In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Broughton in Furness like this:
BROUGHTON-IN-FURNESS, or West Broughton, a small town, a township-chapelry, and a subdistrict in the district of Ulverstone, Lancashire. The town stands on the river Duddon, adjacent to the Furness railway, at the junction of the branch line to Coniston, 9 miles, by road, NW by N of Ulverstone. ...
It occupies a hill slope; is edificed with stone houses, nearly in a regular square; and has, of late years, undergone great improvement. It has a post office‡ under Ulverstone, a railway station with telegraph, two chief inns, and a grammar school. A weekly market is held on Wednesday; and fairs on 27 April, 1 Aug., and 6 Oct. A manufacture of woollen yarn used to be carried on; and an export trade in roofing slates and in iron and copper ores, from neighbouring mines, is now considerable. The chapelry includes the town; is in Kirkby-Ireleth parish; and comprises 7,040 acres. Real property, £6,677. Pop., 1,183. Houses, 239. The property is much subdivided. The manor belonged for several centuries to the Broughton family; and was forfeited, in 1487, by Sir Thomas Broughton, who joined Lambert Simnel, and fell in the battle of Stoke. Broughton tower, now the seat of J. D. Sawrey, Esq., crowns an eminence about ½ a mile N of the town; includes part of the ancient mansion of the Broughtons; and commands a brilliant and extensive view. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of Carlisle. Value, £108.* Patron, J. D. Sawrey, Esq. The church is tolerable; and there are two dissenting chapels. Charities, £15. The subdistrict consists of Kirkby-Ireleth parish and an extra-parochial tract.
Broughton in Furness through time
Broughton in Furness is now part of South Lakeland district. Click here for graphs and data of how South Lakeland has changed over two centuries. For statistics about Broughton in Furness itself, go to Units and Statistics.
GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth, History of Broughton in Furness, in South Lakeland and Lancashire | Map and description, A Vision of Britain through Time.
URL: https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/10030
Date accessed: 05th November 2024
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