In 1881 there were 5 Orreds in Cumberland, 2 each in Cheshire, Somerset, Hampshire and Sussex, and 1 each in Shropshire and Middlesex (Stephen Archer, Surname atlas (cd)).
Richard
From: The English Place-Name List [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John Insley
Sent: 21 May 2012 14:16
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [EPNL] Orehead (Westmorland)
Where does our oracle know that Orred is a common surnamee in Lancashire? I spent the first twenty years of my life in Preston and have had close contact with the county ever since, but I've never met an Orred.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, May 17, 2012 9:51 AM
Subject: [EPNL] Orehead (Westmorland)
There is a mention in 1711 of “a causeway and ditch in Lyth called the Orehead Causey” (Records relating to the Barony of Kendale: volume 3 John F. Curwen (editor) 1926 pp.208-213). This is Lyth near Levens. The southern part of Levens is called Causeway End, and from there a road called Old Road goes west across marshes towards a hill (White Scar) showing signs of mining (http://binged.it/Mn4A67). Is the word “ore” used in this area to refer to mining, and are hills called heads? (The surname Orehead occurs around 1600 in Frodsham in Cheshire, and Orred is a common surname in Lancashire.)
Keith
