With tall Georgian houses lining its streets, a handsome 18th-century church and an attractive memorial fountain gracing the old marketplace, Wigton is a market town with a rich history. Located on the Solway Plain, between the Lake District and the Solway coast, it’s home to an array of streets, narrow lanes and alleyways that are well worth exploring – as is the surrounding countryside, a gorgeous combination of coastal and fell landscapes.
History of Wigton
In the 7th century, Anglian settlers were spreading across the Solway Plain. The name Wigton is derived from ‘Wicga’s tun’ or the settlement of Wicga (in all likelihood an Anglo-Saxon chieftain). The Normans established a Barony of Wigton and created one of the largest hunting reserves in England – Inglewood Forest – which stretched from the edge of Wigton to Penrith. Wigton’s position in the centre of the Solway Plain, together with the commercial influence of the nearby Holm Cultram Abbey fostered a thriving trade in commerce. In 1262, the town was granted the right to hold a weekly market and annual fair. Fish, vegetables, butter and poultry were sold in the Market Place, livestock at Market Hill, meat from the shambles beside the Market Cross and grain from outside St Mary’s Church.
Look out for the letters ‘O’, ‘B’ and ‘W’ marked out in white cobblestones – they indicate where oats, barley and wheat could be sold. Wigton still honours its ancient charter by hosting weekly indoor and outdoor markets.
Wigton’s early industries included cotton and linen manufacture, dyeing, printing and tanning. The cloth manufacturers employed hundreds of hand-loom weavers who carried out their trade in small weavers’ cottages mainly located to the east of the town centre. The area known as Tenters is named after the tenterhooks on which the finished cloth was stretched to be bleached by the sun. Wigton’s two becks supplied enough water and power to operate three corn mills, two breweries, a dye works, tannery and saw mill.
Industrial prosperity was accompanied by the building of several grand houses, the most famous of which was Highmoor House, built in 1810 by Joseph Hodge, a cotton and linen manufacturer. On his death the house passed to his business partner, William Banks, who enlarged the house and landscaped its grounds. In the 1870s, a huge tower was added in the style of an Italian campanile. It was fitted with a large bell called ‘Big Joe’ with a range of 12 miles, and a carillon of smaller bells. The lilting tunes could be heard for miles, even as far as Carlisle. Today, the tower still stands although now surrounded by flats.
Some well-known literary figures have passed through Wigton, notably Charles Dickens who visited in 1857, but the town is better known as being the birthplace of author and broadcaster Melvyn Bragg, who is now Lord Bragg of Wigton.
Surrounding Wigton is a pastoral landscape of neat fields and hedges, dotted with the rural villages of Great Orton, Wiggonby, Aikton, Oulton, Waverton, Bolton Low Houses, Rosley and Thursby.
FAQs
Where is Wigton located?
Wigton can be found just a short distance south-west of Carlisle, on the way to Maryport.
Where is there to stay in Wigton?
In and around Wigton, you’ll find accommodation options ranging from B&Bs to hotels and self catering accommodation. Most can be found in the surrounding areas, including Wallace Lane Farm Glamping & Lodges.
Where is there to eat in Wigton?
Wigton is home to a small range of cafes, pubs and restaurants serving light lunches, evening meals, snacks and more.
How to get to Wigton?
Wigton can be reached by car on the A596. It’s also accessible by bus, with a number of routes travelling through the town. Wigton train station is centrally located and stands on the Cumbrian Coast Line.
Surrounding Areas
Caldbeck - Caldbeck is a peaceful Lakeland village and is ideally situated for exploring the Lake District, the Scottish Borders, the Eden Valley and the North Pennines. The village and the surrounding area have so much to offer everyone, with quirky independent shops and scenic walks, including to The Howk - an old bobbin mill.
Aspatria - located between Maryport and Wigto in west Cumbria, the town of Aspatria (pronounced by locals as ‘sp-yatri’) is best known for its church of St Kentigern, which contains a number of ancient relics. It’s also home to a large creamery producing cheese and other dairy products, with several local farms supplying it with milk.
Allonby - a former fishing village with a wide sand and shingle beach, Allonby enjoys beautiful views over to Scotland and the Isle of Man. Here, you’ll find grand Georgian architecture next to humble fisherman’s cottages, linked by narrow cobblestone lanes and passageways.#
Did you know?
CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS
Described as ‘one of the architectural sensations of Cumberland’ by Nikolaus Pevsner, this unusual building has an internal stone vaulted roof more akin to churches found in southern France than England. The immense weight of the roof is supported by two transepts and two porches. Local folklore attributed the design to the Scottish wizard, Michael Scott of Holm Cultram Abbey, who is said to have built the church in one night with the aid of his magic imps.
MEMORIAL FOUNTAIN
In the middle of Market Place is Wigton’s famous pink fountain. It was erected in 1872 in memory of Eliza Moore, wife of George Moore, a local merchant and philanthropist. The bronze reliefs, carved by Pre-Raphaelite sculptor, Thomas Woolner, depict her favourite Acts of Mercy: Visiting the Afflicted, Clothing the Naked, Instructing the Ignorant, and Feeding the Hungry.
KNOXWOOD WILDLIFE RESCUE
The centre specialises in rehabilitating injured wild animals and birds before their release back to the wild. At any one time, a selection of British wildlife can be seen at close hand, from birds of prey to deer, badgers and hedgehogs. Some of the more exotic species have become permanent residents. Visitors are welcome to view the animals and see the daily work of the rescue centre.
MELVIN BRAGG
The well-known writer and broadcaster was born in Wigton and spent most of his childhood at the Black-a-Moor pub, which his parents ran as publicans. Many of his novels are set in Wigton. A trilogy of books, The Hired Man, A Place in England and Kingdom Come charts the lives of a Cumbrian family over several generations.
SIR THOMAS BOUCH
The Ship Inn at Thursby was the birthplace of Sir Thomas Bouch (1822–1880) who designed many structures, the most famous being the Tay Railway Bridge in Scotland (1878) – at the time the world’s longest span. In 1879, a storm caused the bridge to collapse taking with it a train and 75 passengers. Thomas was blamed for the disaster and died, a broken man, less than a year later.
SPAIN WOOD
Spain Wood is so named because its shape was thought to resemble the map of Spain. During the Second World War it was an aircraft storage depot. Planes landing here were quickly towed into the wood and covered in camouflage nets to avoid detection.
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