History of St Mary the Virgin, Egton cum Newland

The Parish of Egton cum Newland was originally a chapelry of Ulverston Parish.  In the 16th century Furness Abbey were the landowners here and after the Dissolution ownership passed to the Dukes of Buccleugh.

The Penny family settled around 1587 near the ford on the River Crake known at the time as Tunwath, so when the bridge was built there around that time it was known as the Crake or Penny Bridge. There are records of a chapel at Newland in 1577 and St Mary’s at Penny Bridge was built as a Chapel of Ease in 1791, endowed by William Penny of Penny Bridge Hall. The Penny family (later the Machells by marriage) were church benefactors and paid for the maintenance of the poor in the area.

By 1820 Greenodd was a thriving port.  There were six quays exporting the products of the surrounding valleys – copper and slate from Coniston, iron from Spark Bridge and Colton, bobbins, flax and charcoal, and a shipbuilding slipway.  In Greenodd village there were two smithys, a smelting house, a gas works, sawmill, lime kiln and tanyard. The Furness Railway branch line from Plumpton Junction to Lakeside (for steamers to Bowness) was built in the 1860’s with a station at the south end of Greenodd village, which has since been obliterated by the dual carriageway.

The other centres of population in the chapelry were Newland (iron furnace) Spark Bridge (cotton mill, bobbin mill) and agricultural hamlets High and Low Scathwaite and Nettleslack. Penny Bridge was an important river crossing on the Kendal to Ireleth Turnpike (1763 to 1872) and there was a toll house at Underfield (still known as “Toll Bar”). Milestones can still be found showing the number of miles to Kendal.

Originally there was a National School near the Church above Sod House, this was replaced in 1858 by a newly built school (now Penny Bridge CE Academy) below the church on the site of the Smelt House. 

Egton cum Newland Parish Council records begin in 1823. A licence to conduct marriages at St Mary the Virgin was issued in 1856, around the time of a new Parsonage being built; followed in 1864 by extensive work to rebuild the nave, take down the tower and erect a belfry and move the pulpit and vestry.  Heating was also added.  The present tower was built in 1969.