Whitehaven

The maritime port of Whitehaven was once the third-largest in the UK with trade links all over the world. The town’s prosperity was built on coal, developed by the wealthy Lowther family who also laid out the elegant Georgian town. The wealth of Georgian architecture led to Whitehaven being listed as a ‘gem town.’

The historic 17th century harbour, enhanced by nautical sculptures, dramatic lighting effects and a brand new marina, is the focus for spectacular maritime events and activities including the occasional visit of tall sailing ships.

In the mid 18th century, Whitehaven was used as a template for the expansion of New York.

Culture & Heritage

Until the early 17th century Whitehaven was a small coastal village that lived off fishing, farming and salt-making. Then the wealthy Lowther family began to capitalise on the rich seams of coal in the area – pits were dug and pretty soon the ‘black gold’ was being extracted at mammoth rates: in some cases, the coal seams were dug to a distance of five miles under the Irish Sea.
 
The Whitehaven mines were among the most dangerous in the world for pit explosions - one of the worst was in May 1910, when 136 miners lost their lives at Wellington Pit.
 
The first quay was built in 1634 to export coal to Ireland but a growth in shipping between Europe, Africa, America and the West Indies necessitated the building of additional quays, or tongues, to cope with the burgeoning trade. By 1750 Whitehaven was the third most important port in the country after London and Bristol, and plans were underway to create a gracious town with elegant Georgian houses, wide thoroughfares and new churches to reflect the town's wealth.
 
Unfortunately, the American War of Independence (1775-1783) severely affected the important tobacco trade with Maryland and Virginia, and Whitehaven's sea merchants faced bankruptcy through contraction of markets and an increase in piracy on English ships. War may have hampered trade, but it was a boon for shipbuilding, and Whitehaven was to produce up to 1000 wooden ships over the next 100 years.
 
Coal mining continued as an important industry until the 1930s, followed by gradual closure of the pits. In 1943 the Marchon Chemical Works was built on the site of Ladysmith pit and became a leading producer of detergent powders. Its tall chimneys dominated the Whitehaven skyline for around 50 years until closure in 2005 and demolishment two years later. The flattened site is now earmarked for landscape restoration.
 
Today, improvements to the harbour area and a careful restoration of the town’s Georgian buildings are part of an ongoing regeneration programme, the latest phase of which is to upgrade footpaths, cycleways and signage along the coast to St Bees and improve access to Haig Colliery Mining Museum, Saltom Pit and the RSPB reserve at St Bees.

Surrounding Areas

Egremont - Egremont still celebrates its medieval roots having once been a part of the Barony of Egremont. One of the high points of the year being the annual Crab Fair, incorporating the internationally famous World Gurning Championship.

St Bees - St Bees Head is the most westerly point in Cumbria and sheltering underneath is the village of St Bees. According to legend, it was to this bay that St Bega arrived from Ireland, building a nunnery that later evolved into St Bees Priory.
 
Beckermet - Within this rural landscape of pastoral fields and wooded dells, it comes as a surprise to encounter the high-tech complex of Sellafield, Britain's nuclear reprocessing facility. In dramatic contrast to this ultra-modern spectacle the outlying villages of Beckermet and Haile quietly display their wealth of antiquities dating back over 1000 years.

Cleator Moor - The large ‘new' town of Cleator Moor was built to house migrant workers in the area in search of work. The area around Cleator contained rich deposits of iron ore. Once ironworks were established at Cleator Moor (1842) and Workington, a network of railways followed to transport the produce to local furnaces. Sections of the old railway line are still visible, with parts around Rowrah and Cleator Moor now forming a cycleway.