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Levens Park, Levens
Levens Park
locality:-   Levens Hall
civil parish:-   Levens (formerly Westmorland)
county:-   Cumbria
locality type:-   park
coordinates:-   SD50228541 (etc) 
1Km square:-   SD5085
10Km square:-   SD58
evidence:-   old map:- OS County Series (Wmd 42 7) 
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Maps, County Series maps of Great Britain, scales 6 and 25 inches to 1 mile, published by the Ordnance Survey, Southampton, Hampshire, from about 1863 to 1948.
evidence:-   old map:- Saxton 1579
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Westmorlandiae et Cumberlandiae Comitatus ie Westmorland and Cumberland, scale about 5 miles to 1 inch, by Christopher Saxton, London, engraved by Augustinus Ryther, 1576, published 1579-1645.
image
Sax9SD48.jpg
House, fence palings, trees. 
item:-  private collection : 2
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Speed 1611 (Wmd) 
placename:-  Brigster park
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, The Countie Westmorland and Kendale the Cheif Towne, scale about 2.5 miles to 1 inch, by John Speed, 1610, published by George Humble, Popes Head Alley, London, 1611-12.
image
SP14SD48.jpg
"Brigster park"
ring of fence palings, trees, a park, contains Brigsteer 
item:-  Armitt Library : 2008.14.5
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Jansson 1646
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Cumbria and Westmoria, ie Cumberland and Westmorland, scale about 3.5 miles to 1 inch, by John Jansson, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1646.
image
JAN3SD48.jpg
Ring of fence palings with trees. 
item:-  JandMN : 88
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Morden 1695 (Wmd) 
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Westmorland, scale about 2.5 miles to 1 inch, by Robert Morden, published by Abel Swale, the Unicorn, St Paul's Churchyard, Awnsham, and John Churchill, the Black Swan, Paternoster Row, London, 1695.
image
MD10SD48.jpg
"Brigsteer Park"
Ring of fence palings, trees, and a circle for the house. 
item:-  JandMN : 24
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Simpson 1746 map (Wmd) 
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, Westmorland, scale about 8 miles to 1 inch, printed by R Walker, Fleet Lane, London, 1746.
image
SMP2SDP.jpg
Building in a park. 
item:-  Dove Cottage : 2007.38.59
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   probably old map:- Bowen and Kitchin 1760
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, A New Map of the Counties of Cumberland and Westmoreland Divided into their Respective Wards, scale about 4 miles to 1 inch, by Emanuel Bowen and Thomas Kitchin et al, published by T Bowles, Robert Sayer, and John Bowles, London, 1760.
image
BO18SD38.jpg
outline of fence palings 
item:-  Armitt Library : 2008.14.10
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Jefferys 1770 (Wmd) 
source data:-   Map, 4 sheets, The County of Westmoreland, scale 1 inch to 1 mile, surveyed 1768, and engraved and published by Thomas Jefferys, London, 1770.
image
J5SD48NE.jpg
outline with fence palings; park 
item:-  National Library of Scotland : EME.s.47
Image © National Library of Scotland
evidence:-   descriptive text:- West 1778 (11th edn 1821) 
item:-  garden
source data:-   Guide book, A Guide to the Lakes, by Thomas West, published by William Pennington, Kendal, Cumbria once Westmorland, and in London, 1778 to 1821.
image WS21P186, button  goto source
Page 186:-  "Here is one of the sweetest spots that fancy can imagine. The woods, the rocks, the river, the grounds, are rivals in beauty of style, and variety of contrast. The bends of the river, the bulging of the rocks over it, under which in some places it retires in haste, and again breaks out in a calm and spreading stream, are matchless beauties. The ground in some places is bold, and hangs abruptly over the river, or falls into gentle slopes, and easy plains. All is variety, with pleasing transition. Thickets cover the brows; ancient thorns, and more ancient oaks, are scattered over the plain; and clumps, and solitary beech trees of enormous size, that equal, if not surpass, any thing the Chiltern-hills can boast. The park is well stocked with fallow deer. The side of the Kent is famous for petrifying springs, that incrust vegetable bodies, such as moss, leaves of trees, &c. There is one on the park, called the Dropping-well."
