Times of Struggle of Strife - A History of the Parish of Over Kellet, by RD Escolme

Published by Mayoh Press in 2003, 138 pages. Paperback - c.14.5 by 20.5cm (A60F)

From the rear side cover: The peaceful appearance of the parish today, belies the turbulent times of the past. There were the incursions of the Dark Ages, as rival armies marched and counter marched across the land, and enslaved much or the population in the process; there were several Scots armies’ invasions in the fourteenth century, and for good measure numerous reaver raiding parties through the centuries; there were the religious divisions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and a divided parish in the Civil War. Besides man-made hazards, there were natural disasters. Changes in climate, and a series of “little ice ages”, especially that in the fourteenth century, saw a population reduced to starvation levels, and ready prey for the plagues that followed. Only in the last hundred years have health risks been significantly reduced: smallpox and diphtheria, tuberculosis and typhoid, hopefully things of the past, and also the high incidence of death in childbirth. This book traces these ordeals through the ages, and attempts to show how they affected the development of the community. In addition, progression in agriculture, housing, the church and school are covered.

The condition of the book is generally good. The covers have several scuffs and blemishes, and light wear along the edges and corners, but the spine is intact and all pages are intact, unblemished and tightly bound. There are initials and a date in pen in the extreme top right hand corner of the first inside page