Spark Bridge bobbin mill, using power from the river, employed 60 people in the 1857, at which time it produced "1800 gross" (ie 1800x144 =259,200) bobbins per week.[3] The mill diversified after the cotton industry declined, and was active for much of the 20th century.[4]
Facilities
The River Crake passing through Spark Bridge
There are two public houses, The Royal Oak Inn at the centre of the village, and The Farmers Arms, a listed building rescued in 2021 by local arts charity Grizedale Arts, supported by loan stock investors and local and international donors. The diversified pub now offers crafts classes, talks and events and a holiday apartment as well as a bar, restaurant, cafe and outdoor pizza oven.[5][6] The village also has its own postbox, a telephone box and a bus stop. The bus X 12 runs Monday to Saturday to Coniston or in the other direction to Ulverston and Barrow in Furness.
Canoeists use the village green to leave the river at this point, often using the nearby village hall as a base.
In November 2009 many of the tributaries feeding the River Crake overflowed, feeding water on the local road network. It was described as a once in a thousand-year flooding event by the Environment Agency. Cumbria Police closed the main bridge on Thursday night around 7 p.m. to all on foot and in cars, they feared that the damage could have been caused to the bridge but a later examination showed that it was undamaged.
^"Welcome to ENMO Parish Council". enmoparishcouncil.org.uk. Parish Council of Egton with Newland, Mansriggs and Osmotherley. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
