1800-1900 Main Street from Station Street to Sullart Street 37-93
1850-1900 Main Street Menu
Main Street 37 Brown Cow at the bottom of Station Street. The clock tower with its railings and lights with lots of children in plus fours posing for the camera, which would be a plate glass camera requiring a long shutter opening, so posing was required or the people would be blurred. Note the horse with a heavily laden cart, but note the horse “exhaust” droppings in the road.. c 1899
Main Street 37 Brown Cow clock tower with hand carts and horse carts. Can you spot the Centaur Cycles to the right of the clock tower? Mayo c 1899
Main Street clock with horse and cart on right side of road and women with pinafores and gents behind Mayo in distance. No gas lamps around the clock tower. c 1899
Main Street 43 Appletree Hotel on the right. Note the clock tower is offset so could not be used as a roundabout and became a traffic hazzard. so demolished in 1932. The early photo was mono and has been hand tinted. Note horse cart Mayo c 1899
Main Street 43 looking to the Appletree Hotel which became the Wordsworth.
The horse and cart was the only way to get into town in these times before motorised vehicles. Note the brass band on the other side of the street.
Note the full barrels for sale, contents unknown, but barrels were the only way to keep and transport large quantities of liquids. Barrels were made in High Sand Lane and were rolled over the bridge over the Cocker which although it was officially called the Waterloo Bridge, it became known locally as the Barrel Bridge.
The canvas awning was on this north side of the street that faces the sun shining from the south. Other photos show many blinds drawn for this purpose; there were no colour fast dyes and fresh food heats quickly and goes off so protection from the heat of the sun was necessary. c 1890
Main Street 43 is not named so may be a private dwelling. It is now Hunters was Huntsman. The window surrounds may indicate a status and wealth. The arch to the right likely leads to stables where horses, the only means of transport, could be accommodated.
A dancing bear provides a strange amusement in Cockermouth, though dancing bears were seen on the continent in living memory (PN & EC). c 1910
Main Street 47 Armstrong sweet shop decorated for Jubilee. Armstrongs became Malloy’s fish and chip shop run by Mr Malloy and his sister Mrs Fagan, Joe Fagan’s mother. Now Lees Chinese chip shop with Fagans on right decorated for the Jubilee 1897
Main Street, the name of the Bush Hotel is painted on the wall of the white building, it was a hotel then, a local pub now.
To the left of the Bush is the taller three storey building that is now Fagans. Outside is a horse drawn bus.
This photo was taken shortly after the trees were planted for Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1887.
Three horses pull a heavily laden wagon bringing timber along the hardcore road – there was no tarmac then. Approximately c 1890
Main Street 53 Bush Hotel landlord J Park painted on the wall.
The carts outside the Bush Hotel have no horses perhaps because the horses would be taken to stables behind the hotel and the carts remain on the street. In the foreground the horses and carts are likely passing through. Note the multiple carts on the far side of the road to the right, all without their horse power that would be grazing or in livery stables. There was a large grassed area where Sainsbury car park and WCF and Lidl are now where horses may have grazed.
The statue of Lord Mayo is with gas lamps so indicates a date before the railings were removed to be melted for armour in WW2. Trees were planted 1887 so photo is about 1890
Main Street Mayo photo is after 1875 when Mayo was unveiled but before 1887 when trees were planted to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee.
The archway by the Bush Hotel and the other archway would lead to stables and a place for carriages.
There are few gas lamps so at night the gas lamp above the Bush Hotel would be inviting.
1887 Queen Victoria’s Jubilee celebrated by 100 Lime Trees planted in Main Street, Station Street and Market Place, paid for by public subscription. c 1880
Main Street Mayo photo is after 1875 when Mayo was unveiled but before 1887 when trees were planted to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee.
The archway by the Bush Hotel and the other archway would lead to stables and a place for carriages.
There are few gas lamps so at night the gas lamp above the Bush Hotel would be inviting.
1887 Queen Victoria’s Jubilee celebrated by 100 Lime Trees planted in Main Street, Station Street and Market Place, paid for by public subscription. c 1880
Main Street Blue Bell Inn south side was demolished and rebuilt and now Cleelands furniture and carpets.
Note the sign on the wall advertising “GOOD STABLING” was an important attraction when horse and cart were the only transport available, before cars were available.
The archway to Lowther Went would be where the horses would go to the stables behind.
Note the number of wooden beer barrels which is an indication of the amount of work to make and move them, over the “barrel bridge” over the Cocker to the brewery, but remember that weak beer was a normal and safe drink because water was not piped from municipal water treatment plants, so weak beer may be safer to drink than water from a well.
Hand coloured mono photo. c 1890
Main Street 63 advert J Nelson Liveries and Costumes. This shop was beside 61 Blue Bell Inn and both were demolished for a new building for Cleeland furnishing and carpets. This advert from a theatre program 1906
Main Street 63 advert J Nelson Liveries and Costumes. This shop was beside 61 Blue Bell Inn and both were demolished for a new building for Cleeland furnishing and carpets. This advert from a theatre program 1906
Main Street Sullart Street corner drawing by Harold Burslem with horse cart and child outside R Bowes fruit merrchant. This became Age UK West Cumberland before closing in 2024
