton man who walked to Carleton with a wicker basket over each arm 'yes, our own muffin man .... ' was the explanation ' . . . . wonderful muffins, oatcakes and crumpets, all home made.'

As the roads improved and transport became more mechanical, the

villagers were introduced to one of the first motor cycles, with a sidecar. This appeared one cold winter's night accompanied by the cries of 'cockles, mussels, cockles, mussels.' The poor children did have problems about which to spend their valued pocket money, from sweets to muffins to cockles from the sea!

Carleton had soon become caught up in the industrial revolution and half a

century later the motor vehicle made its impact. Mr Hodgson, the tinner, found that he could travel faster and further with his goods in his motor car and it was this factor that spurred John Lawson into beginning the first private motor carrier service in Carleton. He accommodated his wagons in the barns on Smithy Bridge.

There are three descriptions that have been mentioned time and time again by

the villagers when questioned about Carleton's trade.

'Niff' was often talked about without any explanation. Niff was Mr Herbert Brown, one of the two village barbers, the other being Mr Ashton Garnett. 'Pin stripe trousers and a bowler hat' was Mr Naylor of Norway Cottage, the coal merchant, 'a little dapper man.' The third description was of a place which all the villagers frequented. It had 'three stone steps and a flagged floor' and was the post office on Main Street which was run for a long period by Mr and Mrs Arthur Dale and Miss Dale, before this it was situated at Grundy Farm. Unfortunately, as Skipton became a better developed market town and competition within Carleton increased, village trade declined and soon the smell of freshly baked bread from Croft Heads and the sight of the new car-casses in the butcher's shop disappeared, never to return.

CHAPTER THREE THE SLINGSBY FAMILY

Of course, if the villagers of Carleton feel that someone should take the credit for the growth of industry in the village, the Slingsby family deserves it the most.

The first records of the family originated in 1749 when John

Slingsby was born. He became a drover and labourer and married Sarah Thistlethwaite in 1 773. They soon began a family and William, their first child, was the father' to the Slingsbys of Carleton. William was a farmer and gentleman. He in turn married and had seven children. Anne his youngest daughter was the first to move to Carleton after her marriage to William Stockdale the local Curate Later she was followed by her brothers, Will iam and John, who found Carleton's new modern mill trade. The third brother Frank, was also drawn to Carleton by his family and although he had very little interest in the mil trade he was happy to settle at Carla Beck with his wife Kate.

Will iam was born in 1819 and he became a cotton spinner, but

the industrial revolution which swept the country encouraged his enthusiasm and whetted his appetite to run a mill of his own one day. William married Mary Ann and they had five children, out of whom Mary, Frances and Edith Ann remained spinsters and lived at Carla Beck. Frederick William was a Barrister and he had one son and in 1871 Sarah Eleanor married Herbert Todd, a clergyman from Carleton and along with William Cecil and his wife Alizon, settled in the village. John, William's brother was born in 1821 and like his brother began his career as a cotton spinner and then became a manufacturer. He moved into Carleton with his wife Helen, and they lived at Ravenshaw. John had three sons, but only one John Arthur survived. John Arthur immediately followed his father into the manufacturing trade. The village mill had opened when he was only seven years old and from then on he yearned to work there. In 1 882 he married the vicar of Carleton's daughter, Amelia Fredrica Morris and had a family of twelve.

In 1882, when William Cecil married Alizon they moved into Dale

House, which was a modern extention to Loftburn, a detatched house which had been built in the village in 1 732. Loftburn became the servants quarters and the family lived in the new house. William Cecil, however did not spend much of his time in Carleton, as he was an explorer. He spent most of his time mountaineering in Norway and even

had a glacier named after him. Apparently some villagers recently visited Norway and they happened to mention that they came from Carleton in Yorkshire and some Norweigians heard this and invited them into their homes to show them a wall hanging. Surprisingly this was originally a piece of fabric from one of the looms at the mill in Carleton, a present from William Cecil Slingsby for their hospitality whilst he was on one of his expeditions. He became quite a local hero!

Alizon his wife stayed at home whilst William was abroad and in this time

she brought up five children. In 1891 they moved into a further extention of their home ------- Dale Garth—as it later became known. This was an unusual building. At one side a tower shaped alcove was built. The explanation for this was that a circular formation of the windows enabled the room to catch the sunlight for most of the day. This was ideal for Mrs Slingsby, as she became bedridden and thus conditions for her were favourable.

Mrs Slingsby became very attached to this house, spending all her time in one of two alcoved rooms. However at the turn of the twentieth century William C c bought Beech Hill House, a much larger residence for the growing fami l y but only the children moved; their mother still stayed at Dale Garth, the excuse tieing her health and so this family occupied two of the large village houses.

One of the household staff who stayed with Mrs Slingsby was the

children's nanny, Edith, and when the Slingsbys left it was this lady 'The Grey Lady' who is supposed to haunt the house, walking from the landing of Dale House, through the wall into Loftburn, the servants quarters.

Some of the older villagers also still refer to 'Dame Ediths Brew', which is the

road which runs between the house and the small plantation belonging to this family.

William Cecil Slingsby also left a further mark on the village. A little way

down the beck side from Dale House, at one end of Robin Hall, there is a house at the end of a short terrace. This house is irregular in comparison to the rest of the row. It has steps with a banister leading to the front door and it is higher than the other houses. However the most unusual and interesting part of the house is its chimney stack. The style of the building and its chimneys is characteristic of many of the Norweigian House which Cecil Slingsby stayed in. He therefore built this house, Norway Cottage, to remind him of his many adventures and also to impress upon the villagers the many achievements of this great family. The respect for this man is still evident as the name of the cottage has never changed, just as he wished.

William Cecil's cousin John Arthur Slingsby was also married in 1882 to

the vicar's daughter, Amelia Frederica Morris who was already well known to the villagers. There couldn't have been a more prominent family than that of

John Arthur's. John Arthur's physical appearance was very noticeable as he was lame, and walked with two sticks, but more often than not he would be seen on his tricycle, with Punch, his dog, following behind. John Arthur was a well respected gentleman, perhaps because many in the villager feared his power and determination. He owned their homes and he employed them, he was one of the school Governors and also a Justice of the Peace. One villager recalled 'if you didn't greet him your name was mud.'

The people employed at the mill were obviously very conscious of doing the

right thing in front of their employer and consequently there was very little trouble at the mill. They all knew that one thing that John Arthur would not tolerate was the formation of Unions. He saw no need for them as he felt mill conditions and social facilities were very satisfactory, thus there was very little difficulty in keeping peace and those who felt that union activity was necessary were asked to leave the mill. Barnoidswick had became a new local industrial centre with many modern mills all of which were seeking new employees, especially those with some previous experience and so the villagers didn't have to move very far.

The hours at the mill were long. At 7.00 a.m. the clogs could be heard

clattering to the mill and then at 8.30 back home for breakfast, as regular as clockwork. The work would continue all through the year with the people doing the same jobs, winding, and beaming, ring spinning and weaving. However the people seldom thought badly of the working conditions and seemed to have ample time to go and enjoy themselves. Many an evening there would be time for a clog dance on the 'Co-op Flags' outside Wheat-sheaf House, accompanied by the mouth organ. In the summer there were fancy dress parades and in the winter busking and mumming.

The Slingsby family encouraged such activity for they caused no problems and were an escape from the mill work. John Arthur often opened his own home ground for garden parties in the summer, where the band would play and the choir would sing.

