Sunday 12 December 2010

Sunday.


Took the above photo walking back from town yesterday via the River Walk and Tinker's Lane. It's Tinker's Cottage and stands at the bottom of Tinker's Lane. It's a very basic brick built cottage of (I should guess) early 19th century date (but, as is usual in our area, the chimney could be earlier than that). But the name facinates me. Who was the original tinker, and how did he become so prosperous a tinker that he could afford a solid little house, and had it (and the lane) named after him? Must see if I can find out.
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6 comments:

Crowbard said...

Wasn't there a mill in a field off Tinker's Lane, Mike?
It is quite possible that a good tinker could provide a great deal of service to a miller, especially a miller who didn't like the prices of the local black-smith!

Pootatu says 'gerse'...
She's right - that is just a surmise or guess if you prefer!

Crowbard said...

PS of course by the early C19th. many tinkers' descendents had become Mr. Tinker and many a Mr. Tinker owned land and a house which may have become known by their owner's surname.
v-word this time is 'collit', cousin no doubt to the collets you use in your work?

Unknown said...

Hi Crowbard. I think your thoughts may be moving in the right direction. If you walk DOWN Tinker's Lane towards the river, pass Tinker's Cottage (on your left) and continue another fifty/seventy yards, there was a large water mill on the Brett that burned down in the early 1960s. I will canvass the views and memories of the older inhabitants, and see if I can come up with further information. I will let you know (especially if your (inspired ?) guess turns out to have a basis in fact.
Warm regards, your senior sibling, Mike.

Crowbard said...

If I'm right would that make me your prophetic Sibyl-ing?

Unknown said...

Wrong tense - looking back and reasoning; prophetic - looking forward.
Wrong gender; sibyl - prophetess.

Crowbard said...

Ah me! If only I'd been your elder sissyter...
Pootatu I feel is slightly horrified at the impropriety and/or drollery of such a case and has spat out the v-word 'cherub'?... with such venom as to mis-spell it as 'dherub'

I fear she may be deliberately mis-spelling words in order to preserve your comfortable disbelief in her electronic intellectuality.