Bleasdale is a village and civil parish in the Wyre

Wyre

Wyre is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Poulton-le-Fylde.The district is named after the River Wyre, which runs through the district...

 district of Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, in the Forest of Bowland

Forest of Bowland

The Forest of Bowland, also known as the Bowland Fells, is an area of barren gritstone fells, deep valleys and peat moorland, mostly in north-east Lancashire, England. A small part lies in North Yorkshire, and much of the area was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire...

 Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is an area of countryside considered to have significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government; the Countryside Council for Wales on...

 at 53.902048°N 2.650988°W. The two sources of the River Brock

River Brock

The River Brock is a river running through the county of Lancashire in England.Commencing its journey on Fair Snape Fell, the infant River Brock runs beneath the Bleasdale Circle before continuing via Claughton and Bilsborrow to St Michael's On Wyre, where it joins the River Wyre.-Tributaries:*New...

 lie within the parish. According to the 2001 census, it had a population of 147.

Within the parish are:

• Bleasdale Church of England School (around 40 students, ages 4–11)
• Bleasdale Circle - a Bronze Age
  Bronze Age
  The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
  
   earthwork at
• The Parish Hall
• The former Bleasdale Post Office, housed in the forge
  Forge
  A forge is a hearth used for forging. The term "forge" can also refer to the workplace of a smith or a blacksmith, although the term smithy is then more commonly used.The basic smithy contains a forge, also known as a hearth, for heating metals...
  
   opposite Higher Brock Mill on the River Brock
  River Brock
  The River Brock is a river running through the county of Lancashire in England.Commencing its journey on Fair Snape Fell, the infant River Brock runs beneath the Bleasdale Circle before continuing via Claughton and Bilsborrow to St Michael's On Wyre, where it joins the River Wyre.-Tributaries:*New...
  
  , supporting brown trout
  Brown trout
  The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
  
   and rainbow trout
  Rainbow trout
  The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....
  
  . From 1947 to 2002 the post office housed a café for locals, cycling
  Cycling
  Cycling, also called bicycling or biking, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, or for sport. Persons engaged in cycling are cyclists or bicyclists...
  
   and hiking folk to refresh, fitted with a well
  Water well
  A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
  
   from circa 1700 beneath the building. In the early 1900s, "Jack Custard" was renowned for his quality of his custard tart
  Custard tart
  Custard tarts or flans pâtissier are a pastry consisting of an outer pastry crust filled with egg custard and baked.-History:The development of custard is so intimately connected with the custard tart or pie that the word itself comes from the old French croustade, meaning a kind of pie...
  
   for passing travellers.

The ancient Forest of Bleasdale is less well known than its more famous neighbour, the Forest of Bowland

Forest of Bowland

The Forest of Bowland, also known as the Bowland Fells, is an area of barren gritstone fells, deep valleys and peat moorland, mostly in north-east Lancashire, England. A small part lies in North Yorkshire, and much of the area was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire...

 but its history is recounted by Smith Being a part of Wyresdale, Bleasdale never fell under the sway of the powerful medieval Lordship of Bowland

Lordship of Bowland

The Lordship of Bowland, an ancient English title connected with the Forest of Bowland in the northwest of England, was once thought lost and was only recently rediscovered. It disappeared from sight in 1885 when the estates of the Towneleys, one of Lancashire’s great aristocratic families, were...

.

Notable buildings

• St Eadmer's Church: The church was rebuilt in 1835 by John Dewhurst and restored and enlarged in 1897. It has a west tower and lancet windows.
• Bleasdale Tower: built in the early 19th century by William Garnett

External links

• Photographs of Bleasdale on Lancashire County Council website