The whole Slingsby family was also renowned for having good relation-

ships with its house staff. William Cecil had a strong friendship with 'Bridge' the gardener and often wrote to him from Norway, and all of the Slingsby children grew up alongside the village children, some of whom were often invited to birthday parties. However no one ever forgot Siingsby's position. The family always sat the one side of the Church and the servants at the other.

During world war one Mrs Amelia Slingsby became very involved in the war

effort, perhaps because her five sons all went into the forces, She began Mothers' Union knitting programme and within twenty-six months these items were made by villagers and sent to the front.

107 shirts 62 waistcoats 2 jerseys 104 belts 73 singlets 2 vests

124 mufflers 3 pairs knee caps 4 pairs operation stockings 245 pairs of socks 13 bags 1 pair cuffs88 pillow cases 11 pillow cases 5 pairs hospital cuffs 54 pairs of mittens 8 pneumonia jackets56 helmets 7 bed jackets

Each month extra additions were listed in the church magazine. The family,

unfortunately experienced much grief during the war years. In 1915 Lieutenant Anthony Edward King Slingsby of the 6th Duke of Wellingtons

Regiment was killed in action. Within six months of his death the villagers learnt of the death of his brother Captain Morris Slingsby in Mesopotamia. The obituary in the Church Magazine said:

'Only a few days before Mr Chamberlain (the Foreign Secretary) had stated that he (Morris Slingsby) was a double specialist, as a soldier and as a Indian Soldier conversant with the language and with the customs of Indian troops. Captain Morris Slingsby had not only a thorough knowledge of the various languages and manners and customs of in-than troops, but also understood their minds and sympathised with them, and was consequently trusted and loved by them.' The Slingsbys living at Carla Beck had already had much more sorrow

than they deserved but two months later, twenty-four year old Stephen, a naval officer was killed in the Battle of Jutland. Mrs Slingsby was one of the thousands of mothers who saw her family devastated by the war. Only two of her sons were left alive, but neither would pull out of the war until its end, but for both the end was much earlier than expected. By 1918 John Arthur had no sons to take his place at the mill. Each one had died for his country, although at this time patriotism had little significance compared with such a great loss within one family.

Eventually John Arthur became less able to get around, perhaps the death of

his sons had aged him. He died in 1930 aged 76, and one sentence in his obituary in the local paper illustrated how many people would remember his rise in importance in the village.

'He rode to meetings on a tricycle—supplanted by a pony and trap and now a motor car.... he represented Carleton and never came across any competition.' After his death the villagers had to adapt to life without this man who had

become almost a figurehead to them. A tale exists today that for a long time after he died his wheelchair was positioned in the same place at the back of the church and as the mill workers entered they 'doffed' their hats to it as they always had done.

Who could compete with such a family which had built this once farming community into a little hive of industry? They made Carleton known and new roads were built into the village, the most notable being Heslaker Lane, down the common, as an alternative route into Lancashire during bad winters. It was used by steam waggons which brought coal to the mill as these were too heavy to cross the old Aire Bridge between Skipton and Carleton.

The most lasting step that John Arthur Slingsby made was when he wrote to

the maim offices of Ordnance Survey and suggested that they could solve his problem of lost mail. After all there were many Carltons in Yorkshire! This Carlton v. as different, though, and so the village became known as CarlEton with an E and no more post was lost.

Unfortunately the mill was soon a victim of the depression and without its

dominant owner the future looked gloomy. In the second world war cot-ton production stopped for good, following the remaining Slingsby family out of the village. For a short period the mill was used as an aircraft factory and the villagers feared that after the war demand ceased the village would be ruined.

Mr Hubert and Alan Aspinal from Huddersfield however, bought the mill at a

considerable cost and converted it to a wool spinning mill. Carleton was brought back to its former prosperity and the mill relieved much of the unemployment that was now prevalent in this depressed area.

Part of the old mill was converted into a paint manufacturers but today only the new mill built in 1861 exists and although the production and owners had changed over the years to many villagers it will always be 'Slingsby's' Mill. Perhaps the Slingsby family will always be remembered in this village both as employers and as friends.

CHAPTER FOUR

THE VILLAGE LIFE

This section of the book is about the villagers and their lives. Everything

has been collected from the villagers themselves. There is information which has been passed down over the years and some which are vivid childhood memories. There are many facts but also there are tales which the reader must decide if they are true or not, you'd be surprised.

If it were not for the good water supply through Carleton the village would

never have developed to such an extent as it has today. Originally the beck was the main water source, with the main houses being situated along side it. Besides is domestic uses the beck water played an important part of the village industry. Near the top of the beck was Yellison House Farm which originally, had its own water wheel to provide power for milling and further down the c o - T used a water wheel for the same purposes.

1829 sae. the development of the first cotton mill, and this gradually led to

the building of the three mill dams which were to provide vital power for the villager's cotton industry. The villagers then found another important use for the water near the mills. As the machinery was worked by steam power it meant that the water had to be heated. At 5 p.m. the hot water from the mill would be pumped through pipes to the mill dams to cool. The pipe was on stanchions along the dam wall, at the end there was a dolly tub on wheels in which the water was caught. Thus, in winter when coal was most expensive the villager's would go to the beck and collect bottles of this warm water. It was sold for a penny per bottle, although it was uncertain who was making such a large profit during these hardest months.

At Smithy Bridge the beck had another use. A couple of times a year the

children at school would be able to detect the unmistakable smell of the sheep washing. Consequently many would miss school, whilst others would race down to the bridge at the first possible opportunity. Smithy Bridge was an ideal place for the sheep washing. One side of the bridge was dammed up and so a deed pool could form. Beside the bridge was a cobbled slope into the pool. The men used to go into the water up to their elbows and push the sheep in and cut. Just before the last sheep were dipped the children would go on a hunt. for the dirtiest child in the village to be thrown in, although more often than not the r elders prevented them doing so. When the dam was drained the villagers would catch all the fish that had been collected in the sheep washing pool.

However. Carleton could not continue with this single water supply and so

as a result Carleton Water Company was formed in 1880. The company consisted of a captital of 1000 shares of £2 each. These shares were readily

taken up and work began laying and building Six Penny Syke Reservoir. This was constructed by Mr Enoch Tempest and pipes were lain by Messrs G. and R. Smith and excavating by Mr J. Simpson.

The other water sources in the village were two springs. One was found

behind Grundy Farm in Park Lane, and provided the water for the two Inns and later the adjoining houses. The other spring was found out of the village in Carleton Park. As a result a few larger houses were built out of the village, the area becoming known as Carla Beck. Here there was a farm, The Duke of Devonshires Offices and a few large houses. The Duke of Devonshire owned one of these houses, Carleton Glen, which he opened to the public because of its extensive gardens. The main beck flowed through the grounds. Here there was a small boat house and further down was a small fish pond and artificial waterfall fed from a stream from the beck.

It is because of the main Carleton Beck that today Carleton has a 'Feast'.

This is an ancient tradition which began many years ago. It all began when the monks from Barnoldswick Priory made an annual visit to Carleton Moor, where at Rancible Well, they would baptise people. Rancible Well was at the head of the village beck. This took place for decades, maybe hundreds of years but gradually the religious meeting became a major village event, an excuse for a party and an excuse for excessive drinking. The 5th July was the set day for the feast, which no longer was a holy affair. It was so important that if the drovers hadn't returned by that day it would be postponed until their arrival. The Gala Field, between the two Inns was the venue. Here there would be long tables and benches, marquees, often swingboats and roundabouts for the children, flower stalls and coconut shies.

