Beaumont

Is bounded on the north by the river Eden, on the west by Burgh-by-Sands, on the south by Moorhouse, and on the east by Grinsdale. It stretches along the west side of the Eden, a distance of about two miles, and comprises 1,629 acres of land, of which the gross estimated rental is £2,338 7s., and the ratable value £2,025. The parish is situated in Cumberland ward, and petty sessional division; the county council electoral division of Dalston; rural deanery of Carlisle, N.; and the poor law union, county court, and rural districts of Carlisle.

Agriculture is the chief employment of the inhabitants, who, according to the last census, number 252, and live in the village of Beaumont and a few scattered houses. The land throughout is rich and fertile. The Roman or Picts' wall passes through this parish; and traces of it as well as of the vallum may still be seen. The latter is particularly well defined on each side of the Beaumont beck. The course of the wall was as follows:- It entered the parish at Beaumont beck near the Eden, and proceeding in a direct line to the church, went thence in a westerly direction to Burgh-by-Sands.

The Manor of Beaumont was held in ancient times by the Bruns, lords of Bowness, but it became the property of the Dacres, by purchase, in the 14th century, and has ever since been annexed to the barony of Burgh. The land which is now nearly all freehold, is chiefly owned by the Misses Hodgson, G.H.H. Oliphant-Ferguson, Esq.; Lord Lowther; Richard Hodgson, Burgh; Mrs. Faulder, Thursby; G.W. Mounsey-Heysham, Esq., Castletown; Mrs. Rickerby, Monkhill; Mr. T. Robinson, Cargo; Mrs. Borthwick, Burgh; and John Wilson, Wigton.

The Church, dedicated to St. Mary, is a plain structure in the Norman style. Since 1692 it has served as the parish church for this and the adjoining parish of Kirkandrews, which now form a united rectory, in the patronage of the Earl of Lonsdale. "The tithes of these united parishes are regulated by private Act, the 7th and 8th of George IV (1827), that owing to a fall in the value of wheat, the tithes have been reduced to the minimum fixed by the Act, viz., £120, which is paid annually, on the 11th November, free and clear of and from all taxes, rates, duties, and assessments whatsoever." The living valued in the reign of Henry VIII at £8 1s. 8d., is now worth £175, and is held by the Rev. Joseph Chapelhow, D.D., who resides at the rectory, Kirkandrews. A plot of land, called Priesthill, containing about 30 acres, was allotted to the rector, at the enclosure of the common in 1680, but it seem to have been withheld from the church. Three stained glass windows were inserted in 1872 to the memory of Mr. Thomas Hodgson. A curiously carved stone was dug up in the churchyard in 1882, which appears, from the style of the sculpture, to be 13th century work. The registers date from 1692. Beaumont, that is the "Beautiful mount," aptly describes the situation of the village, which occupies a gentle eminence on the west bank of the Eden, about four miles north-west of Carlisle. From its summit several interesting views way be obtained. Monkhill tarn is a small sheet of water in this parish.

Bulmer's History & Directory Of Cumberland, 1901

29 July 2006

© Steve Bulman