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{{short description|Port town in Cumbria, England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2012}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country
| coordinates = {{coord|54.869|-3.381|display=inline,title}}
| official_name
| type
| static_image_name = Criffel Street, Silloth.jpg
| static_image_caption = Criffel Street, Silloth
| population = 2,749
| population_ref = (Parish, 2021)<ref name=2021census>{{cite web |title=2021 Census Parish Profiles |url=https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/sources/census_2021_pp |website=NOMIS |publisher=Office for National Statistics |access-date=31 March 2025}} (To get individual community data, use the query function on table PP002.)</ref>
| civil_parish = Silloth-on-Solway
| unitary_england = [[Cumberland (district)|Cumberland]]
| lieutenancy_england = [[Cumbria]]
| region
| constituency_westminster = [[Penrith and Solway (UK Parliament constituency)|Penrith and Solway]]
| post_town = WIGTON
| postcode_district = CA7
| postcode_area = CA
| dial_code = 016973
| os_grid_reference = NY113536
| local_name = Silloth-on-Solway
| london_distance =
}}
'''Silloth''', or '''Silloth-on-Solway''', is a port town and [[civil parish]] in the [[Cumberland (district)|Cumberland]] district of [[Cumbria]], England. The town stands on the coast of the [[Solway Firth]], {{convert|18|miles|km}} west of [[Carlisle]]. It was developed from the 1850s onwards around a new harbour, and also became a small seaside resort. At the [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021 census]], the parish had a population of 2,749.
==Toponymy==
'Silloth' means "'sea barn(s)', v. 'sǣ hlaða'."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Armstrong |first=A. M. |title=The place-names of Cumberland |last2=Mawer |first2=A. |last3=Stenton |first3=F. M. |last4=Dickens |first4=B. |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1950 |series=English Place-Name Society, vol.xx |volume=Part 2 |___location=Cambridge |pages=293–4}}</ref> (The first word is [[Old English]], the second is [[Old Norse]]).
Today, the town is known both as Silloth and Silloth-on-Solway. The official name of the parish is Silloth-on-Solway,<ref name=electionmaps/> whereas the [[Royal Mail]] uses just Silloth in postal addresses.<ref>{{cite web |title=Find an address |url=https://www.royalmail.com/find-a-postcode |website=Royal Mail |access-date=25 April 2025}} (See postcode CA7 4EA as an example.)</ref>
==History==
Silloth was only a small hamlet until the mid-19th century. The modern town owes its existence to new docks and a railway which were both built in the 1850s. [[Port Carlisle]] had been the main port for Carlisle, but its harbour was silting up and it was difficult for ships to reach at low tides. Silloth was chosen as a suitable ___location for a new harbour. The [[Carlisle and Silloth Bay Railway]] was therefore built, opening to [[Silloth railway station]] in 1856, and the new harbour was built shortly afterwards. The town was laid out to provide homes for the workers on the railway and at the port, but from early on it also became a minor seaside resort.<ref>{{cite web |title=Silloth, Cumberland |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/place/20448 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
The town offered workers from the factories of Carlisle access to the seaside, and the town flourished, particularly as a destination for day trippers. The town's popularity as a resort peaked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
[[RAF Silloth]] was an airfield on the eastern side of the town. It opened in June 1939, just before the start of the Second World War, and closed on 31 December 1960. Originally designed to be used by RAF Maintenance Command, 22MU, the airfield was handed over to Coastal Command during November 1939. No 1 Operational Training Unit (OTU) was then responsible for training pilots and crews from the UK and Allied Countries. Therefore, the aerodrome had twin responsibilities, the maintenance and repair of planes for use in the war effort and the training of crews from allied countries to fly planes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Silloth Airfield Project |url=https://sillothairfield.wordpress.com/}}</ref>
==Governance==
[[File:Solway Coast Discovery Centre - geograph.org.uk - 40355.jpg|thumb|Solway Coast Discovery Centre and Silloth Community Hall]]
There are two tiers of local government covering Silloth, at [[civil parish|parish]] and [[Unitary authorities of England|unitary authority]] level: Silloth-on-Solway Town Council and [[Cumberland Council]]. The town council meets at the community hall on Petteril Street.<ref>{{cite web |title=Meetings |url=https://silloth-on-solway-tc.gov.uk/town-council/meetings/ |website=Silloth-on-Solway Town Council |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
Silloth is part of the [[United Kingdom Parliament constituencies|parliamentary constituency]] of [[Penrith and Solway (UK Parliament constituency)|Penrith and Solway]], which has been represented by [[Markus Campbell-Savours]] of the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] since the [[2024 United Kingdom general election|2024 General Election]].<ref name=electionmaps>{{cite web |title=Election Maps |url=https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/election-maps/gb/ |publisher=Ordnance Survey |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
===Administrative history===
Silloth was historically part of the [[ancient parish]] of [[Holme Cultram]] in the [[Historic counties of England|historic county]] of [[Cumberland]]. Holme Cultram's parish church was at [[Abbeytown]], {{convert|4|miles|km|0}} south-east of Silloth. The parish was subdivided into four [[Township (England)|townships]]; Silloth was in the [[Holme Low]] township.<ref>{{cite web |title=Cumberland Sheet XX |url=https://maps.nls.uk/view/102340749 |website=National Library of Scotland |publisher=Ordnance Survey |access-date=25 April 2025 |date=1868}}</ref> From the 17th century onwards, parishes were gradually given various civil functions under the [[poor laws]], in addition to their original ecclesiastical functions. In some cases, including Holme Cultram, the civil functions were exercised by each township separately rather than the parish as a whole. In 1866, the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws, and so Holme Low also became a separate [[civil parish]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Youngs |first1=Frederic |title=Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England: Volume II, Northern England |date=1991 |publisher=Royal Historical Society |___location=London |isbn=0861931270 |page=xv}}</ref>
