Grange-over-Sands

Grange-over-Sands is a town and civil parish by the sea – with a wide tidal range, hence the "sands" name – in Cumbria, England. Grange-over-Sands was created as an urban district in 1894 and lies historically within Lancashire. In 1974 Cumbria was created under Local Government re-organisation which absorbed the area referred to as "Lancashire North of the Sands" or North Lonsdale. Grange is now in South Lakeland District. The town remains part of the County Palatine of Lancashire and is part of the Duchy of Lancaster. It has a population of 4,042.[1]

Contents
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 * 1 History
 * 1.1 Sanatorium
 * 2 Education
 * 3 Tourism
 * 4 Transport
 * 5 Recent developments
 * 6 Location grid
 * 7 See also
 * 8 References
 * 9 External links

History[edit]
The town developed in the Victorian era from a small fishing village, and the arrival of the railway made it a popular seaside resort on the north side of Morecambe Bay, across the sands from Morecambe. The 'over-Sands' suffix was added in the late 19th or early 20th centuries by the local vicar, who was fed up with his post going to Grange in Borrowdale near Keswick.

In 1932 a lido was built on the seafront but it closed in 1993 and was listed Grade II in 2011.[2]

The River Kent used to flow past the town's mile-long promenade but its course migrated south, away from Grange. The sands or mudflats with dangerous quicksands became a grass meadow now grazed by small flocks of sheep. As a result of sustained easterly winds in the early part of 2007, the river has begun to switch its course back across the bay, and it remains to see whether the meadows survive.

Sanatorium[edit]
The clean, sea air was believed to be of benefit to tuberculosis sufferers, and in 1891 one of the first sanatoriums in the country was established at Meathop. Not only was the air believed to have a therapeutic effect but also the local spring water.[3]

Education[edit]
There is one primary school, Grange-over-Sands Church of England Primary School. There is no secondary school, so most pupils attend the school in Cartmel orMilnthorpe . There is also a small nursery school.

Tourism[edit]
Looking across Morecambe Baytowards Grange-over-Sands

The town is a centre for tourists exploring the southern Lakeland fells. Within the town itself there is an ornamental duck pond and a traffic-free promenade.

Above the town is Hampsfield Fell (generally abbreviated to Hampsfell), crowned by 'Hampsfell Hospice', a sturdy limestone tower monument offering shelter to the rain-drenched walker, as well as the finest viewpoint of all the foothills of the outlying southern Lakeland fells. On the roof, a large compass pointer and list of peaksidentify the greater and lesser landmarks in the magnificent panorama. Inside, painted boards commemorate its construction, praise the view and welcome the visitor. Hampsfell is the subject of a chapter of Wainwright's book The Outlying Fells of Lakeland.[4] It reaches 727 feet (222 m).

Adjacent to Grange are Lindale, to the north-east, Cartmel to the north-west, with its priory to which the village was once the 'grange' or farm, and Allithwaite to the west. The country house Holker Hall, which was built on land which once belonged to the priory, is nearby. Until its move to Backbarrow in 2010, the stables at Holker Hall housed theLakeland Motor Museum.

Transport[edit]
Grange-over-Sands railway station, which serves the town, was opened by the Ulverston and Lancaster Railway on 1 September 1857 and is now served by the Furness Line, giving connections to Ulverston and Barrow-in-Furness to the west, and Lancaster, Preston and Manchester (and its airport) to the east.

The main road access is the A590, which runs between the M6 and Barrow-in-Furness. Before the building of the railway, the main way of reaching Grange was the road across the Sands of Morecambe Bay from Hest Bank.[5]

Recent developments[edit]
A new public swimming pool, the Berners Pool, opened in 2003 at a cost of £3.5 million. It was designed by architects Hodder Associates and won a RIBA Design Award in 2004,[6] but closed in 2006 due to high running costs and structural problems. It has now (2014) been demolished, and is being replaced by an affordable housing development.

A new pool and leisure centre was planned as part of the redevelopment of the lido site.[7] However this development is facing some opposition as it would involve filling in the Grade II listed Grange-over-Sands lidoand this is being contested.[8] By 2013 this proposal had collapsed.

Local newspaper Grange Now comes out once a month and is delivered free to over 5000 homes on the Cartmel Peninsula.