Old Cumbria Gazetteer - Piel Harbour, Barrow-in-Furness


	Piel Harbour, Barrow-in-Furness
	Piel Harbour
site name:-	Piel Channel
civil parish:-	Barrow-in-Furness (formerly Lancashire)
county:-	Cumbria
locality type:-	harbour
coordinates:-	SD23816381 (etc)
1Km square:-	SD2363
10Km square:-	SD26

evidence:-	old map:- OS County Series (Lan 28 5) placename:- Piel Harbour
source data:-	Maps, County Series maps of Great Britain, scales 6 and 25 inches to 1 mile, published by the Ordnance Survey, Southampton, Hampshire, from about 1863 to 1948.

evidence:-	old painting:- Penn 1730s placename:- Peel Harbour
source data:-	Painting, pen and ink and watercolour, A Prospect of the Ruins of the Castle of Pile of Fouldry and the Adjacent Islands taken from Ramside, ie Piel Castle etc, Barrow-in-Furness, Lancashire, by Stephen Penn, 1730s. click to enlarge PEN5Msc4.jpg "Peel Harbour" item:- Huntington Art Gallery : 1 Image © see bottom of page

evidence:-	old text:- Mackenzie 1776 placename:- Piel of Foudray anchorage
source data:-	Charts, and sailing directions, Nautical Descriptions of the West Coast of Great Britain, Bristol Channel to Cape Wrath, by Murdoch Mackenzie, published London, 1776. goto source Page 17:- "..." "Rise of the Tide. / Spring-tide, on this part of the coast, rises 4½, or five fathoms perpendicular; neap-tide three. In the anchorage at Piel-of-Foudray, spring-tide, the second day after the change, rose six fathoms perpendicular" "Direction of the Stream. / The stream of flood along the coast, from Formby to Walney, runs northward; and, off the middle of that island, meets the stream which comes round the north coast of Ireland, and from thence runs southward through the Irish channel. The opposition of these two streams destroy each other's force, and renders their celerities scarce sensible in that neighbourhood; but, by accumulating the water in Piel-of-Foudray anchorage, occasions a greater rise of the tide there than in other parts." goto source Page 18:- "... ..." "PIEL-OF-FOUDRAY Harbour." "Piel-of-Foudray is a Harbour, near the S. end of Walney Island, where large merchant-ships may ride in good shelter, near the W. or S.W. side of Ro Island, on from three to five fathoms water. Small vessels commonly lie a-ground in the bight, on the E. side of Piel-of-Foudray Island, about a cable's-length from the high-water mark, when the house bears S. by W. In the anchorage, near Ro Island, the two streams of flood meet; one from the N. the other from the S. and make it troublesome to keep the anchor clear. The stream here runs about three miles an hour when strongest." "Channel at Haw's-end. / In the channel, near Haw's-end, in Walney, there are only two or three feet of water at low spring-tide; but the tide in it rises about five fathoms perpendicular, so that a large vessel may go in at half-tide." "..." "To sail into Piel-of-Foudray from the S. / To sail into Piel-of-Foudray from the S.; first make the old castle on that Island (which is remarkable, and easily seen, at three leauges distance), keep the castle N. by E. or N. by E. ½E. and after half-flood steer for the Haws-point of Walney; give it a small birth, and steer for the E. side of Piel-of-Foudray Island, giving the S. end of it a birth of a cable's-length; anchor in the bight of the Island, on four fathoms at high-water, a cable's-length from the high-water mark, when the house bears S. by W. where you will ground before low-water: or come to an anchor farther up, on the W. or N.W. side of Ro Island, about half a cable's-length from the high-water mark, and ride, or moor, with no more than half a cable out." "To sail into Piel-of-Foudray from the N. / To sail into Piel-of-Foudray from the N.; take half-flood, and keep Black-comb Hill out by Walney (to avoid Helpsford Sand) till you take out a small ruinous house on Fowla Island by Haw's-end; then sail for the Haw's-end, giving it a small birth; from thence for the E. side of Piel-of-Foudray, giving the S. end of it a birth of near a cable's-length, and anchor in the bight, or near Ro Island, as directed in the preceding paragraph."

evidence:-	old text:- Capper 1808
source data:-	Gazetteer, A Topographical Dictionary of the United Kingdom, compiled by Benjamin Pitts Capper, published by Richard Phillips, Bridge Street, Blackfriars, London, 1808; published 1808-29. goto source "[Dalton-in-Furness] ... The port here [by Piel Castle] is very large and commodious. ..."

evidence:-	old text:- Admiralty 1933 placename:- Piel Harbour
source data:-	goto source Page 376:- "Piel harbour lies between Piel island and the mainland north-eastward of it. It has depths from 3 to 5 fathoms (5m5 to 9m1), and is the easiest of entry of all the harbours in Morecambe bay, but it is not available for large vessels, except as a temporary anchorage."

hearsay:-	A ship, whose cargo included 10 tons of gunpowder , blew up here, 23 March 1827. The shock was thought to be an earthquake as far away as Liverpool.

Lakes Guides menu.