"At a small distance is Hincaster, where the Romans had a camp. Within the park is Kirkshead, mentioned by Camden as a place frequented by the Romans, yet nothing of late belonging to that people has been discovered at either place. Levens-hall was the seat of a family of that name, for many ages; then of Redman, for several descents; afterwards it came to Bellingham, and Alan, or his son James Bellingham, gave it the present"
image WS21P187, button  goto source
Page 187:-  "form in the reign of Queen Elizabeth; and in taste of carvings in wood, attempted to outdo his contemporary, Walter Strickland, Esq. of Sizergh. After Bellingham it came to Colonel Graham, and from his daughter, by marriage, to the ancestor of the late noble possessor.[1]"
"[1] The Earl of Suffolk.- The gardens belonging to this seat are rather curious, in the old style, and said to have been planned by the gardener of James II, who resided here with Colonel Graham, during some part of the troubles of his royal master."
evidence:-   old map:- West 1784 map
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, A Map of the Lakes in Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire, scale about 3.5 miles to 1 inch, engraved by Paas, 53 Holborn, London, about 1784.
image
Ws02SD48.jpg
"Park"
Roughly circular outline, with fence palings. 
item:-  Armitt Library : A1221.1
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Cary 1789 (edn 1805) 
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, Westmoreland, scale about 2.5 miles to 1 inch, by John Cary, London, 1789; edition 1805.
image
CY24SD58.jpg
"Levens Park"
outline with fence palings; park 
item:-  JandMN : 129
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old text:- Gents Mag
item:-  botany; flower; birds
source data:-   Magazine, The Gentleman's Magazine or Monthly Intelligencer or Historical Chronicle, published by Edward Cave under the pseudonym Sylvanus Urban, and by other publishers, London, monthly from 1731 to 1922.
image G7940112, button  goto source
Gentleman's Magazine 1794 p.112  "..."
"Between 4 and 5 o'clock we entered Leven's Park on the East side of Kent; the great quantity of woods in this delightful pleasure-ground has invited to its shades a variety of small birds, amongst which all the species of Parus were observed, the Biarmicus excepted; and the Motacilla Regulus was also plentiful, though an uncommon bird in this part of Westmorland. The banks of the river, as far as we had yet traversed them, were frequented by the pied fly-catcher, Murcicapa Atricapilla, a bird that is far from being uncommon in the hilly parts of the North, though hardly known in the south of England. It leads its young, as soon as they are fledged, to the sides of brooks and rivulets, where they find shelter under the spreadiing leaves of the tussilago petasites; its food does not consist altogether of insects; for, the gizzard of one I dissected contained a number of minute seeds mixed with small stones."
"The following description was taken from a young cock bird: weight 13 dwts. length from the tip of the bill to the origin of the tail 31/2 inches; breadth 81/2inches; upper part of the head glossy-black; neck surrounded with a broad white ring; the limits of the black and white very well defined; base of the bill flared, but not so conspicuously broad as in the m. grisola; exterior feathers of the tail white tipped with brown; inner web of the quill feathers dirty white; coverts of the wings black with light brown edges; legs fuscous, not black; under part of the body of a dirty white, feathers being black tipped with white. The water ouzel, [fl]urnus cinculus, occurred frequently in the course of our walk. ..."
evidence:-   old map:- Cooke 1802
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Map, Westmoreland ie Westmorland, scale about 12 miles to 1 inch, by George Cooke, 1802, published by Sherwood, Jones and Co, Paternoster Road, London, 1824.
image  click to enlarge
GRA1Wd.jpg
"Levens Pa."
outline of fence palings; park 
item:-  Hampshire Museums : FA2000.62.4
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Wallis 1810 (Wmd) 
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Road map, Westmoreland, scale about 19 miles to 1 inch, by James Wallis, 77 Berwick Street, Soho, 1810, published by W Lewis, Finch Lane, London, 1835?
image  click to enlarge
WAL5.jpg
"Levens Pa."
outline with fence palings; park 
item:-  JandMN : 63
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Hall 1820 (Wmd) 
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Westmoreland ie Westmorland, scale about 14.5 miles to 1 inch, by Sidney Hall, London, 1820, published by Samuel Leigh, 18 Strand, London, 1820-31.
image  click to enlarge
HA18.jpg
"Levens Pk."
outline of fence palings; park 
item:-  Armitt Library : 2008.14.58
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Ford 1839 map
placename:-  Levens Park
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, Map of the Lake District of Cumberland, Westmoreland and Lancashire, scale about 3.5 miles to 1 inch, published by Charles Thurnam, Carlisle, and by R Groombridge, 5 Paternoster Row, London, 3rd edn 1843.
image
FD02SD48.jpg
"Levens Park"
Park. 
item:-  JandMN : 100.1
Image © see bottom of page
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