Ulverston Parish Church:
It’s believed there has been a church on this site here in Ulverston since 1111AD.
The parish church of St Mary is certainly known to have existed as early as the twelfth century, and the tradition has assigned its foundation to 1111 when Henry I was on the throne.
Nearby Furness Abbey was founded in 1127 and a document in the Coucher Book of Furness Abbey, dated about 1200 mentions a parson of Ulverston named Robert.
At about this time a controversy arose between the Abbot of Furness and the Prior of Conishead, the first of which claimed Ulverston.
in 1231, the Archbishop of York, under whose jurisdiction the matter fell, confirmed Ulverstons’s affiliation with Conishead.
In October 2022, a number of urgent repairs are needed to the Grade II listed church.
It’s estimated that £1.5m needs to be raised to address the major issues.
Serious erosion of the church walls and tower has been highlighted.
Overall, there are 11 miles of pointing (with traditional lime mortar to enable the walls to breathe) and nearly 500 stone blocks to replace as well as 12 stained glass windows to remove and re-glaze.
The first step is to begin to replace the corroded cast iron gutters and downpipes to prevent water from running into the walls.
