Harrington, Cumberland

Historical Description

Harrington, a small seaport town and a parish in Cumberland, 2½ miles S from Workington and 5 N from Whitehaven. The town has two stations, one on the L. & N.W.R., and the other on the Cleator and Workington Junction railway, and a post, money order, and telegraph office (R.S.O.); also two banks, a Victoria Hall, a temperance hall, and a police station. It is supplied with water from Crummock lake. The parish has an area of 2360 acres; population, 3535; and is governed by a local board formed in 1891. The Cnrwen family are lords of the manor and principal landowners. The harbour was originally constructed in 1760, and considerably enlarged in 1891. It may now te entered by vessels of 1000 tons burden, and has two piers and two fixed lights, visible at the distance of 11 and 3 miles, erected in 1797 and 1890. For customs purposes this port is a creek to Workington. There are several collieries in the neighbourhood, and the manufacture of iron and fire-bricks is also carried on. Steel rails, iron, and coal form the chief exports. The living is a rectory in the diocese of Carlisle; net value, £322 with residence. The church is an old building in the Early English style, and was restored in 1885. There are also Wesleyan, Presbyterian, Primitive Methodist, and Roman Oatholic chapels, and a meeting-room for the Plymouth Brethren. The Catholic chapel was erected in 1893 at a cost of over £2000, and is in the Early English style.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Harrington from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Harrington)

Land and Property

The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Cumberland is available to browse.

Maps

Online maps of Harrington are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Cumberland, 1615 is available on the Heraldry page.