Aspatria

Aspatria əsˈpeɪtriə is a town and civil parish in Cumberland, Cumbria, England. The town rests on the north side of the Ellen Valley, overlooking a panoramic view of the countryside, with Skiddaw to the South and the Solway Firth to the North. Its developments are aligned approximately east–west along the A596 Carlisle to Workington road and these extend to approximately in length. It lies about northeast of Maryport, a similar distance to the Southwest of Wigton, about north of Cockermouth and from the coast and Allonby. It comprises the townships of Aspatria and Brayton, Hayton and Mealo, and Oughterside and Allerby, the united area being ; while the town takes up an area of . In earlier days a Roman road leading from "Old Carlisle" to Ellenborough passed through the hamlet. The population has greatly increased since the mid nineteenth century. In 1801, the village comprised 98 dwellings with a population of 321. By 1851, there were 236 family entities, comprising 1,123 residents; by 1871, the numbers had increased to 1,778; and twenty years later stood at 2,714. By the start of the 20th century, the population had risen to 2,885; twenty years later it peaked at 3,521. Although the population slumped in the 1930s to 3,189, it recovered to 3,500, in 1951; and by 1981, the population appeared stable at 2,745. It is served by Aspatria railway station. Aspatria is located on the fringe of the English Lake District. The parish church of St Kentigern was completed in 1848. Fragments of masonry and crosses from earlier structures on the same site are preserved there. Aspatria is an ancient settlement and seems to have been home to a group of Norsemen who fled to the area from Ireland around 900. In 1789, a surgeon by the name of Rigg employed a group of labourers to level a mound called Beacon Hill, situated close behind his house at Aspatria. After reaching a depth of about one metre they dug into a cavity walled around with large stones and found the skeleton of a Viking chief almost complete over two metres in length.