From the “Dead Moon” to “Yallery Brown”: Investigating The Legends of the Carrs as published in Folklore in 1891
For the past six years I have been carrying out research to attempt to validate the Legends of the Cars1 a collection of tales submitted to Folklore in 1891 as having been collected in the Carrs of North Lincolnshire from local people. I believe that the Legends contain narratives that fit the landscape of the area an also a wealth of folklore that is also found in Lincolnshire. The Legends of the Carrs are today used by artists, writers and storytellers, wishing to evoke the flatland and beliefs of the past, and despite the fact that their origins have on occasions been questioned, to date they have never been thoroughly investigated. My aim has been to examine the historical, geographical and social context which inspired the Legends and to validate the folkloric content and the dialect as being from North Lincolnshire. I have also been investigating folklore and story collecting methods in the late nineteenth century and examining the life and work of Marie Clothilde Balfour, who submitted the stories for publication.
By clicking on the links in the categories to the right you can find out about
- an outline summary of my research to date
- a short summary of the sources I have consulted
- a list of the Legends and the places where they and their adaptations can be found plus links to summaries of each of the Legends (found by clicking on each link in the categories list)
- current events connected with the research
1: The spelling of 'Cars' is as recorded by M.C.Balfour though the modern spelling is 'Carrs.'