Ousby Parish, 1848

OUSBY (St. Luke), a parish, in the union of Penrith, Leath ward, E. division of Cumberland, 9¼ miles (E.N.E.) from the town of Penrith; containing 271 inhabitants. This place, properly Ulfsby, "the seat of Ulff," a Dane, is situated to the west of a chain of mountains; and from its elevated position, is subject to great damage from the "Helm winds," which occur frequently from September to May, and do much injury to the corn. The parish comprises 6,032 acres, of which 4,000 are common or waste; the soil of the cultivated land is a kind of red marl or rich loam, though in some places it is light and sandy. Limestone and red-sandstone abound, and there are veins of lead-ore, and some small seams of coal. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £13. 13. 4.; net income, £353; patron, the Bishop of Carlisle. The church contains, in a niche, a wooden effigy of a man in armour. Here are the remains of a British fortification, consisting of an outer and an inner rampart, within the area of which Roman urns and other antiquities have been found: the Maiden way traverses the mountainous parts of the parish.