Then in 1859, the church was re-built, dedicated to The Virgin Mary. Her

feast day coincided with the village feast and as many of the villagers were religious the feast day became a more holy event. Since then it has been held on the first Saturday in July. The days events have changed over the years, although it always was the day for the village sports. There would be many events, including running, egg and spoon, potato, sack and three-legged races for all ages. This would be followed by tea for the villagers. Over the years the venue changed. When the Co-op was built the sports were either held at the Croft behind Grange Farm or in Middleton Meadows, opposite the Alms Houses. The teas, were, more often than not, served in the Co-op Hall or else in the New School Hall. The new school playing fields also were used for the sports.

The Co-op Hall had many uses besides being the feast day tea-room. Its

uses were endless. Most of the village societies used it as a meeting place, the Women's Institute, and Mothers' Union held plays there, there were dancing classes, the Methodists had Anniversary teas, and the Conservative and Liberal Clubs had their Annual Knife and Fork tea here, and so it goes on.

However, these societies, as well as others, had their own private meeting

rooms. The Liberal Club was the second house on Ratten Row, but for many years they meant to build a new meeting house. The Club bought the area of Catlow Gardens, and here they intended to build the new meeting house, but they never made any progress. Eventually shops were built here, they replaced a hen-run belonging to Amos Shuttleworth.

The Conservative club was held in the house at the end of Garden Ter-

race. An old tale is connected with this club. Apparently after the meeting, the caretaker would make a stew for the members in the back room. One evening, two of the village youths put a bar of carbolic soap into the stew during the meeting, and when the caretaker went to check the soup there were bubbles all over. This tale is really irrelevant to the society, but has been told by many villagers and is always associated with the Conservative club meetings. There was also a ladies section to the Conservative club. It was a national society and called The Primrose League. Chambers dictionary gives the definition: 'A Political association for the spread of Conservative opinions formed in 1883 in memory of Lord Beaconsfield, whose favourite flower is said to have been The Primrose.'

Many of the village ladies were connected to the Primrose League and

each wore a badge symbolising the Primrose and on April 25th there would be a party as this was Primrose Day.

There was no Labour club in the village as the Labour Party had not yet formed but there were a number of Friendly Societies, which had high atten-dances, especially from the mill workers. One such Friendly Society was the Oddfellows, and they met in a room above the stables belonging to the Swan Inn. As a child a villager recalls 'on an evening we would creep up the stairs to the sliding doors and peep at the ritual before the opening of the meeting. There were two stone platforms, one in each corner and on one side of these we were told the Grand Master would sit.'

It was not surprising that the children watched this in awe, for it appeared so

secretive compared with the chatty meetings of the Liberals and Conservatives. This meeting room was also used by the Ancient Order of Forresters and the Ancient Order of Buffalows as well. No one knows what the children imagined about the members.

Carleton had a relatively good library which was slightly odd as many

villagers were illiterate, but this fact may account for a story told about the penny readings given here. On an evening one of the villagers who was able to read would go sit in the library which was opposite the school, in the Grundy Farm buildings. He would proceed to read the daily paper out loud and those who wished to hear would pay a penny.

One evening a village character picked up the paper and told his audience that the previous week a ship had been overturned. He told the news with such gusto that it appeared to be an epic drama. This story circulated in the village and then it dawned on one educated man what had happened. He had gone to the library to read this incredulous story for himself, after some puzzling he realised what the old character had done. Obviously he had had the paper upside down and so the picture of the boat (afloat) would look over-turned and so the story was presumably all imagined. This library was well stocked in children's books, obviously to encourage them to read. Whether all the books were interesting or not there is no doubt that 'Masterman Ready' was a firm favourite.

The village was renowned for its very well supported Choral Society and its

band. The Choral Society was formed by Mr David Jolly of Skipton and was non-sectarian. They travelled throughout the area competing with other choirs. They held concerts in The Co-op Hall and attended all the special Anniversaries in the village. There was a special quartet formed and they were extremely good in the Choral Competitions. The four members were Mrs Barker, Soprano; Mrs Frier, Contralto; Mr Alan Smith, Bass; and Mr Tempest of Skipton, also Bass. They were sometimes accompanied by Mr Richard Smith on the bass fiddle.

The village Brass Band were just as successful in the band competitions,

although many villagers have more vivid memories of the times when the band travelled for miles to attend competitions and yet came home empty handed. The band played at every available opportunity from the many village Garden Parties to the competitions as far away as Crystal Palace. This competition can not easily be forgotten by the older band members. It was in 1904 and the band knew that they would have much competition, however they might as well compete. They were extremely surprised when they came away with a prize, as were the less confident villagers.

The bandsmen were a very happy crowd, although their families would

perhaps only admit this is a sarcastic tone. This is because the bandsmen would inevitably end up in a pub and then return slightly drunk.

A noteworthy example of this was one Christmas, the band had been

playing at Broughton Hall and after they had gone to the Bull Inn they then decided to walk home across the fields in the dark. They had all been celebrating and as they reached Yellison Farm they noticed that there were lights still on. They all began to play, little did they know that they were playing for the pigs in the barn, they didn't even realise that the building was the barn and not the house.

Another rumour was that when the band returned from Crystal Palace

they were expected to play themselves into the village, but it was late at night and so they all decided to take their boots off as they walked into the village so that

the people would not hear them. They had obviously visited many public houses before they reached Carleton and nearly every villager heard their return that night, boots or no boots.

The band was frequently invited to play at many village hostelries

throughout the Dales. This originated from the bands traditional Christmas trip. Early on Christmas morning they would travel as far as Foxup. They would play here and then gradually work down the dale through Litton, Arncliffe to Grassington, then Skipton and eventually back to Carleton. They would be in time for their Christmas dinner and a quick sleep (as they would have had plenty to drink) and then would walk to Broughton Hall and play for the Tempest family. After this they would be invited to the servants' Christmas Ball, with their wives.

Broughton Hall provided a regular engagement for the band, as did Cracoe

Hunt and the Hare and Hounds at Lothersdale. At the latter the band always had rum punch and sang 'Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep' of course these engagements at public houses were a good excuse for getting drunk. The bandsmen had many memories of places where they played. A Bradford policeman was hired to join the band for a special competition at Bentham. They had been told what an excellent musician this man was and so the band confidently expected to win. Even after they had heard the other contestants they were hopeful, but to this day they remember the disappointment when the policeman began to play, because he let the band down and they had no chance. The band learnt their lesson, never to hire an outsider again.

The band often appeared light headed even before their drinking excur-

sions. Some remember the time when they set off to play at Bell Busk, but got onto the wrong train and ended up in Thornton. However there were more serious times for the band. They played at the opening of the New School, and occasionally at funerals and in the village processions. On Armistice day Mr Windle played a cornet solo of 'The Last Post' and 'Revalie' in the church. He was also asked to go to the Clarendon Hotel at Hebden to play to the owner who was ill. The owner had often heard Carleton Band and his last request was to hear a cornet solo of the tune 'Rimmington'. That night after hearing the band he died. The memory of this evening was not forgotten.

Most of the village families had a member in the band. They practiced

either in the buildings belonging to Grundy Farm, in the school lane or in the Co-op Hall. When the band ended the instruments were given to the Youth Club, but since there were few musicians in the club they were given to Ermysted's Grammar School in Skipton. A few of the instruments remained in Carleton, though, because a small dance band still continued to meet for village dances. The dance band consisted of a piano, violin, saxophone and drums, all played by village boys.

As there were so many members of the brass band it is impossible to

name them all since the mid 1800's when the band formed. However in March

1927 this report appeared in the local newspaper DEATH OF 'JIM SMITH OF CARLETON'.

