Every now and then I do something daring – like stepping outside of the Dales and dipping a toe into Lancashire. Hidden deep in the family’s ancestry I found someone called Dilworth, and I wondered where the surname came from. The earliest bearers of the surname sprang from a tiny place called Dilworth just over the Lancashire border near Longridge. The branch I am interested in was recorded during the 1700s at Slaidburn’s St Andrew’s church (pictured below), which is on the correct side of the border (this part of Yorkshire was lent to Lancashire in 1974 for administrative purposes). It’s a grand old church in a lovely spot – a fine resting place for some of the family’s forebears to keep an eye on the Lancastrians. I’ve been tracing our family history on and off for decades now and recently I had one of those Ancestry.com DNA tests done. My basic DNA breakdown shows I’m 62 per cent British, 28 per cent western European and 10 per cent other ethnicity. My British community group is Northern English. Nothing very surprising there then.
That wasn’t the only time I skipped over the border this week. I needed the passport again while doing a little errand for someone near Brough, in Westmorland. I couldn’t resist a visit to the castle (it’s free, so why not?) for a couple of photos…
I returned through the Dales via Tan Hill pub which looked forlorn on the bleak expansive moorland. There were three large military vehicles parked at the pub which made me wonder if they were expecting some further border raids. tanhillinn.com
The clouds were dark above Tan Hill unlike in Ribblesdale. Although clear blue skies brighten up the Dales they don’t always help create interesting photos. I took pictures of the Three Peaks one day and was surprised at the different hue on each one. The wind was biting but without clouds I think the photos lack movement and thus interest. Here are Penyghent, Ingleborough and Whernside on the day.
I also took plenty of shots in and around Langcliffe this week, including the top photo in the blog… and dozens more, a few here…
Bluebells have appeared in Cleatop Park Wood on the outskirts of Settle… and the trees are budding… but the rivers around the Dales are low and some fields looked parched.
