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History of Sedbergh
The town of Sedbergh, in Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and near to the Lake District, has a rich history that dates back many centuries. The town is mentioned in the Doomsday Book and there was a Norman motte and bailey castle once situated at Castlehaw at the eastern end of the town.
Sedbergh was first granted a market charter in 1251 by Henry III. The economy of the town was originally mainly dependent on the school and farming and also a hand knitting industry utilising the locally produced wool. The 1761 Turnpike Act led to improvements in the Kirkby Stephen to Lancaster and the Askrigg to Kendal roads, both of which passed through Sedbergh and made the town more accessible helping the growth of the knitting industry.
Improved transport links led to the growth of some mills in the area. They used water power from the streams and rivers to process locally produced wool and cotton brought up from Manchester.
In 1861, the Ingleton Branch of the North Western Railway opened and the railway came to Sedbergh. It joined Clapham, on the Skipton to Lancaster line, to Lowgill where it joined the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway. The Ingleton Branch stopped taking passengers in 1954 and the line eventually closed in 1967.
Sedbergh was formerly in the West Riding of Yorkshire until county boundaries were re-arranged in 1974 and it became part of Cumbria whilst still remaining in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Although farming in Sedbergh has declined over the years, it still makes a significant contribution to the local economy along with the schools, businesses and tourism.
To find out about Sedbergh's famous past residents, please click on the link below.