Mr James Smith of Carleton, one of the oldest members of the brass band,

known as Jim Smith the E flat bass player. In his younger days he had few equals. Born 1852. Joined the band when 18. Used to work at the mill. Practised before he went to work, then at breakfast and dinner. Member of the band until 1924 when he retired after 54 years of continuous service. At his funeral Carleton Band played 'Death March' from Saul and the hymn 'Vigil' at the graveside and in the funeral pro-cession. Described as 'one of the most musical and interesting personalities that ever graced the brass band world'.

Carleton Parish Church could boast a well supported choir and members were of all ages and professions. For many years the choir consisted of eight to ten men, ten ladies and ten boys. The choir played only a very small role on occasions other than those in the church. However Carleton Feast Day was an extra special event. The church choir headed the village procession along with the band and they would make various stops along the way to sing favourite hymns.

The children of the families that attended church more often than not went

to Sunday School. Here they would learn to say the Collect for each Sunday in the morning class, and recite a verse of a hymn for afternoon class. There were prizes for attendance and good conduct and these were awarded annually on the Saturday nearest to the Feast of the visitation of the Virgin Mary. After leaving Sunday School the children would then attend bible class until their confirmation.

Carleton Parish consisted of both Carleton and Lothersdale. Ties,

therefore, between these two villages especially throughout the Anglican Church were as strong as those between the Methodists of Carleton and Con-onley in the late 1800's (as previously mentioned). As there was only one church between the two villages, many of the Lothersdale funerals and wed-dings took place at Carleton. This meant a journey over the moors for the inhabitants of this rural settlement. Over the years there were customs which became established traditions for the village children. When the children heard that there would be a wedding, they would race up the Carleton park and await the bride coming over the moor from Lothersdale. More often than not she would be in her wedding attire except for her footwear which would probably be working shoes or even clogs. The children would follow her back to the church and watch the bride change her shoes, when she entered the church they would hastily tie the gates together and would only open them when the bride and groom had thrown pennies to them. Usually the married couple would then return to Lothersdale, followed once again by the children. The groom would often wear a blue ribbon on his wedding day, this being the sign of a teetotaler, but at the Carleton Park he would remove this ribbon and leave go of it. The children would fight over it and it became more exciting when the wind carried

it off over the fields and the children would chase after it until it was finally caught.

The funerals at Carleton of Lothersdale inhabitants also became quite a

parish tradition. It is understandable that the journey from Lothersdale to Carleton on these occasions would not be very easy. The roads were steep and more often than not the coffin would have to be pushed or carried by the family. Unlike a wedding, which could be held in a warm season the funeral procession from Lothersdale often took place in very bad weather. It was necessary for the procession to stop on these occasions and this was usually after the long hill from Lothersdale. The coffin would be placed on a flat stone until the mourners moved on. This stone became a regular stopping place and was later named 'Cross Green'.

Relationships between Carleton and Lothersdale did become strained

through the late 1700's because the Rev. George Markham couldn't raise the Tythes. In 'Friends of Lothersdale' there is an explanation of the situation. There were some non-anglicans in the parish who would not pay their tythes, which went to the Anglican church. The Justices of the West Riding unfortunately refused to grant Rev. Markham a 'Warrant of Distress'. As a result he turned to higher authorities who in 1786 saw the administration of a bill against the Lothersdale people who were mostly Quakers. In doing so the people risked imprisonment. They were headstrong characters and they wouldn't deny their actions, but they wouldn't admit them either. In 1 795 Rev. Markham agreed with the Justices to take eight of the Quakers into custody at York Castle, thus leaving thirty children and seven wives in hard-ship at home. They were determined to fight out the battle with the vicar of Carleton and remained in York for two and remained in York for two and a half years. Markham had been ignorant that conditions in York had not been too bad for the prisoners, as the villagers had taken turns to make them comfortable. Consequently Markham took all their possessions from them after they had served their time, and sold them. The money was added to the church tythes. To many who were in sympathy with the Quakers this was worse than the prison sentence as it left poor and destitute families. Fortunately, not every vicar of Carleton was quite so ruthless in his methods of raising Tythes. In fact there weren't any who were disliked by the community. Many took an interest in village life, education and charity work. There is no better example than the Reverand Edward Price who encouraged and enabled his daughter Elizabeth Wilkinson to build the village school.

One character connected with the church, although neither a member of

the clergy or the congregation was Mr Billy Cryer, non other than the local clock maker. However the villagers are not slow to comment on this well remembered man. His obituary in the local paper began.

'Billy Cryer of Carleton — noted clock maker — once acclaimed as a village hero'.

The reason for this title is slightly unusual for he created a mechanical wonder in the village. Billy Cryer constructed the parts for the church clock at his home at Tow Top. When they were completed they were taken into the village, where Mr Cryer and Mr Slingsby headed a procession of the villagers — noteable characters — each of whom carried a piece of the clock. After a pro-cession around the village, Billy Cryer took all the pieces to the church tower and assembled the clock. When he appeared in the belfry he told the Reverand Busfield to lock the door and keep the key to the tower until the following Saturday when at twelve noon the clock would strike for the first time. The clock was left and just as he had said the clock with only seven wheels and its huge thirty foot pendulum struck at noon on that following Saturday.

Childhood Memories The most memorable times of life are those usually concerning childhood.

This fact had proved true as the villagers often recollect the times before they began work. One lady began 'we attended the school, where Mr Joseph Lilley was headmaster. He lived in School House with his wife and two daughters, one of whom taught pupils in the Infants School as we called it.' She goes on to say 'We had no television, radio or cassettes but most people had gramophones of sorts and records which cost six old pence. In wintery weather though, all the children would form a huge slide from Beech Hill Gate to Townley Bridge. It was great fun with candles down the side of the road. The most daring would form a long train and slide from top to bottom. There was skating on the top mill pond for the older ones and on Toddys dam at the Grange. There being very little traffic in the village, the children could play in safety in the streets. In March, when the winds had blown the dust away the whips and tops came out, marbles were played in corners and Shuttlecocks and battledores. Hoops were rolled for miles and skipping ropes (all in together) would stretch across the streets. We were never bored or short of anything to do. We had song sheets for all the latest songs and would go for walks and sing them as we went along.'

Besides clearly remembering the games they played she remembers the

clothes they wore. 'We always had new hats and dresses for Easter Day or for Carleton Feast. Straw hats with roses all around. I can well remember us three sisters having buttoned boots with hooks to fasten them. No casual jeans and tops that are worn today. Boys wore short trousers and cloth caps, celluloid collars and turn down top stockings. Ladies wore long dresses and magnificent hats all ostrich feathers and flowers and sometimes cherries. The men wore stiff starched collars with fronts attached and nice studs. Bowler hats, and silver or gold watches and chains across their waistcoats. For school we girls all wore white pinafores with Broderie Anglais trimmings and everyone wore clogs for weekdays.' She clearly remembers the First World War. 'There was no wireless, or radio as it was called afterwards. We had to remember to read the placards outside the post office and tell our parents any news when we got home from school. When any soldiers were home on leave it was an excitement when they visited the school to see their children. My Uncle Ben was one such, on leave from the New Zealand army.'

Of course school plays a large part in childhood and obviously there were

many tales about this. Mrs Barker remembered being congratulated for her beautiful handwriting. When she was careless though, the teacher sent her into the corner to write 'this is a specimen of my best writing' thirty times. Another lady remembers being sent into the infants to teach them how to do 'Pothooks' or ticks. She said that she loved school and was very sad when she left. They did a Christmas concert and she was asked to sing a song of her own choice. She therefore sang 'Poor Old Joe'. This brought tears to Mr Lilley's eyes (the headmaster) later she found out that he was called Joseph!

