Bright sunshine brought large crowds flocking to the villages of Great and Little Urswick for the ancient rushbearing procession in September 1993.

Newly-crowned Rushbearing Queen Fay Pinder, ten, of Birkrigg, took her place at the head of the parade.

She was accompanied by Great Urswick youngsters Kay Bennett and Sara Jeory, both ten, who were trainbearers.

Local vicar the Rev David Woods and other church dignitaries joined the procession, which was headed by Vickers Junior Band.

A new banner made specially by Joan Wood, of Urswick, was carried in the procession alongside the historic 19th century banner which bore all the names of previous rushbearing queens.

The preacher at the rushbearing service held in the parish church was the Vicar of Aldingham, Dendron and Rampside, the Rev Charles Potter.

Children placed rushes across the floor of the church at the beginning of the service and posies of flowers were later placed on “forgotten” graves in the churchyard.

Villagers of Urswick gathered in September 1998 for the ancient tradition of rushbearing.

The tradition had been revived in Urswick in 1905, but originated from a much older time, when the floors of churches were covered with rushes instead of flagstones.

The ceremony in the 1990s was an opportunity for villagers to give thanks for St Michael’s Church and remember all those associated with it. The ceremony was conducted on the Sunday nearest to St Michael’s Day.

The rushbearing queen in 1998 was 12-year-old Samantha Postlethwaite, of Great Urswick. She and her attendants paraded around the villages singing hymns, accompanied by Dalton Town Band.

Once inside the church, rushes, gathered from around the tarn, were thrown on the ground and the queen sat on a throne while a service was conducted.

She was presented with a Bible to close the ceremony and then the village children were treated to gingerbread and fruit juice.