Cockermouth is a Georgian “Gem” town in the north west of England on the northernmost edge of the Lake District National Park. Sited on the confluence of the rivers Cocker and Derwent, it has history reaching back through the Norman invasion to the Romans and a Market Charter dating from the 13th century. However, it was during the Georgian period that the town grew into an important centre for trading and manufacturing as a result of the wool and weaving trades.
Modern Cockermouth has many aspects that refer back to its historical roots. The castle overshadows the confluence of the river. But its Georgian heritage is its main claim to fame as the birthplace of William Wordsworth, John Dalton, Fearon Fallows, John Walker and Fletcher Christian, names redolent of the age. It was during this period that the town took on its flavour that exists to this day. Walk its streets and you see town houses and cottages in the Regency style, seek out its “wents” and find the remains of weaver’s workshops, sit by its flowing rivers and hark back to the time that seeded Wordsworth’s poetry.
The town has a wide main street and a market place at the centre of modern trading and social life. At on end of the main street is Wordsworth’s childhood home an impressive National Trust property. You can follow a town trail to gain a full understanding of the town and enjoy modern facilities available for the tourist, as cafés, restaurants, hotels and pubs provide the pleasant town with entertainment, food and drink. There are numerous galleries for those wanting to view and buy artworks. There are craft, curio and antique shops for “ratching” in a local word whose meaning is only too obvious if you think of what you are likely to do in these establishments. All the while the life of the town continues.
It was for many of these reasons that in 2005 a group decided to set up a Georgian
Fair and open the town and its history for inspection and enjoyment.
A special market was held on the main street and a day of enjoyable
pleasures was laid on. Local people joined in with a will and
were encouraged to “dress like a Georgian”. There were sedan
chair races on the Memorial Gardens beside the river and old
style fairground attractions. Wordsworth’s Birthday party was
held in his former home as the date chosen for the fair coincided.
On the streets there was entertainment of various sorts. Belfagan,
the local women’s morris dancers, appeared in Georgian dresses,
hurdy-gurdy music was heard, fiddlers plied their instruments
and bagpipes skirled. Jugglers and tumblers threw and dived;
street entertainment sawed the air; words were spoken in rhyme,
couplet and quatrain. Contacts: Anne Meeghan (chair)
01900 825952 (anne.meeghan@tiscali.co.uk)
Chris George (treasurer)
01900 828209 (chrisandgillg@googlemail.com)
David and Bridget Hilton
01900 821150
Kate Hilton – 01900 829061
Janet Mansfield – 016973 23997
Bob Pritchard – 01900 823228
Stephen Walker – 01900 828748
Stuart and Margaret Wiltshire 01900 827809.
The next Georgian Fair will be 2012
Photos of Cockermouth's Georgian Fairs.
- 2010 Georgian Fair photos by Dave Sidall
- 2010 Georgian Fair photos by David Hilton
- Cockermouth Festival of Traditional and Historic Dance 2010
- Photos from the previous 3 Georgian Fairs
