William Arnold Parkin-Moore
William Arnold Parkin-Moore (born 28/08/1935, died 09/08/1974) was the son of George Parkin-Moore and grandson of William Parkin-Moore who inherited The Whitehall Estate from his great uncle, George Moore. William Arnold Parkin-Moore's mother was Mary Constance Grace Arnold, great granddaughter of the famous Dr Thomas Arnold, Headmaster of Rugby School (1828 -1841). Arnold Parkin-Moore drowned tragically at the age of 38 in a boating accident on Buttermere Lake. He was survived by his wife, Susan, and son, David Parkin-Moore, who was rescued from the Lake, together with another six-year old boy, the son of friends and London neighbours of the Parkin-Moore family.
Reports of the Inquest held at Cockermouth
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Father Drowns in canoe tragedy.
A man drowned and two small boys were snatched from death in a Lakeland canoe accident yesterday.
William Parkin-Moore, 38, a civil engineer on holiday from London was canoeing on Buttermere with his six-year-old son and another boy of six when their boat capsized. Police frogmen were today scouring the lake for his body.
Friends and relatives managed to pull the boys to safety. They were in a party of 20 canoeists at the head of Buttermere near Gatesgarth Farm. Farmer Thomas Richardson, who took the boys to his home, said underwater currents made that part of Buttermere especially dangerous.
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Children saved
but father dies in canoe accident.
A man died in Buttermere last Friday, after his canoe capsized on the lake. His six-year-old son and another boy, who were also in the canoe, were pulled to safety. Mr. Thomas Richardson, of Gatesgarth Farm, was called to the scene and took the boys to his nearby farm house to recover.
He said that that particular part of Buttermere was dangerous because of underwater currents flowing from Gatesgarth Dale Beck.
An inquest was opened on Tuesday and adjourned until a date to be fixed.
There were about 20 people canoeing on the lake who assisted in saving the two boys, but the dead mans body was not recovered until the following day, by Lancashire Police underwater search team.
He was Mr. Arnold Parkin-Moore, (38), civil engineer, of Eton Villas, North West London.
Mr. Parkin-Moore, who was 38, was the grandson of the late William Parkin-Moore, of Whitehall, near Wigton, who was High Sheriff of Cumberland in 1899, and who assumed the additional name of Moore under the will of his great uncle, George Moore, the famous Cumbrian philanthropist and merchant, who built Whitehall.*
*(He in fact re-built Whitehall)
Children were rescued but canoeist died.
It was only after two six-year-old boys had been rescued from Buttermere, after a canoe had capsized, that it was realised the father of one of the boys was missing.
This was said at an inquest at Cockermouth on Thursday into the death on August 9th of Mr William Arnold Parkin-Moore (38), civil engineer, of Eton Villas, London, N.W.3.
A small terrier which swam towards the canoe was thought to be the cause of the tragedy.
Mr. Parkin-Moore and his family were on holiday at Whitehall, Mealsgate, and were joined by Mr. Donald Horton and his family the day before the tragedy.
Mr. Parkin-Moore took his six-year-old son David and Mr. Horton’s six-year-old son Jack on to Buttermere.
BARKING DOG
Mr. Donald Horton, chartered accountant, also of Eton Villas, said it began to rain, and the canoe kept close to the edge of the lake until it rounded a bend. The Parkin-Moore terrier was running along the shore, barking. "After about two or three minutes we heard a loud shout ‘Hold on to the boat’. The children were screaming," said Mr. Horton.
He was not a good swimmer, but when Mrs. Susan Parkin-Moore went into the water, he swam out as well.
Mrs. Parkin-Moore rescued David and Mr. Horton got hold of Jack. None of them realised Mr. Parkin-Moore was not anywhere about.
The Coroner, Mr. H.F.T. Gough, said the two boys had made statements in which David said: "Daddy bent over to pick up the dog which had swum out from the shore." Jack made a similar statement, and added that the canoe had then overturned.
Dr. Philip John Whitehead, consultant pathologist at West Cumberland Hospital, said death was due to drowning. There was no evidence of any disease.
When questioned as to whether Mr. Parkin-Moore could have suffered from cramp, the doctor replied that cramp would not be evident on a post mortem examination.
The Coroner said he understood that Mr. Parkin-Moore, who was a good swimmer, had been a canoeist for some 15 years, and had previously canoed on Buttermere.
He returned a verdict of "misadventure".