Milnthorpe
Milnthorpe is a small market town, civil parish and electoral ward in the South Lakeland district of Cumbria, England. Historically in the county of Westmorland and on the A6, the town contains several old hostelries and hosts a market every Friday. The parish, which includes the small village of Ackenthwaite, had a population of 2,199 at the 2011 Census. History. Milnthorpe is the site of the 19th-century Church of St Thomas, which overlooks The Green and The Square. Prior to its construction Milnthorpe was in the parish of Heversham. Milnthorpe became a centre of business and activity because  it was originally a port, using the River Bela and estuary (now only navigable to Arnside), and it remains a significant commercial centre for the area. Tourism and hospitality have always thrived, Milnthorpe being a convenient stop-off point on the A6 for coaches and cars en route to the Lake District. Just to the north is Levens Hall, famed for its topiary. The village used to be a major traffic bottleneck before the opening of the M6 motorway in 1970, and the A590/A591 Kendal link road a few years later. The nearby Dallam deer park, part of the  wider Dallam Tower Estate, is a popular spot for walkers, particularly those en route to the Arnside and Silverdale AONB. The popular children's drink "Um Bongo" was made in Milnthorpe by Libby's in the 1980s. Community. Each August, the "Friends of the Exhibition" holds its annual art exhibition in the church. Milnthorpe has two steel bands, one for adults and the other based in the town's junior school. The Grade I listed house Dallam Tower, with an estate known for its deer, stands near to the River Bela just south-west of Milnthorpe, whilst St Anthony's  Tower may be seen on the top of St Anthony's Hill to the north-east of the town centre, overlooking the village and the housing estate of Owlet Ash Fields in nearby Ackenthwaite. It has one secondary school, Dallam School, and one primary school, Milnthorpe Primary School. There are three public houses in the village. People. The former Leader of the Liberal Democrats (2015–17), Tim Farron (MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale) lives in Milnthorpe. John Taylor, third president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1880–87, was born in Milnthorpe and lived there until he  emigrated to Canada.