Santon Bridge Village Hall

Overall View taken from the roadside entrance- the old part is straight ahead the new part to the left - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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Overall View of the old Reading Room part - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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Overall View of the 1924, memorial, part - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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The date stone on the Reading Room part-time S I E stands for Santon, Irton Eskdale - the three villages served by the then School - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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Looking out to the road - straight on for Irton, right for the Bridge Inn, left for Eskdale - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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The seat on the right hand side of the porch of the 1924 hall - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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Blank space on the left hand side of the porch of the 1924 ball where the plans say there was a seat originally - Taken by Stuart Nicholson 09 Jan 2023

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Reference WMO/293967

Address:

Santon Bridge

CA19 1UX

England

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Status: On original site

Type: Freestanding

Location: External

Setting: Roadside

Description: Hall

Materials:

Glass Glass
Stone Stone (any)

Lettering: No lettering

Conflicts:

First World War (1914-1918)

About the memorial: Village Hall- built as an extension to the existing Reading Room and the former School (former in 1924). The hall is believed in the village to be a war memorial, although there is no formal evidence of that, no plaque or inscription over the door, it is based on village lore passed down over the last 100 years (see the comments for a longer statement regarding the veracity as a memorial). The current building is an L shape. From the 1924 plans the top of the 'L' is the original reading room (built as a School), and the left hand side is the extension (the War Memorial Hall). This has it's own entrance separate to the reading room entrance, the main hall is 23 feet wide x 45 feet long (this is 1924 so dimensions are imperial, not metric) with 3 windows in the front wall and 4 windows in the back wall-that back wall also has an emergency exit. At the end of the hall closest to the Reading Room was a removable platform and a 5' square heating chamber built as an extension on the back wall. Behind the platform there was a passage, with the ladies and men's rooms [toilets] behind- draining to a septic tank 50 feet behind. That passage led to an internal entrance to the older Reading Room- the kitchen facilities being in the Reading Room part. The external walls were 8 feet 9 inches high, with a base ceiling height of 14 feet (with rafters above). The Reading room had had cloakrooms, but not toilets.

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Comments:

This report is based on a comment on page 270 of the book "A most High-Handed Proceeding"- Irton and the Right of Way Case 1897-1907 by Paul Pharaoh (Bookcase, 2022, ISBN 978-1-912181-55-1), which states that it was funded by public subscription.
Given that the status as an alleged war memorial is now in print, and having discussed this with the author, I am letting this stand as it is based in very good faith on local oral history.
The author will amend the sentence in any 2nd edition of the book, to make the situation clearer.
I have checked the Millom Gazette index for any more information, but unfortunately the Whitehaven News is the only local paper not indexed beyond 1919. It is only possible to spend a finite amount of time looking for a, or multiple, news articles which may or may not exist anytime between 1919 and 1925.
There are at least 3 other village halls in Cumbria which local lore states are War Memorials, but the written evidence does not exist- Preston Patrick, Warwick on Eden and Broughton-in-Furness Victory Hall (the clue there is in the name).
The minute books for the local Parish Council (Irton with Santon) are not publically available, neither is the one for the neighbouring Drigg Parish Council).
From the Hall website the hall was purchased by the Community in 2018, as a 99 year lease was due to expire in September 2034.
Building work commenced very promptly and was substantially complete by the end of 1924 (Building Control Documentation) so the lease seems to have had a 10 year time lag. In that time and for long previously the hall's use had been by gentleman's agreement. The lease only came about due to the probate process for Sir Aubrey Brocklebank- the last Brocklebank to live at Irton Hall, and the local landowner/squire.
In 2018 the Hall was still legally a reading room (not a village hall- legally called Santon Bridge Institute with use restricted to those living within 5 miles) and was constituted as a trust, not as a Charity- issues which the Hall is looking to alter. The Consultation to do so ended on 30 October 2021 so this matter is currently (January 2023) active.

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