Many of the people remember Punch at school. This was John Arthur

Slingsby's dog. He often visited the school with the dog and let it walk across the desks, providing the children had been good. School holidays were much shorter and very different from holidays today. Here are some on the places where people went (all mentioned in conversations).

'The only holiday were a weeks visit to Aunties at Bradford, Colne or Thornton-in-Craven.' 'My first visit to the seaside was a half day at Morecambe at the age of sixteen.' 'When school was on holiday we never went anywhere except we had family outings up the Ghyll. We used to take two meals, the children would play and parents talked, sometimes we would go mushrooming, cowslipping and coaling along the railway lines—that used to be great fun.'

There were several noteable days of the year too, when children would

have a happy and exciting time. The main event and the most joyful was the Feast Day. One year it was the most magical that had been experienced by the villagers. The morning began with the procession around the village and games in Middleton Meadow. After lunch everyone met near the Swan Inn and from the barns adjoining it awaited the arrival of the dancing bears. This spectacle was delightful but not as unusual as Darky Lee. Darky Lee was a gypsy who performed magical tricks in front of all the children. He swallowed watches on a chain and pushed pins into his face and legs with no pain or blood. This remarkable man would produce a pipe, fill it with tobacco and then light it with red hot coals which he would pick from a fire. All this excitement meant that the youngsters must have some refreshment, however they had to pay a forfeit first. The only way in which to get a piping hot muffin was to eat a dry one first and whistle 'God Save the King' at the same time.

Several competitions would be held during the afternoon, such as climbing

a greasy pole, and grabbing a greasy pig. Of course the afternoon wouldn't have been complete if you couldn't spend your last penny on some carnations to take home.

CHAPTER FIVE

VILLAGE CHARACTERS

Obviously the most noteworthy of the village characters in Carleton were

members of the Slingsby family, but over the years some Carletoners have become well known in their own rights. There have been many people mentioned again and again, in fact the list is endless but at the head of that list Tom Anderson and his family must appear.

The Andersons were well known in the village and there were many tales

told about them. The family lived on the moor, four children and their mother at Manor House Farm. The family was quite unusual, because they all dressed in rags, although it was believed that they had plenty of money as they often had such luxuries as 'neck of lamb' which most of the villagers could not afford.

The first tale mentioned about the Andersons was told by one of the

children, who used to travel with the ale cart to all the farms during hay making time. On one such occasion a conversation between the publican and Miss Anderson was overheard, apparently bad news. Miss Mary Lizzie said in a very anxious tone 'Our Toms getting wed' and to her surprise the reply was 'why that's good news' but Mary Lizzie turned away crying 'Oh no not at 45.' The reason for this unusual exclamation was that when all the children were young Mrs Anderson made them swear that they would never marry. Tom was the eldest child and unlike many of the village men he decided to leave Carleton to look for work. Rumour goes that he was one of the many men who built Blackpool front. His family scorned him for leaving them, and they blamed his workmates for leading him astray. The family never liked Tom's wife's family 'who knew nowt o' farming' as all their money was in-vested in railways and Blackpool shops, however they relied on Tom's money from Blackpool and thus said little.

Tom made himself known in the village and he often tried to dominate

some of the villagers, besides his own family. One elderly farmer remembers Tom selling him twelve sheep. The price was paid but when the farmer picked up the flock there were only eleven—this he reckoned was the way in which Mr Anderson did well for himself. Another farmer says that it is more likely that they 'got a pretty penny' from people passing through, believing that they were poor and destitute in the clothes made of 'so many patches that you could hardly see the fabric.'

The villagers, may laugh and joke about this eccentric family but none

could boast of such a funeral as Tom Andersons. On his death-bed he asked his family to cut his veins before they buried him, as he didn't want to be buried alive. His family loyally did this and he was laid out in a 'very flashy coffin.' The

mourners followed the hearse, pulled by four horses, draped in black, down Park Lane. Following this was a horse with only a pair of boots in the stirrups, facing backwards. Any visitor would have thought that it was the Lord of the Manor who was being buried that day.

After the funeral the villagers thought that the Andersons would be left with

out a penny, but they were wrong, as they never seemed to be without money. The people have hinted of a strange fear of the Andersons, though many ladies remembered as children going to visit Miss Mary Lizzie, and seeing linseed cakes hanging from the ceiling so that the rats wouldn't eat them. It was very odd that the rats did not eat them, and yet at home if this happened the rats would still eat them (even if they were hanging from the ceiling).

After Tom's death though the family did become detached from the village

and eventually they all died leaving only vivid memories of a decidedly strange family.

The Jarmans

The Jarmans lived at Dolly Farm at the top of the Wend. Really the family consisted only of Arthur and his wife Nellie. Most people remember them because they passed this farm on the way to the Ghyll, a local holiday spot. Nellie could almost always be seen sitting in the window smoking a clay pipe. The village children feared this small 'one up one down' building. At night little tilly lights would illuminate the building and Nellie Jarman's silhouette would still be in the window. Her husband was better known as Titch Jar-man as he was so small, and he always wore a navy blue suit and a gold watch, which was quite unusual in his trade. Titch reckoned himself to be a watchmaker, although there was never any evidence of this. He was better known as the village scrapman, as he trailed the village with his sack-cart or barrow. The farm had very little livestock and in fact all that the villagers could remember of his livestock was hens. 'Yer know Titch Jarman 'e were one who kept them hens on the island by the weir' quite an unusual place to keep hens! One day one of the village lads approached Titch and asked him to mend a clock for him and bet him that he couldn't. Titch replied that he wouldn't sleep until he did. He returned the clock in supposedly working condition, but there was a sudden 'ping'. No one ever knew whether Titch Jarman slept after that day.

Tales about these characters have been passed down and shared by many

families over the years. One man in particular had very clear memories of the village both from the past and in his own life time. Harry Brown lived in Carleton for over ninety years and as his memories were very vivid, those who knew him can recollect the tales that he told. Consequently Harry has became a noteable village character himself.

Harry Brown His first memories are about church. He was expected to go to church

because his cousin Aldy Brown was Choir Master. However one Sunday, during a very long and boring sermon, young Harry sneaked a sweet into his mouth. The Churchwarden saw him chewing and after the service stopped Harry. He immediately returned home and reported 'I were only eating a spice a 'e 'it me across lug 'ole'—so his mother decided to send him to the Chapel after that. This pleased Harry as the Chapel had far more parties with many games. He remembers his favourite game was hide and seek because he always hid up the chimney where no one could find him. However, although Harry was skilled at climbing up chimneys (because from an early age he cleaned the flue and base of the mill chimney) he was caught out at one party, because he became stuck and had to be pulled out from the sooty hole.

Like most of the village boys Harry and his friends used to get up to many

pranks. One summers day Harry went to tickle trout. They undressed, and waded into the river to find the best specimen. Now this was quite courageous as they were in great danger of being spotted by 'Old ooky eyed' the one-eyed river watcher. On this particular day though they became so engrossed in their fishing that they were unaware of 'Old ooky eyed' watching and when they eventually did, they ran off leaving their clothes, which were confiscated by the river watchman.

When Harry was eleven he began work at the mill as a half-timer. He

earned two shillings a week for looking after the mill donkey. This occupation lasted a year, then he worked full-time in the piece workhouse, learning to weave. His memories of the mill donkeys were very affectionate and he looked after the animals as if they were his own. He knew the character of each donkey. On his trips to Skipton he used to encourage the donkeys to keep moving by holding carrots in front of them but there was one donkey which was rather partial to tobacco. Harry believed that it was a tramp weaver who had encouraged this habit.

