John Birkbeck

John Birkbeck (6 July 1817 – 31 July 1890) was a Yorkshireman, banker, alpinist, and pioneer potholer. Early life and career Born in Settle and educated at the local Giggleswick School and Trinity College, Cambridge (although, as a Quaker, he could not take a degree) he spent most of his life in his home town where he was a partner in the Craven Bank, which his family had established in 1791. He was also a justice of the peace in later life. The family home was Anley (now a nursing home). Caving His name is remembered for his involvement in some early explorations of some of the potholes of Ingleborough, especially Gaping Gill and Alum Pot, although the records are sparse. Around 1842, Birkbeck had the water from Fell Beck diverted down 'the Birkbeck Trench' and went first 100 and then 190 feet down the Main Shaft of Gaping Gill, where there is a ledge which now bears his name, but then 'barred further descent'; no further attempts reached the bottom until Martel reached the Main Chamber, another 170 feet lower, in 1895.