Askham, Cumbria

Coordinates: 54°36′N 2°46′W / 54.60°N 02.76°W / 54.60; -02.76
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the village and civil parish in Cumbria. For the village and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, see Askham, Nottinghamshire.

Askham
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townPENRITH
Postcode districtCA10
Dialling code01931
PoliceCumbria
FireCumbria
AmbulanceNorth West
Penrith and the Border
List of places
UK
England
Cumbria
54°36′N 2°46′W / 54.60°N 02.76°W / 54.60; -02.76

Askham is a village and

Eden district of Cumbria, England. It is in the historic county of Westmorland. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 360,[1] decreasing slightly to 356 at the 2011 Census.[2] It is situated on the eastern edge of the Lake District National Park, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Penrith.[3] Nearby are the remains of Lowther Castle
, the site of the annual Lowther Show, a three-day event of country pursuits.

History and Culture

The primary landmark of Askham is

grade I listed
building in 1968. After 2012, the Countess of Lonsdale converted it into a hotel.[4]

The manor was 'anciently' referred to as Ascum.[5]

Many public houses, such as the 'Punch Bowl', have old beams with splits in them where coins are forced 'for luck'. This practice may be linked to examples, called '

hawthorns
which are traditionally linked with fertility, as in 'May Blossom'. The trunk and branches in these cases are covered with hundreds of coins which have been driven through the bark and into the wood. The local traditions are that a wish will be granted for each of the coins so treated (Rodger 2006).

Another local custom is the throwing of coins from the bridge onto a boulder that lies below the water level. Getting the coin to stay on the rock gives the thrower 'good luck'. These are examples of '

Touch Pieces
'. Obvious connections exist with water generally and the practice of throwing in coins to seek 'favours' of the water spirits.

Governance

An electoral ward in the same name exists. This ward stretches south to Bampton with a total population of 1,432.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ UK Census (2001). "Local Area Report – Askham Parish (16UF005)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  2. Office for National Statistics
    . Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  3. ISBN 9780340254875
    .
  4. ^ "Askham Hall - the history of our historic hall in Cumbria, the Lake District".
  5. ^ "askham_history". Archived from the original on 18 May 2003.
  6. ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  • Rodger, Donald, Stokes, Jon & Ogilvie, James (2006). Heritage Trees of Scotland. The Tree Council. P.87.
    ISBN 0-904853-03-9

External links

Media related to Askham, Cumbria at Wikimedia Commons


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