Cumbria’s second largest town, Barrow-in-Furness grew up around the iron and steel industry and the Vickers shipyard. The main attractions for tourists are the romantic ruins of Furness Abbey on the outskirts of town; two nature reserves on Walney Island; Piel Castle on the tidal island near the southern tip of Walney; and the Dock Museum.
The latter tells the long social and industrial history of the area, its wide-ranging collection of artefacts taking in everything from prehistoric cave finds to models of ships and submarines built in Barrow from the mid-nineteenth century onwards. The museum, located close to BAE Systems’ Devonshire Dock, also has a café and children’s playground.
