Outer Morton

Outer Morden is the most recent expansion of Morton, built on the spit of land that runs between the Storrow and the River Durran as it heads upstream to Castron. Its development only really started in the last century and accelerated once it was accepted as a Ward of the town. Although its perimeter extends the line of the current city wall, it is an earthen bank topped with a palisade - though the inhabitants of Outer Morton are keen to see it brought up to the standard of the wall they have not been keen enough to pay for it and the comparatively peaceful times since Outer Morton was established have left this project always some way down the list of priorities.

Demographics

Socially Outer Morton is one of the more divers wards of the town - with the confluence of the Durran and Storrow just a brief walk across the Storrow bridge from the Strand and the government buildings it is home to a number of merchant families and senior administrators and the Storrow bank is favoured by those with business at court (or with aspirations thereunto) for it is but a short boat journey to the Palace's landings, or across the ferry to the Palace gates. Further out and towards the Durran is dominated by the lower ranks of society for even the outer fringes of Outer Morton are closer to the town's centre wards; the trading opportunities of the Strand and the boat works and dock areas of Wharfare than many other parts of town.

Defences

The defences of Outer Morton comprise the banks of the rivers and the palisaded bank forming its third side. This has a gate manned by the City Militia on the Castron Road and either end of the Storrow bridge can also be blocked with gates to form an obstacle between Outer Morton and Castleward .

Industry & Trade

Trade and industry thrive in the southern part of the ward, and most of the towns potters have gradually accumulated in this district for ease of delivery of their prime raw material from further upstream. The smoke from their kilns is one of the more disagreeable aspects but as the prevailing wind is from the north east this is not a major inconvenience to the rest of the town. The Castron Road is well provided with shops, alehouses and other places of entertainment servicing both those entering the town along the road and those from the town looking to let their hair down.

Infrastructure

Aside from the lack of walls Outer Morton is well provided for - the Storrow Bridges links it to the town's centre and a ferry provides a direct connection to Palaceward. The water supply us not as good as in most of the town - but situated at the upstream end of town for both the Durran and the Storrow water supply from the rivers is both safe and adequate. A number of devices powered by the flow of the rivers lift water to provide some motive pressure in the system which supplies those dwellings within 30 to 50 strides of the rivers. The sewers have not been extended to Outer Morton, for attempts at tunnelling under the Storrow have not been successful, however the Gongsters operate barges to remove both cess and trade waste from the ward.

Guilds and Factions

The Potters Guild in based in Outer Morton and a number of petty gangs and factions struggle for supremacy in the various fields of "entertainment" that characterise the seedier side of the ward's economy. A visitor is however generally safe from violent crime and outright robbery (if not from its more commercial cousin of outright overcharging).

History

Although there has long been some settlement of this spit of land, especially along the Castron Road, the Outer Morton, as a named place, only came into being in the early ninth century when the Storrow Bridge was built, replacing the earlier ferry connection. This was at a time of rapid growth in the the population of Morton as the capital came to accommodate the additional administration, visitors and so on following the incorporation of the Covrin provinces. Unlike the contemporary redevelopment of Wharfare and The Tanneries Outer Morton was never exactly planned and it is generally seen as a happy coincidence that its boundaries stabilised as a logical extension of the current town wall.

Type

Ward

Alderman

Orya Enna Hallack is the current Alderman of Outer Morton. Her background is in the pottery trade where she made her name in the painting of decoration onto the superior wares that have been becoming an increasing part of the Ward's business since 1000MD. Her workshop currently employs 10 artists and decorates the wares of a number of potters, for she has no desire to get into the messy and troublesome business of running her own kilns. A puritanical streak in her character sits at odds with the trade in entertainments that is a large part of the ward's commercial life but she bites her lip at the less savoury aspects and interferes with them less than she would like to.