Services

Carrier

A very useful man at one time was the carrier. This business was carried on for many years by the Sowerby family. Jimmy, as he was generally called, went to Penrith every Tuesday, wet or fine, with first a horse and cart, then later his horse and wagonette. Sometimes he had a passenger or two, and every week he did shopping for many people in the village. He would start at the top end of the village, picking up any passengers there might be, and people came out and told him their requirements in the way of shopping. He would have orders to get such things as a bottle of castor oil from Banks Swinburn's, a set of caulkers from Joe Bowerbanks, a stone of Indian corn from Pears and Elliot's, and some red flannel from Laidman and Lancaster's. He never wrote anything down- and he never forgot anything! When Jimmy got older, his son, William, carried on the business. More people were going to Penrith by this time, and in addition to his one-horse wagonette he had a bigger one drawn by two horses. In fine weather it was open, but in cold or wet weather a top was put on. The big wagonette was used on busy days like Whit Tuesday, Little Whit and Martinmas Tuesday. Sometimes William took a party to Alston Show or Pooley Sports, and sometimes the Band or Cricket Club engaged him to take them to Armathwaite Sports or other places. Some- times, too, he was engaged to take a party of wedding guests for a drive round the countryside.

Railway

For more information about the construction of the Railway, see History - C19th

When passenger trains started to run (1876), many people were very nervous at travelling at such a great speed. The story goes that one old lady knelt down on the platform and said her prayers before venturing on a journey! When the railway was built through Culgaith there was not a station at first. People using the railway had to walk to Newbiggin Station. The one at Culgaith was not opened until about 1880. Mr. Chidgey was the first station master.

After the railway was built, a number of village men obtained work there, as platelayers, signalmen and porters. It was a great boon to the whole district, for apart from the passenger service, the mail came by rail from Carlisle, the farmers for many years sent their churns of milk off by train, cattle and sheep travelled by train, and people were able to get as much coal as they wanted. This was delivered by horse and cart, and dumped (loose) at the coal house doors for elevenpence or a shilling a hundredweight.

There have been several accidents, some fatal, on the Culgaith length of line, mostly to platelayers. Soon after the railway was built, a train was derailed a little to the south of the station, and various kinds of goods were scattered over Hag End. In 1930 there was a very bad accident in Waste Banks tunnel, when a passenger train ran into a worktrain. The driver of the passenger train was killed and one of the passengers died later. A level crossing is always a dangerous place, and a few accidents have occurred at the one at Culgaith, but none of them very serious. Probably the worst one was that involving the late James Sowerby. He was leading a horse drawing a load of corn in bags, when on the last hill above the station the belly-band broke, causing the horse to run downhill and through the gates, right in front of a train. Horse, cart and corn were scattered far into the tunnel, but fortunately James had let go and was unhurt.

During the last few years things have changed very much for the worse on the railway. Many people travel by car or bus; milk is colllected at the farms and taken to the Express Dairy at Appleby; the mail comes by road from Penrith, and cattle and sheep are carried in lorries. The station staff has been depleted and it is feared that very soon the station will be closed.

For many years the postal address of this village was "Culgaith, Carlisle." All letters came and went by rail, via Carlisle. James Huddart kept the Post Office. He put the letters and parcels into a bag and took them every evening to the station and put them on the seven o'clock train. In the morning he met the early train, got the mail bag, took it home and sorted the letters, which he then delivered round the village. He wore no uniform and at one time when he went on his rounds he blew a whistle outside every house for which he had a parcel or letter, and someone, generally one of the children, went out to meet him. One small boy loved doing this, and when Jim had no letter for him he followed him quite a distance, shouting "Give us a yan!" Jim was forced to carry an old envelope in his pocket to give the little chap if he had no letter for him. A few years ago the mail started to come from Penrith in vans, and regular postmen in uniform delivered the letters, etc.

Culgaith has always been a very independent and go-ahead village. There has been no big landowner or squire for hundreds of years and the people have learned to stand on their own two feet and do things for themselves. Culgaith was one of the first villages in the county to have a village hall, and the Recreation Ground is probably second to none in the whole of the country for a place of its size. Piped water was brought into the village in 1908. Previous to that, everyone depended on private and public wells for their drinking water, and on the Tarn and Flodder and other ponds for water for cattle and horses. Every house had its rain barrel for collecting water for washing, etc. There were about 25 wells in the village. These were all private except Miller Well on the green, and the pump built into the recess in the wall at Bushby House. There were also troughs containing spring water at the bottom of Well Gates and in what used to be called Smithy Croft. A tragedy occurred one night at Laburnam House, when an old man drowned himself in the well behind the house. Piped water was brought from a spring at Ranbeck, Kirkland, via Blencarn. Blencarn did not join in the scheme at first, as they had a supply from the Rigg. Later they joined in, and their supply was joined to the Culgaith supply. A reservoir was built near Scar Top, and the pipes were laid down the Pale and on to Culgaith. Thompson Hindson was appointed Waterworks Manager and he regularly cleaned out the screening chambers at Ranbeck, the reservoir and the ends of the pipes. To pay for this scheme, money was borrowed, and a water rate charged on the village. This was to be paid off in thirty years. By the time the debt was cleared, the county rate came into operation and Culgaith people had to pay a higher rate than they had paid before. Very much more water is used now than ever before, as many new houses have been built, most fields have troughs for cattle, and gallons of water are used for cooling milk. Ranbeck spring is not sufficient for all these requirements, and now Kirkland Beck is turned into the supply. There is no local Waterworks Manager, as everything is done from headquarters at Penrith.

Culgaith has been well sewered since before the turn of the century. 

Electricity was brought to the village in 1933. Ten years before that, Joseph Stamper installed electric light, from his own plant, at Rose Bank, Harcla House, the Victoria Institute and the Wesleyan Chapel. There is still no street lighting in the village.