Askham Directories

Askham Parish

Lies on the west side of the Lowther, and consists of two manors and townships, which support their poor conjointly; and contained in 1821 a population of 517 persons, of whom 355 were resident in Askham, and 162 in Helton. It comprises about 4, 264 acres, of which 2, 150 acres are woods and commons, and the rest in a good state of cultivation, the soil being generally fertile, and resting on limestone. It is bounded by the river Lowther, and the parishes of Barton and Bampton.

ASKHAM is a good village, in a pleasant situation, opposite to Lowther Park, 5 miles S. of Penrith. The manor, which was anciently called Ascum, passed from the Helbecks and Swinburns to the Sandfords, who held it from the reign of Edward III till 1724, when Wm. Sandford died without male issue, and the manor was afterwards sold to the Lowthers, so that the Earl of Lonsdale is now its lord, and owner of a great part of the soil. The Hall, so long the seat of the Sandford family, is an oblong turreted building, which was re-built or enlarged in 1574, as appears by a curious inscription over the gate. It was during the year 1828, by permission of the bishop, converted into the Rectory House for Lowther parish.

The CHURCH is a small ancient building, dedicated to St. Peter, and having a large aisle or chapel belonging to the hall. At the dissolution it formed part of the possessions of the monastery of "Wartre, in Yorkshire", but was afterwards sold to the lords of this manor, and is consequently in the patronage of the Earl of Lonsdale. The living is a vicarage, now enjoyed by the Rev. John Langton Leach, A.M.; and valued in the king’s books at £6, but afterwards certified at £31 16s. The rectorial tithes were sold to the Lowthers in 1680 except the tithes of three estates which were given to the vicarage in 1724 by Wm. Sandford, Esq., who also bequeathed a yearly rent charge of £8 to the poor of the parish. The SCHOOL is of modern foundation, being endowed in 1813, by subscriptions amounting to £420, of which £300 was laid out in the purchase of 6 ½ acres of land, and the rest is now lent on interest. The parish is greatly indebted for this useful institution, to the present vicar and the Earl of Lonsdale.

HELTON is a village and township, 1 mile S. of Askham. The manor is sometimes called Helton-Flecket, or Helton-Flechan, to distinguish it from Helton Bacon, which modern delicacy nows calls Hilton. It passed from the Morvills, Wessingtons, and Englishes to the Sandfords, who, in 1680, sold it to Sir John Lowther, an ancestor of its present possessor the Earl of Lonsdale. HELTON DALE, 1 mile S. of the village, forms the southern extremity of the parish, and is refreshed by a small rivulet flowing eastward to the Lowther, from Swarth Fell, near Ullswater lake.

Askham

Helton

Askham Directory