Harry only ever spent one year away from Carleton, and this was when he

worked as a plate layer on the railways between Skipton and Appleby. In this period he lived at Batty Town, the shanty town at the Ribblehead viaduct. After his years absence Harry returned to Carleton and to the mill where the Slingsby's set him on as a tackler. It wasn't long after that that Harry was promoted to the weaving shed manager and he held this position until the mill eventually closed in 1929. Harry stayed on at the old mill for some time though, as watchman. Besides his job at the mill Harry also tried his hand elsewhere he tried roofing and chimney sweeping. The latter occupation was obviously an enjoyable one for Harry as he remembered clearly most of the houses he visited. As he was well known in the village, many people asked him to do the dirty task. Previously the way most chimneys were cleaned was by dropping a live chicken down the chimney, its fluttering and flapping dislodged all the soot,

but this practice was not popular because it was cruel to the chicken. One of Harry's first jobs was to clean the chimney of a villager who had a terrible stutter. This poor man was often teased and the children used to get endless fun out of mimicking him. Harry and his friends climbed on to the roof and began to sweep the soot down the chimney but little did they know that the occupant hadn't blanked up the fire place. They came down from the roof to find a very angry and black man waiting for them. However the two sweeps just couldn't stop laughing at the angry stutterer whom they couldn't understand.

Harry also tried decorating and was employed by the Slingsby family to paint the outside of Carla Beck 'from the gates to the windows.'

When he returned from his year at Ribblehead, Harry decided never again to

leave his roots and found no difficulty in finding regular employment in Carleton. Although he had had very little schooling, he was known to be a man of great common sense. He remembers solving many problems. When he worked for Carleton Water Board, Mr Coates a farmer in the village was quite perplexed because he could not build a well successfully on his land. It was Harry who helped him to solve this problem as he pointed out, that the well would only work if it was situated on a flat site, apparently the well was unsuccessful as it silted up often as it was on a slope. Another problem which Harry solved, although more by luck than anything else, concerned new toilets which the water board had installed in the village. The toilet would not flush and it was obviously blocked somewhere. Harry found the impediment — a bowler hat which would not allow the water through.

Harry's tales of his family are perhaps the most interesting however. He was

sure that he had a rightful claim to fame and although he never found out the truth he believed that he was a descendent of Samuel Crompton (the inventor of the Spinning Jenny). He believed that his grandfather was really called Brennan and he was an Irish deserter. He courted Mr Compton's daughter and eventually had to marry her when she had a child. The Comptons disowned their daughter, but as they had a grandson, they agreed that if the couple would change their name from the Irish Brennan to the more respectable Brown they would give their daughter four sovereigns every year to pay for their grandson's upkeep. This sum would have been ample for the whole family to live on but Harry believes that the person who was to bring the money ran of with it and so although they had changed their name they never received the sovereigns.

Harry's father was brought up on the moor, he acquired a very precise aim

with a gun and passed this art on to his son. Harry was well known as was Duke Preston as a good shot and he often went shooting. In consequence Harry was made a local 'hero' as he was in the team of men chosen to shoot a rabid dog that was loose in the village. Another incident that he remembered but more sentimentally was when he was asked to shoot the mill Donkey. Harry bravely did this to the animal which he had worked for many years. The donkey was then buried in the small wood on the opposite side of the beck to the mill and since that day this has been called 'the Donkey Field.' One of the most strange

stories that Harry told concerned the Slingsby family. Apparently one night Harry got a message to go to the Slingsby's house. A young servant girl had died and Harry and four men had to carry her away in the coffin, in the dead of night. Harry never really knew why and he promised never to disclose where they took the coffin. The most likely explanation could be to do with a statement made in Dawsons History of Skip-ton. He writes 'with respect to ceremonies at funerals, it was the custom in Airedale to bury people of distinction by torchlight at a late hour of the evening.' This practise was abolished officially in 1803. Interments of this time took place at midnight on the occasion of a woman dying at the birth of her first child. This however doesn't solve the question of why a servant should be buried in this manner and why it was kept such a secret. It is unlikely, that anybody will ever find out the truth about that night.

Another mystery told by Harry which was never solved was 'who stole a

year's supply of gold on its way to Carla Beck House.' This incident occur-red at the beginning of the year when gold was being transported from Chatsworth House to Carla Beck House to pay the Grassington lead miners on the Duke of Devonshire's estate. The gold was taken from two saddle bags, when the carriers stopped on the moor above Carleton before they made their delivery to the offices of the estate in Carleton.

Besides these unexplained incidents, some relatively trivial details about

some villagers have remained lodged in people's memories. One such person who was well remembered was Duke Preston. Duke Preston

Duke Preston who was a well known 'good shot' farmed Gawthorpe House Farm. Duke's dream was to go to war and fight for his country, and as luck would have it there was the need for volunteers to go and fight in the Boer War. He went willingly to South Africa and when he arrived he was asked if he could shoot. Duke was very confident about his shooting ability and immediately shot a wild boar. The captain agreed that he was a good shot and jokingly asked him how good his cooking was. So Duke cooked the wild boar, which turned into a very tasty meal. In fact it was so good that they made him camp cook. In the whole time that he was there he was never called onto the field and never lifted his gun in battle.

Many people have recalled his return home from this war, though his daughter says 'He was met at Skipton railway station and the band played him home and into the village. I have heard many old people who remembered it and speak of my grandmother waiting at Grundy Farm with a flag flying, only to see him carried past.' It is very unusual that this little incident was noted by so many people. Tommy Garnett

Many people remember Tommy Garnett who lived at Robin Hall and used to have a piggery there. This man was well known in the village. The children remember this man because he owned a donkey. He gave rides at a ha'penny along Vicars Row, down the slope to Trappes Hall and back. For a penny he would take them across the little footbridge, across the beck up beckside and down the side of the mill to Trappes Hall.

The children also remember the old man who lived at 'Toffee Cottage.' This house stood next to Catlow Gardens and its name was derived from the man who used to spend all his time making toffee. He used to bake this over the open fire and the smell would escape into the street. However one day a few of the village lads played a prank on Tommy by dropping bits of turf and compost down the chimney and onto the toffee—his pass-time ceased abruptly. Today the cottage no longer stands but perhaps the tale of Toffee Cottage will not be forgotten so easily.

The Mawson Family

Next to Toffee Cottage, in the end house of Fox Croft lived the Mawson family. This family is renowned for one event in their lives. The wedding of their daughter Hannah. The reason for this was because the house was only a 'one up, one down' house and when invitations went out to forty guests many could not believe that the family intended to hold a dance in their home — but they did. 'I'll bet tha'II be dancin' on th' tables' was an often used quotation about this wedding. Whoever made this original statement probably wasn't guilty of over statement.

It's strange how, over the years village tales can be repeated and yet when recalled by different people there are certain saying which are always the same. The owner of the Airedale Inn (now Grundy Farm) for example was renowned for shouting every morning, first to his daughter 'Get up my Luvvy' and then to the maid 'and thou tha idle bitch.'

In recalling some village tales I hope more villagers can be remembered perhaps more vividly than in a brief description of their individual personalities.

CHAPTER SIX

VILLAGE TALES

In this final chapter, there are tales, all of which have been retold by people of the village, some are obviously true stories, whereas others, like many of the villagers recollections, are open to doubt and diverse interpretation.

