Melmerby, Cumbria
Melmerby is a village and civil parish in the Eden district, in the county of Cumbria, England. It is a small village with a population of around 200. The village is 9 miles to the east of Penrith, a thriving community with immediate access to Junction 40 of the M6 motorway and a main line railway station serving London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Glasgow. Surrounded by countryside it sits between the North Pennines with its highest point, Cross Fell to the east and the World Heritage Lake District National Park 10 miles to the west. The River Eden is  bridged about away at Langwathby, and Long Meg and Her Daughters, the 3,500-year-old stone circle – the second largest in the country – is nearby at Little Salkeld. In 1931 the parish had a population of 175. Governance. On 1 April 1934 the parish was merged into Ousby, on 1 April 2019 Melmerby became a separate parish again. History. Melmerby is supposed to have taken its name from the residence of Máel Muire, a presumed Norse-Gael who lived nearby in the 9th century. The most significant historic buildings surviving in the village today are the 13th century church of  St John the Baptist and the Grade II Listed Melmerby Hall, begun as a defensive structure in the early 14th century. A petition received by Edward II between 1320 and 1326 reads: The hall, built from the local red sandstone, was extended in the 17th century and again in the 18th century in a Georgian style. The grounds include an archery lawn, walled vegetable gardens, a Victorian castle folly and wooded areas. Features inside include a priest hole and a large inglenook fireplace. Modern Melmerby. Melmerby has one Egon Ronay Guide-listed eatery: the Village Bakery, known for its breads  and cakes made with organic, stoneground flour. Village residents formed a consumer co-operative and opened a village shop in 2005, that featured on the BBC's "Working Lunch". The shop closed in 2008; however, it is now (Jan 2016) open and providing a great service to the village community as a shop, cafe and accommodation.. The area is popular with ramblers. Melmerby Fell is very close and Cross Fell, the highest part of the Pennines, is only three or four miles (6 km) away. The A686 road passes through the village, and was described in AA Magazine by travel  journalist Phil Llewellin: Melmerby Fell is a prominent feature of the area.