Beetham, Westmorland
Historical Description
Beetham, a township and a parish in Westmoreland. The township lies on the river Beetha, 1¼ mile S of Milnthorpe. Acreage, 5170; population of the civil parish, 1196; of the ecclesiastical, 631. The parish extends down both sides of the river Kent to Morecambe Bay; includes the townships of Farleton, Haverbrack, Witherslack, and Methop-with-Ulpha; is traversed by the Lancaster and Carlisle and the Furness railways; and contains the village of Amside, with a station on the latter railway, and a post office tinder Milnthorpe. The surface is diversified, hilly, and picturesque. Slate and limestone occur, and paper-making is carried on. Beetham Hall, formerly the seat of the Betham family, now the property of the Earl of Derby, was a fine castellated mansion, but is in ruins. Cappleside House also was a great mansion, with 117 feet of frontage, but is likewise in ruins. The towers of Arnside and Hoi-slack, supposed to have been erected to guard the bay of Morecambe, make a conspicuous figure, but are also in ruins. The living is a discharged vicarage in the diocese of Carlisle; gross value, £219 with residence. Patron, the Bishop of Carlisle. The church is a neat edifice, and contains monuments of the Betham and Wilson families, and a manuscript history of the parish, written by the vicar Hutton. The perpetual curacy of Witherslack is a separate benefice. A grammar school, founded by Dean Barwick, has an endowed income of about £40 per annum, and there are some large charities.
Administration
The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.
Ancient County | Westmorland | |
Ecclesiastical parish | Beetham St. Michael | |
Poor Law union | Kendal | |
Ward | Kendal |
Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.
Civil Registration
For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.
Directories & Gazetteers
We have transcribed the entry for Beetham from the following:
- Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Beetham (St. Michael))
Land and Property
The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Westmorland is available to browse.