The death of the watchman on Pinhaw, can definitely be classed as a true

story. Pinhaw Hill above Carleton was a beacon which was used during the Napoleonic invasion to pass a warning through the country. This beacon had six guards, two from Lothersdale, two from Elslack and two from Carleton who took it in turn to keep a watch for a light from the nearest beacon.

One winters night there was a bad blizzard and the temperature was very

low; the two guards were waiting in the small wooden but erected near to the beacon for the relief guards to arrive. When the reliefs were so late in coming they decided to stay where they were, but unfortunately had no food and very little fuel to keep them warm. It is uncertain what happened next but rumour has it that one of the guards decided to walk to Elslack as it was the nearest village. The guard never returned to the but but was found dead less than thirty yards away with the supplies and like his fellow guard, the one in the hut, had died from exposure. These tragic deaths were recorded and a stone commemorating this event marks the spot where the unfortunate men were found.

Fortunately most village tales are more light hearted, some have already

been recorded too, such as the walking of the boundaries. This is taken from John Stell's original notes (which in places are slightly difficult to understand). 'On September 5th 1822, a very interesting event took place in Lothersdale, the ancient custom of walking the boundaries of the township. This custom was ordered to be done at stated periods by an Act of Parliament the record is as follows:

'This day being Thursday (September 5th 1822). The boundaries of Carleton, Lothersdale and Cononley were perambulated by Mr H. Pickup, Mr Scott, Mr Smith, Schoolmaster of Carleton, and a good few of his scholars. T. Parker senior and junior. Wm. Throup and his son John, Wm. Whiteoak, Joseph Brown, Wilfred Heaton and his brother William, Thomas Harrison's sons and James Brown, Wm. Maud and his son David. William Maud had a shilling given to him by Mr Pickup and Thomas Harrison another. There were two races for the boys at 6d. a time, one from Walton Old House below Elslack Road, to Elslack Road, the other from Pinnow Pike to a stone at Harrod Inglenook with a 'B' on it. Copper was thrown up at Toms Cross both by Mr Pickup and Mr Addinnitt. The 'B' Stones were all gone by and one B.R. above Rannsable Well, but no. B.R's. were taken notice of.

There were a vast concourse of people, besides those above enumerated. James Wilkinson and old W. Whiteoak best evidences for Howshay and Jerry Aldersley, W. Whiteoak, Wm. Smith (late of Park Lane Top). Joseph Foulds for or against Elslack and Parker Senior known a lot about it having gone it twice about near twenty years difference.

Tom Cross is the township and county boundary and here a scram- ble took place. This racing and giving money to the lads was to impress the township divisions upon the minds of the young, so that in future years they could say with certainty where the divisions were.' When the villagers have recollected other incidents the village boundaries have often been remembered somewhere in the boundary vicinity was the site for the cockfights. Undoubtedly these continued after 1820 when the sport became illegal, perhaps this is why many villagers wouldn't go into great detail about this sport although they obviously knew about it.

Evidence of this sport can be found although the venue is still unknown. This

is a typical example of the wording on one of the posters advertising a fight:

To be fought at Carleton on Monday and Tuesday the 11 th, 12th A FAT COW Value thirty pounds. The cocks to be taken up from the 27th days of May 1818. to the 30th April, instant. The second cock to have 7 pounds, on the two third cocks 2 guineas each. The cocks to shen at the scale from 3lbs 12oz. to 4lbs 12oz. Each cock to pay at entrance, Thirty shillings. THIRTY TWO COCKS. The Feeders Enoch Smith and Joseph Ibbotson.

In 'The Green Lanes of Yorkshire' the parish boundaries are again men-tioned because on the Elslack-Carleton Boundary is Porridge Stoop. This was the site of a Market on the moor around 1730. It was on the original Green Lane from Keighley to Clitheroe and Skipton to Colne. It is thought that this is where the Packhorse Trains used to meet to trade in Oatmeal and Salt. Many of the packhorse trains passed through the village before it had become a strongly established community, but a defined track from the moor to the village (likely to have connections with the Roman Route way) was one of the factors influencing the village's discovery by the tramp weavers and drovers. The drovers often stopped off at Carleton before their journeys across the often harsh Pennine moorland. Here they often used the village facilities such as the two ale houses and the cloggers. Their animals were usually left at Coddy Fold, the barns and outhouses of Loftburn and Dale House. One villager adds the reminder that not only animals were housed there overnight, but so were geese, and what is more, Carleton had quite a unique tradesman, who devoted his time to these birds. It is difficult to believe that he actually made leather shoes for the

A MAIN OF COCKS

geese to protect their feet on the often long journeys. Before the journey was continued the geese were driven through tar and sand to re-inforce the shoes.

The meeting place for the drovers in Carleton was Townley Bridge, which crossed the dam on the edge of the small plantation. The Bridge's name is thought to have been derived from a Colonel Charles Townley who led new recruits from Lancashire to join Prince Ruperts Army on their way to Marston Moor in 1644. The band of new recruits spent their last night before joining the army, in Carleton and the following day the Captain of the army, which had stopped at Bolton Abbey on its way to Marston Moor via York, arranged to meet Colonel Townley at this bridge over the beck.

Colonel Townley was killed in action at Marston Moor and the older

villagers believe that after this, the bridge was named Townley Bridge in rememberance of him.

The tramp weavers have already been mentioned, travelling between the

mills of Lancashire and Yorkshire and despite much hardwork their reputations had little to be desired. When the village mills began employing these travellers, accommodation was provided at Robin Hall, Plum Tree Cottage and in New Street. The house in New Street was run by 'Donner Up' a renowned trampweaver, and his wife. Most of the tramp weavers names weren't known and instead they were called by their nicknames 'Donner Up' and 'Can't Abide' were the ones most often referred — both had their own quart ale cups at the Swan with their names engraved upon them. 'Donner Up' practically settled in the village but many could not accept this man as they felt he was an instigator of corruption in the village, gambling, smuggling and even robbing, to name but a few of his misdeeds. However, he was hospitable enough and many Carletoners admit that, although the general attitude to this man and his associates was not welcoming, their parents never denied that they were friendly enough and at least they kept the ale houses in business. The animosity to the weavers increased greatly with the rapid increase of scarlet fever and other epidemics in the village. The tramp weavers were inevitably blamed for bringing diseases from the Lancashire mills. It was believed that the infections were transmitted by spitting on the kop on the end of the shuttle before weaving, although the disease still persisted after disinfecting the kops. The tramp weavers didn't always frequent the village inn, though, for some spent their spare time in the bars in Skipton. As they were renowned for getting drunk they journeys across the fields between Carleton and Skipton was particularly perilous on dark nights in the vicinity of the river. The weavers soon resolved this problem though. One villager recalls the bridge over the river was painted white on one side so it could be seen more easily but a more efficient way was marked by the railmaster Mr Rigby, who kept an oil lamp in his window. The tramp weavers would all line up and head across the bridge.

This method was similar to that used by the village railway men. At dusk one

of the villagers would light an oily rag and hang it on a wire near to the village

and so the men could make their way to the village. They only way that the village could be recognised on a dark night was by the house lighting but this was not efficient enough to act as a guide light. Eventually the village had its own street lamps. The first being 'run' on the waste from the mill and was situated on Townley Bridge. Originally there was a lamplighter, although there weren't many lights in the village; he also extinguished the lamps in the morning and woke the late sleepers. This latter task was not really necessary as there was always a morning alarm created by the noise of clogs on the cobbles as the shifts began at the mill.

