Wainwright used his writings to express his humour
Fellwalkers and outdoor enthusiasts are being canvassed for support on a project to keep Alfred Wainwright’s original works in the county he loved.
The diffident borough treasurer spent much of his working life in Kendal and all his spare time walking the fells and producing his handwritten pictorial guides to the mountains of the Lake District and northern Britain. Now, his original papers are up for grabs and Cumbria County Council is due to bid for them – with public support.
The collection, which includes his photographs, correspondence, drawings and slides, carries a price tag of £200,000 and the county’s archive service is keen to bid for the Wainwright works, which would remain in Cumbria and be available for researchers.
A bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund will be made to cover most of the asking price, but the council’s archive service has to demonstrate substantial public support for the application – which is where grough’s readers come in.
The deadline for the application is the end of February, and Peter Eyre of the County Record Office needs Wainwright fans to write to him with their words of support for the project before the deadline.
Wainwright: his collection would stay in Cumbria if the bid were successful
Born in Blackburn, Lancashire, the son of an itinerant stonemason, Wainwright became enamoured of the Lake District following his first glimpse of the area from Orrest Head overlooking Windermere, in 1930. He went on to produce some first class books and some very strange philosophical observations. Much of his life was chronicled in Hunter Davies’s warts-and-all biography of the writer, and the Wainwright papers would prove invaluable for anyone delving into the psyche of the notoriously unsociable fellwalker who let his pen do the talking.
Submissions in support of the Cumbria Archives bid can be made by email to Peter Eyre or by post to: Peter J Eyre, Assistant County Archivist, Cumbria Record Office, Kendal LA9 4RQ.
Th
28 January 2010Wainwright was a miserable misogynistic old bore who's fussy little books are only bought by people who have not the slightest intention of getting on the hill. And the one pub named after him won't let walkers in. There are much better uses for this money than being conned out of it for a load of old overvalued sub-literary tat.
Sam
29 January 2010Wainwright wasn't the nicest of persons certainly, but his fellwalking guides are superb in how much effort and detail has gone into them. I use them pretty regularly to pick out routes up Lakeland hills that look interesting. It's also interesting to notice how many things have changed from the diagrams in the books and how many things have stayed the same.
Obviously they are no substitute for maps on the hill, but I take them up with me to help me identify summit panoramas and points of interest along the way.
Harry Griffin is where it's really at for writing about Lakeland though...
andyr
29 January 2010Yes, I think they should remain in Cumbria. As a historical record, they are useful even if the guides are little used or out of date. You could say he was a man of his time, attitudes have changed over the last half century or so and he was not so uncommon then.
The work and perfectionism that went into these books deserve to be preserved locally. I do not use them now but for early walks in the lakes when I did not know the landmarks they were very useful to me.
For the cost of a small house, I would support keeping them in Cumbria.
One Wainright habit I have adopted is the fish supper after a day on the hill.
The Wainright inn is not very good anyway and there are better beers and bars in Lakeland where walkers are very welcome.
D Collins
31 January 2010Using the Guides on my first visit to the Lakes in 1968 I learnt enough and following assisting week long field trips and taking Mountain Leadership courses, have since introduced over 2000 children (11+) to the delights,history,geograhy,geology,safe fellwalking , etc,etc of the Lake District.
Not a bad result for those "fussy little books" !!!!!!!
Incidently meet AW on the fells in the 70,s with a party of 20 + staff - we were having lunch by a tarn when AW came by ,stopped and spent about half an hour talking to the children kindly and with a genuine caring attitude,- perhaps his "gruffness" towards certain people was inspired by a wonderful ability to recognise those with a "mean selfish streak" and who have little appreciation of a great gift and a person whose contribution to those who love the outdoors is unmeasurable.
Still not a bad result for a few " fussy little books"
Roxy
15 July 2012Wainright was a misanthrope.
A man who used insincere self-deprecation to hide his lack of personal insight. Or hide what he knew but lacked the guts to admit.
A man who's obsessive project was mere avoidance behaviour.
Even in death, he couldn't or wasn't willing to recognise that he was the issue, not other people. In a last act of defiance, he preferred for animals to benefit at the expense of people (who do you think you relied on to buy your outpourings Mr W? Ah, that'll be 'horrid' people then!).
I love the Lake District. But I have no desire to see it through the eyes of this old prick. He's dead now. And the world is better for it. Just a shame about those wretched books - monuments to his own sick vanity.
Long may he be remembered for the embittered misfit he was.
Undularar
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