Cartmel Village Society

11/06/2026

to 1786 and tomorrow, 12th June, marks the 240th anniversary of William Taylor's death. Reverend Taylor was instrumental in inspiring a young William Wordsworth at Hawkshead Grammar School, encouraging him to start writing poetry and ultimately setting him on the road to brilliance. His grave in Cartmel Priory churchyard has previously stood anonymous and largely forgotten until now.

With the support of locals, Cartmel Village Society has funded an illustrated storyboard to recognise his literary connections and oversaw the build of a new fenced and gated walkway to his grave.

Access to the graveside will be officially unveiled at 10.15am tomorrow, Friday 12th June, followed by a free talk – ‘William Wordsworth and Cartmel’ - by Wordsworth biographer, Professor Stephen Gill in The Priory. Professor Gill is also happy to sign copies of his book: ‘William Wordsworth: A Life’ at the same time.

Hawkshead Grammar School Museum Wordsworth Grasmere

11/06/2026

04/06/2026

Following on this week with another painting by Cartmel watercolour artist, Peter Spink. This is how the back of the village smithy, which is now the fabulous L'Enclume, looked in the 1950s.

28/05/2026

to Peter Spink's Artist’s Studio in 1958. As we said in last week's TT, Peter was an artist who painted a series of watercolours of Cartmel in 1958. This painting is Peter's studio, and if you look closely, you can see a painting of the Priory on the easel – obviously a work in progress. This room is likely to have changed, but was probably in the village. It would be really interesting to know where it was if anyone has any insight...

21/05/2026

to a rare view of Royal Oak Court behind the Royal Oak at Cartmel pub. This is a great piece of work from 1958 by Peter Spink, an artist who painted a series of watercolours of Cartmel.

Next week we'll be sharing a painting of Peter's studio and also hope to feature more of his work in future posts.

14/05/2026

and this one really is fascinating. It's one of the earliest detailed maps of Cartmel, dating from around 1854. This map was included in the 1854 published book 'Cartmel Parish and Parish Church' by Reverend William Folliott, so it could even be from a little earlier in time.

The buildings are shown in remarkable detail, and many have changed little over the years. A few have been demolished: the two cottages by the Institute in Devonshire Square (now its car park); a cottage called the Crow’s Nest at the top left of the map; and a cottage in the field to the east of the Priory. The most significant building not yet there is the Vicarage, which was built in the 1850s.

07/05/2026

and we love coming across a good 'people' pic!

This photo had no caption but is included in a set from Cartmel from the time of King George V's coronation in 1911. Every person in the pic is in Sunday Best clothing and the ladies hats look very grand indeed. Also, the gentleman in the turban is wearing a medal.

Is anyone familiar / related to you? Tell us below!

30/04/2026

to a beautiful view of Cartmel from 1890s Hampsfell, which doesn't look too different from today's view.

But how do we know it's from the 1890s...?

If you grab a magnifying glass or zoom in, you can see that St Mary's Lodge has only two storeys, and we know a third was added around 1900. Also, Prior's Yeat House on Aynsome Road is not there, and this was built in 1912.

The row of cottages to the left of the photo is Gladstone Terrace. These were demolished in the 1950s, around the time that Cartmel Priory C of E School was built opposite.

Can anyone spot any other differences?

23/04/2026

to both the 1930s and our post from last month! On the 12th March, we posted a pic of Wheelhouse Bridge and the River Eea from a different angle where it was difficult to make out the writing on the building.

Mystery now solved!

This pic from approx 1930 looking along Priest Lane from what is now L'Enclume, clearly shows the sign to say 'Priory Gardens'. The dresses of the people walking along Priest Lane appear to be from around 1930.