| Broughton in Furness | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Prince's Street, Broughton-in-Furness | |
  Broughton in Furness Location withinCumbria | |
| Population | 529 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SD2087 |
| Civil parish | |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BROUGHTON-IN-FURNESS |
| Postcode district | LA20 |
| Dialling code | 01229 |
| Police | Cumbria |
| Fire | Cumbria |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
| 54°16′41″N3°12′50″W / 54.278°N 3.214°W /54.278; -3.214 | |
Broughton in Furness is amarket town in thecivil parish ofBroughton West in theWestmorland and Furness district ofCumbria, England. It had a population of 529 at the 2011 Census.[1] It is located on the south western boundary of England'sLake District National Park, and in theFurness region, which was historically part ofLancashire.
The name Broughton derives from theOld Englishbrōctūn meaning 'settlement by thebrook'.[2]
Broughton in Furness is mentioned in theDomesday Book of 1086 as one of the townships forming theManor of Hougun held byTostig Godwinson,Earl of Northumbria.[3] Dating from around the eleventh century, the original settlement grew to become the localmarket town for both fishing and agriculture. Wool was particularly important for the town's development. The town was given a charter in 1575.
The Market Square was formally laid out in 1760 by John Gilpin Sawrey, the Lord of the Manor, who lived at Broughton Tower, a large mansion just a short distance from the Square. Key developments around the Market Square included theOld Town Hall.[4]
In the 1990s theA595 road was diverted in an attempt to improve the environment of the town and help it retain its rural feel.[citation needed]
Broughton-in-Furness forms part of thecivil parish ofBroughton West.[5] There are two tiers of local government covering Broughton West, atparish andunitary authority level: Duddon Parish Council andWestmorland and Furness Council. The parish council is agrouped parish council covering the three parishes of Broughton West,Angerton andDunnerdale-with-Seathwaite.[6] The parish council meets at the Victory Hall on Station Road in Broughton.[7]
Broughton was historically atownship in theancient parish ofKirkby Ireleth, which formed part of theLonsdale Hundred ofLancashire.[8] The township was known as "Broughton West" or "Broughton-in-Furness", to distinguish it from the other township in Lonsdale Hundred called Broughton, 14 miles (23 km) to the east, which was also known as Broughton-in-Cartmel orBroughton East.[9][10]St Mary Magdalene's Church at Broughton-in-Furness, although dating back to at least the 12th century,[11] was achapel of ease to St Cuthbert's Church at Kirkby Ireleth until 1870, when anecclesiastical parish of Broughton-in-Furness was created.[12]
The township took on civil functions under thepoor laws from the 17th century onwards.[13] As such, the township also became acivil parish in 1866, when the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws.[14] Whereas the name Broughton-in-Furness was used for the ecclesiastical parish and by theGeneral Post Office for postal addresses, the civil parish used the Broughton West variant of the name.[12]
When elected parish and district councils were created under theLocal Government Act 1894, Broughton West was given a parish council and included in the Ulverston Rural District, which was renamedNorth Lonsdale Rural District in 1960.[8] North Lonsdale Rural District was abolished in 1974, and Broughton West became part of theSouth Lakeland district in the new county ofCumbria.[15][16] Broughton West ceased to have its own parish council in 1976, when it was grouped with the neighbouring parishes of Angerton and Dunnerdale-with-Seathwaite under Duddon Parish Council.[6] South Lakeland was abolished in 2023 when the new Westmorland and Furness Council was created, also taking over the functions of the abolished Cumbria County Council in the area.[17]
It lies near theRiver Duddon, just inland from the coastal hamlet ofFoxfield. Duddon Mosses is a site of special scientific interest with deer, lizards, adders and barn owls.
With just 529 residents, in terms of population, Broughton-in-Furness ranks 5,721 of the 7,727 towns in the UK according to the 2011 census.[18]
Traditionally the economy was based on fishing and agriculture; there is a regular livestock market. The creation of the National Park in the 1950s produced some tourism for the area, there is a Tourist Information Centre located in the main square.
The Victory Hall has been recently refurbished with Lottery funding and puts on plays and musical events. The town contains, amongst other shops, a Post Office/newsagents, a grocer/butcher, a bakery and a number of pubs/restaurants.
The central obelisk in the town square was constructed to mark theJubilee ofKing George III in 1810. Syke House on the western approach is an attractive listed building with datestones of 1655 and 1740.
There is a thriving tennis club with two outdoor courts and there is sailing on Coniston Water.Eccle Riggs is a Victorian manor house to the south of town that is now a leisure club.
Local television news programmes areBBC North West Tonight andITV Granada Reports. Local radio stations areBBC Radio Cumbria,Heart North West,Smooth Lake District, and Cando FM, a community-based station.[19] The town's local newspapers are theNorth West Evening Mail andThe Westmorland Gazette.[20]
TheFurness Railway opened the line fromKirkby toBroughton station in 1848;[21] theWhitehaven and Furness Junction Railway - which amalgamated with the Furness Railway in 1866 - opened its line fromWhitehaven intoFoxfield station in 1850.[22] In 1859, the nominally independentConiston Railway - which amalgamated with the Furness Railway in 1862 - extended the line through Broughton toConiston.[23] Nearly 100 years after the opening of the Coniston line, in 1958, the line closed to passengers, goods traffic continuing until 1962, at which point the line was closed and dismantled, the route of which is now a public bridleway for approximately 1.3 miles (2.1 km) towardsConiston.[24] Broughton's nearest railway station is nowFoxfield railway station, 2 miles (3.2 km) south west of the town.
The main west-coast road, theA595, used to pass through Broughton until the road along Duddon Mosses through Foxfield was designated as the A595.[citation needed] The stretch of road through Broughton has been designated the number C5009, although A595 can still be seen on older road signage.
There is a Church of England primary school[25] in the town. The old school house, now a private residence, can still be seen on Church Street, close to the pathway to the church.
There are no secondary schools in Broughton with children usually attendingJohn Ruskin School in Coniston,Ulverston Victoria High School orWindermere School. Young people frequently travel toBarrow-in-Furness to attendFurness College andBarrow Sixth Form College from the age of 16.
The Anglicanchurch dedicated to St Mary Magdalene has its roots in Saxon times but the oldest part of the current building dates to the 12th century.
It is an activeAnglicanparish church in the deanery of Furness, the archdeaconry of Westmorland and Furness, and thediocese of Carlisle. Itsbenefice is united with those of four other local parishes.[26] The church is recorded in theNational Heritage List for England as a designated Grade IIlisted building.[27]
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