History Group

Memories of WW2 Evacuation to Downham (pdf)

Campanula latifolia NOT rare, but what is described by botanists as localised and uncommon. There is evidence in an old photograph of its growing here on the side of Twiston Lane, at Forty Foot a hundred and twenty years ago. In the past forty years it has been variable in its gradually waning appearances. Having reduced to one decent clump on Grindleton Road, Chatburn and a gradually diminishing group on Twiston Lane towards Brownlow, this year it has begun to reappear. One stem on Skeleron Lane and six or so, spread out between New Close and Brownlow on Twiston Lane mostly single stems but with a couple of larger groupings. There is further evidence of its re-emergence with seven or eight clumps, a couple of them large, on quiet West Lane. Nothing to get excited about when you can see masses in other places – there are lots at Garsdale near Sedbergh for example; we have a very welcome re-emergence in our lanes of this very beautiful British flower.

ERINUS ALPINUS, the pretty wall flower we see growing in our locality each spring, has its own ‘local history’. It is not a native of the area and we are not sure of when it was introduced but it is a rather special ‘immigrant’. The plant has been around for a long time but how did it get here? Click for full article (pdf)

TWISTON MILL
A Short history by Jenny Palmer

If you walk past the lodge at Twiston Mill today, all you see is a cluster of farm buildings and a house. It is hard to imagine that any industrial activity ever went on there. But for almost a hundred years, from 1792-1882, Twiston Mill was a hive of activity with up to 49 operatives working in the cotton mill at one time. (1861 Census).

Twiston Mill part 1 (pdf)

TWISTON mill burnt down in 1882 but, as the graph shows, the decline in the population of Twiston had already started well before that, as people moved from the countryside to the towns. This second article looks at the mill hands who lived and worked at Twiston Mill. It examines the number and size of families, the sort of jobs people did, where they lived, where they came from, the turnover of staff and managers and the gradual transition of the mill into a farm. It uses the 1841-91 censuses as a chief resource and refers also to the electoral registers as well as articles in the British Library online newspapers.

Twiston Mill part 2 (pdf)

Downham and Twiston History Group

History Group Newsletter 5 Decemberl 2012 (pdf)

Memories of WW2 Evacuation to Downham (pdf)

History Group Newsletter no 4 August 2011 (pdf)

Dowham & Twiston History Group Newsletter No 3 MArch 2011 (pdf) Twiston Mill part 2

Dowham & Twiston History Group Newsletter No 2 November 2010 (pdf)

History Group Newsletter Augsut 2010 (pdf)