Broughton-in-Furness

infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Broughton-in-Furness
latitude= 54.2782
longitude= -3.2142
population = 900
shire_district= South Lakeland
region= North West England
shire_county = Cumbria
constituency_westminster= Westmorland and Lonsdale
post_town= BROUGHTON-IN-FURNESS
postcode_district = LA20
postcode_area= LA
dial_code= 01229
os_grid_reference= SD209876

Broughton-in-Furness is a small town on the southern boundary of England's Lake District National Park. It is located in the Furness region of Cumbria that was part of Lancashire before 1974. It lies near the River Duddon, just inland from the West Cumbrian coastal village of Foxfield.

Dating from around the eleventh century, the original settlement grew to become the local market town for both fishing and agriculture. The central obelisk in the town square was constructed to mark the Jubilee of King George III in 1810.

In 1859, the Coniston branch of the Furness Railway, which passed through the town, was opened. Nearly one hundred years later, in 1958, the line was closed and dismantled. Broughton's nearest railway station is now Foxfield railway station, two miles south-west of the town.

The creation of the National Park in the 1950s created some tourism, though most tourists still head further north or east. The diversion of the A595 in the 1990s improved the environment of the town and helped it retain its rural feel.

The mostly organic Broughton Bakery (Broughton Village Bakery) holds the good food award. The Broughton square hosts the famous Beswick's restaurant named after Joyce and Ian Beswick, who established the restaurant in 1978 in one of the Georgian properties forming this unique square. The kitchen uses fine cuts of meat from the Berkshire Boar and Galloway cow, amongst others.

External links

* [http://www.broughton-in-furness.co.uk Visit Broughton Website]