EIGHT talks on different subjects will be given in the coming months at Witham Hall, to mark the 160th anniversary of that much-used Barnard Castle building.

It was put up as a memorial to the remarkable Harry Witham, a generous benefector, talented geologist and reckless gambler.

He was once called the black sheep of his family. His surname was actually Silvertop but he changed it to please the wealthy family of Eliza Witham, of Headlam, whom he married in 1800.

But for that, we might have been celebrating the anniversary of the Silvertop Hall.

What would Harry himself have thought of the talks? He may well have placed a wager on which of them might attract the largest or smallest audience, for betting was in his blood.

He lost an inherited fortune through backing too many slow horses. He organised a big dance at his home, Lartington Hall, to celebrate the fact that a horse called Dr Syntax was a cert to win him a huge sum.

But it lost, the dance was called off and he fled to John o' Groats to avoid his creditors.

He returned to Lartington after his mother died and left him another fortune.

He became hugely popular by founding the Mechanics' Institute in Barnard Castle and supporting a dispensary which treated hard-up families.

They both found a home in the hall built as a tribute to him.

The first talk, on Sunday, March 5, will be by Emma House, an expert from the Bowes Museum, who will feature the watercolours of the north by Turner and Cotman. Tickets are available at the hall.

TWO queries came in this week about the history of Evenwood, and I couldn't answer either of them without first searching through old record books.

Edward Riley wanted to know if the village was at the forefront of North-East iron production and if it once had a large castle.

In a Durham directory for the 1890s, I came across this statement: "Evenwood may lay claim to the honour of being the place first identified with the iron industry, which has assumed such vast proportions in this county."

It stated that, in Gordon Park in the village, in 1368, John de Merley and three others took over an iron bloomery for three years at a rent of 16 shillings a week. This included a supply of timber.

That answers the first question, and the same volume also gives information on the second, stating: "There was formerly an old castle here, but its remains were totally demolished in 1800, and its site is now occupied by a farmhouse."

In the 1890s, coal mining was the main industry in Evenwood. Norwood colliery employed more than 200 men and boys, and had an output of 120,000 tonnes a year.

Evenwood colliery had over 300 on its payroll, and its annual output was 160,000 tonnes.

Storey Lodge pit employed 180 hands and produced 80,000 tonnes yearly.

There were also some smaller mines and a large number of coke ovens in and around the village, which had a population of 3,880 in that era.

Some retired miners or their widows were chosen as tenants of five almshouses, built in Stone Row, in 1885, by Jacob Wright. They were all poor, but their plight was eased by 15 shillings a month from the will of Mr Wright, so there must have been many eager to move in right from the start.

MEMORIES about cruel or strange schoolmasters have featured here from time to time, so it was pleasing this week to come aross an old report about one of whom the dale can be proud: George Newby, who was born in Barningham in 1779.

In his early years, he attended the village's boarding academy, which was owned by his father. Then he was sent to St Bee's College in Cumberland, before becoming a master at Witton-le-Wear Grammar School and under-curate of that parish.

He must have impressed everyone there, because he was praised for gaining excellent results, and men who had been his pupils presented him with an elegant silver cup as a token of their esteem and affection.

In 1832, he became vicar of Stockton, where he handed out some of his modest income to help poor folk.

He became rector of Whickham in 1844, but died two years later, aged 67. His friends donated cash in his memory for a scholarship at Durham University, and a memorial to him was put in Witton-le-Wear Church.

IT is not long since any dale pub which became vacant had a queue of applicants hoping to take over behind the bar.

But a sign of how times have changed can be seen in the way large notices are now put up outside some to entice anyone interested in running them. Two can be seen at the moment beside main roads into the dale: the Lord Nelson at Gainford and Black Swan at Staindrop.

The number of local hostelries which change hands regularly is another indication that a publican's life is not an easy one.

I'll be glad to see anyone who calls with snippets of news at The Northern Echo office at 36 Horsemarket, Barnard Castle, on Mondays and Tuesdays. Telephone (01388) 638628.