Eskdale, Cumbria
| Eskdale | |
|---|---|
| Civil parish | |
 The panorama across Eskdale from Hardknott Roman Fort | |
  Eskdale Location within Cumbria | |
| Population | 249 (Parish, 2021)[1] |
| OS grid reference | NY1700 |
| Civil parish |
|
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HOLMROOK |
| Postcode district | CA19 |
| Dialling code | 019467 |
| Police | Cumbria |
| Fire | Cumbria |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
Eskdale is a civil parish in the west of the Lake District National Park, and the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. It is named after the Eskdale valley which the River Esk flows through on its way from the fells of the Lake District to the Irish Sea at Ravenglass. The civil parish is not coterminous with the valley, as the parish also includes the upper valley of the River Mite (Miterdale), whilst the lower reaches of the River Esk are in the civil parish of Muncaster.[2] Most of the parish's population is concentrated in the two villages of Eskdale Green and Boot.
One of the Lake District's most popular tourist attractions, the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway, runs through the parish, though along with other western parts of the Lake District, Eskdale is notably quieter during the high summer season than the more accessible eastern areas.
History
[edit]The Romans built a road which ran along Eskdale, linking the port at Ravenglass to the west with their fort at Ambleside to the east. At the eastern end of the Eskdale valley, the road crossed Hardknott Pass.[3] Around 117 AD, they built a fort called Mediobogdum part way up the pass, on a prominent vantage point for views west along the valley. The fort had been abandoned by the end of the 2nd century, and its remains are now known as Hardknott Roman Fort.[4]
The valley has been relatively sparsely populated for most of its history. The River Esk formed the boundary between the ancient parishes of St Bees to the north and Millom to the south.[5] St Catherine's Church was built in the 14th century on the north bank of the Esk near Boot, to serve as a chapel of ease to the parish church at St Bees, some 14 miles (23 km) away.[6][7]
In the 19th century, there were a number of hematite iron ore quarries in the valley, mostly in the area around Boot. The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway was built in 1875 as a mineral railway.
On 2 June 2010, the area was the scene of some of the Cumbria shootings perpetrated by 52-year-old taxi driver Derrick Bird, who shot and killed twelve people and wounded eleven others. Several of the wounded victims were shot in Eskdale and the surrounding area.
Governance
[edit]
There are two tiers of local government covering Eskdale, at parish and unitary authority level: Eskdale Parish Council and Cumberland Council. The parish council generally meets at the village hall at Eskdale Green, which forms part of the same building as St Bega's Church.[8]
At a national level, the parish is within the Barrow and Furness UK parliamentary constituency.[9]
Literature
[edit]In a note to her poetical illustration 
Eskdale, Cumberland. (Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1836) to a painting by G. Pickering, Letitia Elizabeth Landon remarks on the hospitality of the 'estatesmen' of this district.[10]
Eskdale and Rafnglass (modern Ravenglass) feature in Rosemary Sutcliff's final novel Sword Song, set in the 9th century and published posthumously in 1997.
Demography
[edit]At the 2021 census, the parish had a population of 249.[1] The population had been 264 in 2001, and 304 in 2011.[11][12]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "2021 Census Parish Profiles". NOMIS. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 31 March 2025. (To get individual community data, use the query function on table PP002.)
- ^ Election Maps (with parishes and unitary authorities selected (Map). Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
- ^ Brown, Jules (2010). The Rough Guide to the Lake District. Rough Guides UK. p. 290. ISBN 978-1-848-36698-5.
- ^ Historic England. "Hardknott Roman fort, bath-house, parade ground and tribunal, 4 roman Roads, Roman quarries and 3 cairns (1009349)". National Heritage List for England.
- ^ "Cumberland Sheet LXXIX". National Library of Scotland. Ordnance Survey. 1867. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ Whellan, William (1860). The History and Topography of the Counties of Cumberland and Westmorland. p. 435. Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ Historic England. "Church of St Catherine (Grade II) (1086695)". National Heritage List for England.
- ^ "Eskdale Parish Council". Retrieved 9 April 2025.
- ^ Election Maps (with parishes and westminster constituencies selected (Map). Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
- ^ Landon, Letitia Elizabeth (1835). "picture". Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1836. Fisher, Son & Co.Landon, Letitia Elizabeth (1835). "poetical illustration". Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1836. Fisher, Son & Co.
- ^ UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Eskdale Parish (E04010477)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
- ^ UK Census (2001). "Local Area Report – Eskdale Parish (16UE008)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
External links
[edit]- Cumbria County History Trust: Eskdale and Wasdale (nb: provisional research only – see Talk page)
- Eskdale website
- The Cumbria Directory - Eskdale
