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Warcop Cemeteries (MIs) Census Church History Church Records Directories History Maps  Population Probate Records Taxation

"The cups in the arms of Warcop seem to have been assumed from a misapprehension of the name of the place; for it was never anciently written Warcup, but Warthecoppe, and sometimes Wardecop. Coppe signifies the top of a hill. Which hill, no doubt, is the place where the tower or manor house stood, upon a rising ground ascending from the river Eden. Whether the former part of the word might be from a wath or ford over the river there before the bridge was erected, or rather from ward being kept there, cannot now with any precision be determined.

The parish of Warcop is bounded on the East by the parish of Musgrave; on the South, by the parishes of Crosby Garret and Kirkby Stephen; on the West, by the parishes of Asby, Ormeshead, and St. Michael's Appleby; and on the North, by the parish of Romaldkirk in the county of York: And contains about 117 families; all of the church of England, except one or two.

The church is dedicated to St. Columbe; by contraction, St. Combe. This saint is not in the Kalendar of saints in the Romish church, having never been canonized at Rome. He was the apostle of the Picts, and settled in one of the Hebrides islands, in the sixth century.

It is a vicarage, in the patronage of the lord of the manor. The church is small, with two little bells. The vicarage-house hath been anciently moated round, including the garden, orchard, and outhouses; with a draw-bridge at the entrance: the necessity whereof is apparent, as it is situate by the road side out of Scotland.

West from Warcop, lies the manor of Sandford, on the north side of the river Eden; which probably had its name from some ford over that river, the soil being remarkably sandy all thereabouts.

North from Coupland beck bridge, at the skirt of Roman fell, (as it is now called, not for any particular reason deducible from the time of the old Romans, for the ancient name of it was Rutmanfell) lies the hamlet of Burton. This, like many of the rest, was heretofore in the hands of a family denominated from the place.

South from Warcop, on the opposite side of the river Eden, is the village of Bleatarn; so denominated from the tarn and marshy ground thereabouts."

Nicolson and Burn: The history and antiquities of the counties of Westmorland and Cumberland. 1777. Transcribed by Anne Nichols.

Census

Returns survive for the 'census' of 1787 and are held at the Kendal Record Office of Cumbria Archives Service. The Record Office reference is WQ/SP/C. They are transcribed in Vital Statistics published by Curwen Archives Trust 1992. ISBN 1897590008.

Census returns are available from the usual sources for 1841-1901.

Transcript and index for 1851 has been published by the Cumbria Family History Society and also in 'North Westmorland - An Index to the 1851 Census' compiled by David Lowis and Barbara Slack.

Church History St Columba. Cruciform church with S aisle. The nave is substantially Norman. Later work is C13th, C14th and C15th. C17th porch. There are chapels at Warcop, Sandford and Bleatarn

Church Records

The parish records and BTs are held at the Kendal Record Office of Cumbria Archives Service. The Record Office reference is WPR

For searching on www.familysearch.org see Jake Prescott's list of IGI batch numbers.

Registers for the Inghamite Birks Chapel (1757-1837 bap, 1758-1837 bur) are held at the Kendal Record Office and the Public Record Office, London.

Directories

The details for the parish from the Parson & White's Directory for 1829 are transcribed on Edenlinks site.

History

"Warcop, Warthe-coop, or Warthecupp, a Village famous for giving a Name to an antient and
genteel Family of Warcops, who 'tis probable were Lords of it at that Time, but was alienated
in Aftertimes; for Roger Lord Clifford 4th died possessed of it 13 Rich. II. and left it with
his other great Estates to his Son and Heir Thomas; yet 'tis probable, that the Warcops still
continued Men of Estates and Note, because we observe, that Thomas de Warthe-cupp was Knight
of this Shire 8 Hen. V. The Maidenway lies near this village.

Sandford, a Lordship of Roger Lord Clifford 4th, who died seised of it 13 Rich. II.
with divers other Manors before-mentioned, and left it to his Son and Heir Thomas,
as above."

Magna Britannica et Hibernia.Volume 6: Westmorland by Thomas Cox (Vicar of Bromfield, Essex) 45 pages, printed in 1731.
Transcription by Sarah Reveley,  Joan Fisher and Lisl Schoenwald. (Rootsweb Westmorland Listmembers)  (c)  2003

British History Online provides Warcop from The Later Records relating to North Westmorland by John F. Curwen (1932)

A History of the Sandfords of Sandford have been made available by C R Grant.

Maps

A present-day web map is available from Multimap.

Population

Probate Records

Warcop is in the diocese of Carlisle and wills will be in Carlisle Record Office.

Taxation

Hearth Tax records for 1674 Warcop transcribed on Edenlinks.
Hearth Tax records for 1674 Bleatarn (Warcop) transcribed on Edenlinks.
Hearth Tax records for 1674 Burton (Warcop) transcribed on Edenlinks.
Hearth Tax records for 1674 Sandforth (Warcop) transcribed on Edenlinks.

Window Tax records for 1777 Warcop transcribed on Edenlinks
Window Tax records for 1777  Bleatarn transcribed on Edenlinks.
Window Tax records for 1777 Sandford transcribed on Edenlinks.

Last updated: November 2008 Dave Huddart