Port Development and Town Planning in North West England

Abstract

This paper examines the links between the development of harbour facilities and planned towns, especially in the head port area of Carlisle in North West England. Largely based on documentary research and field observation it examines the development of Whitehaven and other Atlantic ports it influenced in Cumberland, Westmorland and north Lancashire. It examines these developments in their international context and shows how they were initiated by local landowners to maximise the output of their estates and to enhance their personal prestige. Beginning in the seventeenth century the paper demonstrates how this tradition of town and harbour foundation continued on into the nineteenth century when it was adopted by corporate concerns, especially railway companies. The paper concludes by highlighting how harbour developments associated with town planning helped to urbanise and stimulate the economy of a previously under-developed area. Two maps identify the locations of the places discussed.