Parton (Moresby), Cumberland

Historical Description

Parton, a fishing village and a township in Moresby parish, Cumberland. The village stands on the coast and on the Whitehaven railway, 1½ mile N of Whitehaven, and has a station on the railway, a post, money order, and telegraph office under Whitehaven, and a harbour for small craft. It is specially noted for a large supply of good herrings, " Parton herrings " being famous. There was a pier, which was washed away in 1795, and has not been rebuilt. A former pier was built in 1701 and destroyed in 1704. The old customs office is now a dwelling-house under control of the trustees of a public charity. The township includes the village, and extends into the country. Acreage, 52 of land and 67 of water and foreshore; population, 1452. There is a parish council consisting of thirteen members, who form also a parochial committee under the district council. The parish has not been subdivided. There are Congregational and United Free Methodist chapels and a Baptist meeting held in the Liberal Hall. There is a good water supply, and the place is well sewered. Coals are found, and there are blast furnaces half a mile away, a brewery, and extensive engineering works.

Land and Property

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

Maps

Online maps of Parton (Moresby) 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)