Miterdale Head

Miterdale Head

The General Fine of 1547? listed two tenants at "Mytterdailhed", John Steuynson and John Nicholson, but John Nicholson occupied both parts.

William Nicholson was then tenant at Browyeat. A William Nicholson of Miterdale died in 1574, leaving sons Nicholas and William. Nicholas is possibly the tenant of Browyeat mentioned in the Percy Survey while William is farming Mitredale Head together with John Nicholson?

The split of the land in the Percy Survey of 1578 implies that a single tenancy at Miterdalehead was divided into three - Miterdalehead, Sword House and Browyeat - and that Miterdalehead was itself sub-divided into two as described below.

The Percy Survey lists

William Nicholson- Mitredale Head- tenement etc., 3 little closes adj. (1a), upper part of the Paroke (0.5r), New Close (1r), 2/9 share of the Tongue Field (2a), moiety of Brode Garth (parcel of ground, 2.5a), 2/9 share of Crag Wood and Underside (wood ground, 1a), with common: rent 6/8, also 1/3 share of an old improvement (3r): 2d, Eme Garth: 2.5d, moulture & walker: 2d. Total 7/2.5 yearly.²

It also lists seven other tenants in Miterdale including

John Nicholson - tenement, barn & other buildings, nether part of the Paroke (0.5r), the Myre (meadow close, 0.5a), the Low Garth (close of coarse ground, 3r), Skale inge (close, 1r), 1/9 share of the Tongue Field (1a), Stokefold Garth (parcel of wood & pasture ground, 3.5a), 1/9 share of Crag Wood and Underside (wood ground): rent 6/2, Eme Garth 2.5d, 1/3 share of the Brust (improvement): 2d, "decayed rents of the corn Mill and walk Mill there (called moulture and walker)": 2d. Total 6/8.5 yearly ²

This almost certainly represents the splitting of Miterdale Head into two tenancies at some earlier date.

Note the reference to a walk mill (for cloth making), now disused. Angus Winchester has suggested that it was income from such ancillary activities made the splitting of farms economically viable.

The Eskdale 24 Book of 1587 mentions 3 tenants of Miterdailhead, but without naming them. Comparison with the Percy Survey implies that the third tenant is Nicholas Stevenson. It also fails to mention the property known later as Sword House. Thus it appears that the Eskdale 24 Book is considering Sword House as the third tenement of Miterdale Head.

John Nicholson was bailiff of Miterdale in 1627 when a survey of the woods was carried out.

William Nicholson of Miterdale had sons Nicholas and John in 1631 and 1632 respectively.

According to Angus Winchester¹ the first two above parts of Miterdale Head were recombined in 1633.

John Braythwaite of Mitterdaille Head died in 1685. His inventory was assessed by John Hartley (of Miterdale Head?), John Nicholson (of Low Place??), Robert Stephenson (of Sword House?) and John Wilkinson (of Bakerstead?). There is no indication as to which property he had farmed.

William Hartley, probably born at Langrigg Green, died at Miterdale Head in 1652 leaving two tenements to his son John. He had been listed as tenant of both parts of Miterdale Head in the General Fine of 1633. (Although his great-grandson surrendered Sword House to William Copeland of Miterdale Head in 1733 it appears that he acquired it just three years earlier). William had two sons (John and William) and a daughter (Susan). John died at Miterdale Head in 1699 leaving 4 sons and two daughters. I have not traced what happened to John's brother William.

John's first son William predeceased him in 1682. His third son, Edward died in infancy and his fourth son died when only six years old

His second, and surviving, son Nicholas (1659-1735) had daughters including Bridget, who married John Porter of Low Holme, and sons Henry and Edward who in due course (c1738) moved to Boot where Edward bought the mill and Henry farmed at Spout House.

In 1732 Nicholas and Henry Harley (of Miterdale Head) were to serve as pounders for the next year. Henry was to continue in that office for 1733 & 1734. Henry Hartley of Miterdailhead was then appointed as constable for 1736, 1737 and 1738.

By 1750 it appears that William Coupland was tenants of both parts of Miterdale Head, as well as of Swordhouse. It may be that William Dickonson was the actual occupier of all three properties in 1756.

The property had passed to John Coupland by 1760 and in 1774 was inherited by another John who in 1779 sold Miterdale Head (with Swordhouse) to James Russel, yeoman of Bankhouse, Eskdale. (Is this the same James Russel who was at Bakerstead in 1760? - Yes)

Return to main Miterdale page

Notes

1 Deserted Farmstead Sites at Miterdale Head, Eskdale, by Angus J.L. Winchester
(CWAAS 1979 pp150-155)