The Rev. Oliver Heywood was a 'distinguished pillar of nonconformity in

the West Riding of Yorkshire' and the first time that he preached in public was in Carleton, in the early 1620's. In 'Loose Leaves of Craven' part of his memorandum has been recorded and in one part his amicable feelings towards the village appear to change. On November 1 5th 1682 he records 'Henry Smith of Carlton Moor at Keighley, drinking with some gentlemen at Jo Learoys on Wednesday with ranting singing shouting, -leaned forward froth coming out of his mouth, immediately dyed drunk.' The Reverend Heywood obviously was shocked by such a happening although he adds that 'his brother Jo Smith was drowned that time twelve months.' He appeared to loose his esteem for the village perhaps after realizing it really was no different, vices still continued here as they did elsewhere.

There were fights between village men which were watched by the whole

village and the custom of throwing the dirtiest person in the beck after sheep-washing caused much animosity and proved that villagers could not really decry the tramp weavers.

One incident really illustrates the ruthlessness of some villagers. This terrible

incident occured when one day the price of milk at one of the farms was increased by a ha'penny. The villagers thought that once milk went up in price at one farm it was likely that it would increase elsewhere. Therefore the villagers took action by making an effigy of the farmer's wife and burning it in the middle of the road. The only result that the villagers appear to have been aware of is that the people in Skipton soon got to know of this and many associated Carleton with witchcraft. As a consequence the villagers learnt their lesson the hard way as many became alienated by the people in Skipton and the surrounding villages shunned them.

Of all the events and incidents which have occured in Carleton none are so

vividly remembered by all as the many Garden Parties which were held in the villages larger houses. By far the most popular were the parties which were held at The Grange at Carla Beck. Here you could even go on a little boat trip along the beck or hunt for crayfish.

Another venue for parties was Park House. Mr Mannings residence. The

children remember him because he had a wooden leg. The church choir, the

band and the choral society would usually entertain the people whilst their children played on the side stalls and ran in races. Despite all these activities, though, the parties held by Mr and Mrs Empson at Beech Hill were the most fun.

In winter there was often a party at which the choir would sing carols and

Mrs Empson would serve spicy drinks. The children would skate and in the evening they would make a slide down from the gardens to Townley Bridge, each holding a candle.

In summer there was an added attraction to the normal party atmosphere.

Hanging from a branch of one of the big trees in the driveway would be a cage and in it a brightly coloured parrot. The children would spend hours watching it and one lady says that it was 'real fun until the village lads began to teach it to swear and say rude words.'

At these parties the children would indulge in little luxuries such as

lemonade and chocolate and on these days few people stayed in the village itself.

The parties almost always catered for the younger age group, but the older

people didn't miss out completely. When Mr Scar of Ravenshaw was 80 years old some of the villagers joined together and bought him 'Whitakers History of Craven.' So Mr Scar booked one of the local buses and took a bus full of people to the Black Horse in Skipton for a meal. How lucky these people must have felt to be treated in such a manner.

Another occasion for a party was after the hunts, but there was one special

hunt that some remember although the story varies in detail. The hunt began in Gisburn Park where a huge stag had been spotted. There were a few Carleton men around the area at the time and soon the chase developed across the fields and through the woods as far as Carleton Moor. Then the stag doubled back and was finally corned by the barn at Old Hall. There was much celebrating to be done that night, but whilst all the arrangements were being made the stag jumped a wall, eight feet high and escaped! Many people, especially the farmers believe that the stag was last seen running over the horizon and since then has never been seen again. It has even been said that this creature was somthing mystical, for it was huge and had so much energy, and to jump over such a wall was miraculous.

A good rapport between the mill owners and the mill workers was ob-

viously strengthened by the busy involved social life of the workers. Many had very little money but very few missed out unless it was through illness. With the tramp weavers, came the illness especially scarlet fever a dangerous illness. However although many suffered at home and even at work, there was a chance for most to go to the Fever Hospital in Skipton. A committee formed to raise money to pay for the ambulance to the hospital and the doctor always came on his horse and before motorised ambulances a horse drawn cab with two beds

acted as the ambulance. The hospital in Skipton was in Granville Street and was named the Cottage Hospital. For a few pence weekly crutches, bed rests and various nursing requisities could be borrowed and thus the committee in the village was often well subscribed.

Many villages especially in the area, had the same traditions and customs

which had been passed from generation to generation. Carleton was no exception.

For the very poor a Parish Coffin was used at funerals. The person would be laid out in this but buried without it. It is quite surprising how frequently this was used as many couldn't afford even a basic coffin. A tradition also connected with the church was the morality sermon which was preached every good Friday. It is a well known fact that this was preached in Carleton although the reason why the owner of Grundy Farm had to pay the parson ten shillings to make this sermon is still not clear, the money was given to the hospital.

A sketch of Carleton's oldest inhabitant found originally in the wall of Park Lane.

There are villagers who will be remembered for their wrong doings, good deeds, appearance and involvement in the village, but this is by no means all. It is only recently that a head made in stone was removed from the wall in Park Lane, but who's it was no one seems to know. Likewise in the New Chapel on Beckside, there are many stones with initials carved on them. The most likely explanation for these is that much of the money for the Chapel came from the villagers themselves and the initials may be of those who donated to the building fund.

These strange ways of making a physical imprint in the village were ob-

viously more noticeable on the terraces, where on nearly every one there is a date and initials, such as W.C.S. (William Cecil Slingsby).

One Pateley Bridge man, a decendant of a village family, was determined to be remembered in the village, although he lost his job and nearly his life. In 1861 this man put the last stone in the mill chimney and then did an handstand on the top! Some people really do go to extremes!

Two mechanics will also be remembered in Carleton for their work, the

first, Billy Cryer the watchmaker from Tow Top and secondly Vincent Ratcliffe. In his obituary in the Pioneer 1 u.10.30. Billy Cryer is described as 'a village

hero' due to the construction of the clock, though he also did land surveying. When the lake at Coniston Hall was made Billy Cryer was the one who calculated the quantity of earth to be excavated and showed how the work was to be done at the least expense. Billy was a confirmed batchelor, however many advised him to find a wife and after waiting many years for the cook at 'Stone Gappe' he decided to look elsewhere. After his marriage his outlook was still obvious. When asked to describe his new wife he replied 'Oh she's a little elderly body with clogs on.'

Billy introduced this efficient clock to the village but Vincent Ratcliffe

introduced the 'Cats Whisker' or one of the first wirelesses to the people. He became renowned for making wirelesses, the money being raised at the many garden parties, where people would pay to listen to this new contraption. In no time at all many were listening to 2.L.O. the new radio station, thanks to this man.

Other village celebrities are remembered such as 'Nancy' a pet lamb belonging to the Dean family, which used to sit on an old milking stool in the Hartley's house in Park Lane. 'Nancy' was also the name of the mill donkey and during the elections she would be decorated with yellow and blue rib-bons and paraded through the village. The stories about this village and its inhabitants are endless. It is impossible to fit all these pieces which I have collected into a coherant order and over the three years that I have accumulated the information for this book things in the village have continued to alter dramatically.

I would like to thank everyone who has helped me to produce this book. There are far too many names to remember, but they know who they are. The lady who wrote me the letter about her life in the village however does really deserve a special 'thank you' for it was this which inspired me to write this book. The final paragraph of her letter epitomises how I feel since I have written this book so I would like to end as she did:

'I do hope I have written something which will be of use. It is not all ancient history and perhaps not relevant to what you want, but 1 have enjoyed myself scribbling it all down and looking back to those happy years. I had better stop now.'

— end —