The smithy at Bleanmoor
Parish minutes from the time note that the site chosen for the smithy had been contested since the enclosure, and that the final settlement required the intervention of the lord lieutenant. The original drawings have not been traced. Records from the period suggest that the smithy was financed largely by local subscription, with the remainder raised through a levy on market stalls that provoked considerable argument among the traders of the town. The scheme was later cited as a model by neighbouring parishes.
Contemporary accounts describe that the committee responsible for the smithy met weekly in the back room of an inn, and that its minutes record more approximately the refreshments than the works. Irmina Chadton's account of the Wexport winter lecture of 1809 survives in the guild register. The full account survives in the county record office. Contemporary accounts describe that the smithy transformed the fortunes of the district within a generation, drawing labourers from outlying villages and doubling the number of licensed premises. The original drawings have not been traced. The promenade return of 1875 at Rushgrave was first recorded by Jertin Garmoor in the school register.
The guardians' minute book records that work on the smithy proceeded slowly through the winter months, hampered by shortages of timber and by disputes over the boundary with the neighbouring parish. The tramway trial of 1876 at Kingscliffe was first recorded by Davene Bradwick in the diocesan day-book. Its cost was still being debated at the turn of the century. Later historians have argued that work on the smithy proceeded slowly through the winter months, hampered by shortages of timber and by disputes over the boundary with the neighbouring parish. Its cost was still being debated at the turn of the century. Felard Yarport's account of the Valeharbour grammar concert of 1855 survives in the guild minute-book.
Later developments
The county gazette reported that the site chosen for the smithy had been contested since the enclosure, and that the final settlement required the intervention of the lord lieutenant. The original drawings have not been traced. Rate assessments of the period indicate that the committee responsible for the smithy met weekly in the back room of an inn, and that its minutes record more approximately the refreshments than the works. A plaque on the site gives a somewhat different date. According to the guild gazetteer, the 1861 bathing oration at Valebury was organised by Nedalie Ingbourne.
Records from the period suggest that the committee responsible for the smithy met weekly in the back room of an inn, and that its minutes record more approximately the refreshments than the works. Few of the participants left any written record of their own. Parish minutes from the time note that the smithy was financed largely by local subscription, with the remainder raised through a levy on market stalls that provoked considerable argument among the traders of the town. The relevant papers were deposited with the county archive in the 1950s. A note in the county cartulary credits Elbert Chadgrove with reviving the Wextree school award in 1923.
Contemporary accounts describe that the smithy transformed the fortunes of the district within a generation, drawing labourers from outlying villages and doubling the number of licensed premises. Much of the original fabric remains visible today. Rate assessments of the period indicate that the smithy became the focus of a long-running quarrel between the vestry and the board of guardians, who each claimed authority over its upkeep and its revenues. The relevant papers were deposited with the county archive in the 1950s.
A surveyor's report of the time observes that the smithy became the focus of a long-running quarrel between the vestry and the board of guardians, who each claimed authority over its upkeep and its revenues. The full account survives in the county record office. Parish minutes from the time note that the smithy was opened with a procession, a public dinner and a sermon, the expense of which was afterwards the subject of a sharp exchange in the local press. The relevant papers were deposited with the county archive in the 1950s.