Cross Keys Temperance Inn, Cautley

The Cross Keys Temperance Inn, Cautley, Sedbergh, Cumbria.
The original building dates back to the late 16th century and used to be a farmhouse called High Haygarth. In the mid 17th century the farmhouse was owned by Colonel Benson, Mayor of Kendal, who had turned against state religion and joined the Westmorland Seekers. He became an early supporter of George Fox since his visit to speak to the Seekers in 1652. A year later the Colonel’s first wife gave birth to a son whilst being imprisoned in York for heckling a priest. She died a few years later and was buried in the garden at High Haygarth - now probably underneath the dining room! The initials above the door refer to John and Agnes Howgill who later owned the farmhouse. The building became an inn shortly after 1819 when the road was built. In 1902 the landlord drowned in the River Rothay after attempting to escort a drunken customer home. The inn was then sold to a Mrs Buck, who sold it on to a Mrs Bunney and its liquor license was removed. Mrs Bunney left the Inn to the National Trust in 1949 on condition it remained a Temperance Inn.