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Location of parish on undated map by William Mackenzie, scanned by Sarah Reveley.Area around the parish on undated map by William Mackenzie, scanned by Sarah Reveley.

"Brougham, Burg-ham (or Castle-town), was the Brovacum of the Romans, where they had a company of Defensores; and many Roman antiquities have been found here.

The parish of Brougham is bounded on the east by the parish of Kirkby Thore; on the south, by the parishes of Clibburn and Clifton; on the west, by the parishes of Barton and Penrith; and on the north, by the parish of Edenhall.

It is a rectory. The church of Brougham stands in a beautiful situation, nigh the river Eamont, at a great distance from any inhabitants... The church is vulgarly called Ninekirks, supposed to have been dedicated to St. Ninian, a Scottish saint, to which kingdom probably this church did belong at the time of the dedication: It is sometimes called the church of St. Wilfrid... So we must either suppose that the Scots had one tutelar saint of the church, and the English another; or rather perhaps that this latter is the saint of the chapel, which is not so properly a chapel of ease under the mother church, as another church (as it were) within the same parish... "

Nicolson and Burn: The history and antiquities of the counties of Westmorland and Cumberland. 1777. Transcribed by Anne Nichols.

[Note: The parish of Brougham includes Brougham... Whinfell Park... Hornby... Winderwath... Woodside]

Brougham is a parish in the North of the county adjacent to Cliburn, Temple Sowerby, Clifton and Cumberland. It includes the townships of Moorhouses and Woodside.This latter is marked on the map above, though Brougham itself is not!

The name is probably derived from O.N. borg and O.E. burh castle or fort.

Cemeteries

Monumental inscriptions were transcribed in Monumental Inscriptions of Westmorland by E. Bellasis 1888-89 and are available on Westmorland Papers.

Census

Returns survive only for Moorhouses and Woodside in the 'census' of 1787 and are held at the Kendal Record Office of Cumbria Archives Service. The Record Office reference is WQ/SP/C. They are transcribed in Vital Statistics published by Curwen Archives Trust 1992. ISBN 1897590008. The trancription is on EdenLinks.

Census returns are available from the usual sources for 1841-1901.

Transcript and index for 1851 has been published by the Cumbria Family History Society and also in 'North Westmorland - An Index to the 1851 Census' compiled by David Lowis and Barbara Slack.

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Church History

St Wilfred. Chapel rebuilt by Lady Anne Clifford in 1658. Remodelled inside in 1840s.

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Church Records

The parish records and BTs are held at the Kendal Record Office of Cumbria Archives Service. The Record Office reference is WPR46

Baptism registers 1681-1979
Marriage registers 1681-1972
Banns registers 1772-1959
Burial registers 1681-1812
Bishops transcripts 1645-1898

For searching on www.familysearch.org see Jake Prescott's list of IGI batch numbers.

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Directories

The details for the parish from the Parson & White's Directory for 1829 are transcribed on Edenlinks site.

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History
Brougham, the Lordship and Castle of the Viponts, included in the Barony of Appleby and Burgh, given Robert de Vipont by King John, Reg. 4. from whose Family, after a few Descents, it passed by the Heir general to the noble Family of Cliffords, who enjoyed them uninterruptedly divers Successions; for though we find them with other Estates in the Hands of GuyBeauchamp, Earl of Warwick, and others, 7 Edw. II. Yet they held them not in their own Right, but as Guardians to Roger de Clifford, who was then in his Minority, and had them all restored to him, when he became of Age. He was succeeded in his Honour and Estate by Robert his Brother, who being possessed of this Castle of Brougham, entertained Robert de Baliol, King ofScotland, when he came a Hunting in the Woods and Chases of this Robert. How this Manor came to be alienated from the Cliffords, we do not find, but that it was so, appears from hence; That the Lady Anne Clifford, when she endowed her noble Alms-house at Appleby, purchased this Manor to settle upon it. This Place stands upon the Roman military Way, called the Maiden-Way, just upon the Confines of Cumberland, and is thought to have been the old Broconiacum (written in other Copies Brownacis, and Brocovum, and in theNotitia, Broconiacum) mentioned in Antoninus's Itinerary, which is renderedalmost certain, not only by its Distance from Vertere, Burgh, but from theseveral Roman Coins, Altars, and other Antiquities, which have at Times been found here. The company of the Desensores had their Abode here, as theNotitia expressly tells us, but Age has consumed the Castle and other Roman Buildings, which might have confirmed what we have said, so that only the Place hath the Name of Brovoniacum, ie. Brougham stamp'd upon it, being almost the same. Burgham Castle, with the Wood of Quinsell, and and a third Part of the Manor of the Town, the Possessions of Roger Lord Clifford 4th, of which he died seized with many other Estates 13 Rich. II. Leaving them to Thomas his Son and Heir. He had Summons to Parliament from 31 Edw. III. To the 12Rich. II.
Magna Britannica 1731 [Transcribed by Sarah Reveley and Westmorland Rootsweb list]


British History Online provides historical notes for Brougham from The Later Records relating to North Westmorland by John F. Curwen (1932)

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Maps

A present-day web map is available from Multimap.

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Population

1641/2 197(est)
1671 71?(est)
1801 167
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Probate Records

Brougham is in the diocese of Carlisle and wills will be in Carlisle Record Office.


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Taxation

Hearth Tax records for 1674 Brougham transcribed on Edenlinks.
Hearth Tax records for 1674 Whinfield & Woodside (Brougham) transcribed on Edenlinks.
Hearth Tax records for 1674 Whinfield transcribed on Edenlinks.

Window Tax records for 1777  Brougham transcribed on Edenlinks.

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Last updated: Nov 2008 Dave Huddart