Meanwhile, the whole ancient parish of Holme Cultram was made a [[Local Government Act 1858|local government district]] in 1863.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=22735|page=2530|date=12 May 1863}}</ref> Such districts were reconstituted as [[Urban district (England and Wales)|urban districts]] under the [[Local Government Act 1894]]. Although Silloth was the largest settlement in the urban district, the council met at Abbeytown.<ref>{{cite book |title=Kelly's Directory of Cumberland |date=1906 |page=17 |url=https://specialcollections.le.ac.uk/digital/collection/p16445coll4/id/45953/rec/2 |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
Holme Cultram Urban District was abolished in 1934,<ref>{{cite web |title=Holme Cultram Urban District |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10027597#tab02 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref> and at the same time a new civil parish of Silloth was created from part of the civil parish of Holme Low. Silloth was then given a parish council and classed as a [[rural parish]] within the [[Wigton Rural District]] between 1934 and 1974.<ref>{{cite web |title=Silloth Civil Parish |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10012144#tab02 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
Wigton Rural District was abolished in 1974, and Silloth became part of the borough of [[Allerdale]] in the new county of Cumbria.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972|year=1972|number=2039|accessdate=3 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973|year=1973|number=551|accessdate=3 March 2023}}</ref> The parish of Silloth was formally renamed Silloth-on-Solway in 1980.<ref>{{cite book |title=Alteration of areas and status of local authorities 1980–1982 |date=1982 |publisher=Department of the Environment |___location=London |pages=17 |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20221201180331mp_/https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/__data/assets/pdf_file/0015/11373/bulletin80-82.pdf |access-date=25 April 2025}}</ref>
Allerdale was abolished in 2023 when the new Cumberland Council was created, also taking over the functions of the abolished Cumbria County Council in the area.<ref name=2022order>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The Cumbria (Structural Changes) Order 2022|year=2022|number=331|access-date=24 January 2024}}</ref>
==Demography==
At the [[2021 United Kingdom census|2021 census]], the parish had a population of 2,749.<ref name=2021census/> The population had been 2,932 at the 2001 census,<ref>[http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/viewFullDataset.do?instanceSelection=03070&productId=779&$ph=60_61&datasetInstanceId=3070&startColumn=1&numberOfColumns=8&containerAreaId=790345 Office for National Statistics : ''Census 2001 : Parish Headcounts : Allerdale''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613082045/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/viewFullDataset.do?instanceSelection=03070&productId=779&$ph=60_61&datasetInstanceId=3070&startColumn=1&numberOfColumns=8&containerAreaId=790345 |date=13 June 2011 }} Retrieved 30 October 2010</ref> and 2,906 at the 2011 census.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Parish population 2011 |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11128519&c=CA7+4QP&d=16&e=62&g=6411169&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1434634910531&enc=1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618172447/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadKeyFigures.do?a=7&b=11128519&c=CA7+4QP&d=16&e=62&g=6411169&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1434634910531&enc=1 |archive-date=18 June 2015 |access-date=18 June 2015}}</ref>
==Churches==
[[File:Christ Church, Solway - geograph.org.uk - 87858.jpg|thumb|upright=0.75|Christ Church, Silloth, occupies a complete rectangle of the planned town]]
Silloth's largest [[Church (building)|church]] is Christ Church, situated in a complete rectangular plot which was planned into the original town design. It is on a commanding site at Criffel Street and the body of the church was completed in 1870.<ref>[http://www.visitcumbria.com/wc/chw17.htm Silloth – Christ Church<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070806130601/http://www.visitcumbria.com/wc/chw17.htm |date=6 August 2007 }}</ref> The porch tower and large [[broach spire]] were completed later in 1878, and house a ring of 8 bells which are chimed. It was designed by Carlisle architect [[Charles John Ferguson]] in the Gothic style, and is built with an interesting mix of local sandstone, and granite which was brought by the North British Railway (and boats) from [[Newry]], now in [[Northern Ireland]]. Much of the interior is faced with yellow brick trimmed with red.<ref>Hyde, Matthew; Pevsner, Nikolaus (2010) [1967], Cumbria, The Buildings of England, New Haven and London: Yale University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-300-12663-1}}</ref>
There are several churches and chapels of other denominations in the town.
==Industry==
[[File:LorePrahmSilloth.jpg|thumb|Silloth docks 2008]]
===Port of Silloth===
The Port of Silloth is owned and operated by [[Associated British Ports]]. The main cargoes are wheat, fertiliser, molasses, forest products and general cargo.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Associated British Ports<!-- Bot generated title --> |url=http://www.abports.co.uk/custinfo/ports/silloth/commodities.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070922184933/http://www.abports.co.uk/custinfo/ports/silloth/commodities.htm |archive-date=22 September 2007 |access-date=24 August 2007}}</ref>
===Carr's Flour Mill===
An example of a Victorian flour mill, the building was constructed adjacent to the New Dock in 1887. [[Carr's]] [[gristmill|flour mill]] is an operating mill which supplies flour to a number of food manufacturers such as [[United Biscuits]],<ref>[http://www.cumberland-news.co.uk/business/viewarticle.aspx?id=497770 The Cumberland News<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928092051/http://www.cumberland-news.co.uk/business/viewarticle.aspx?id=497770 |date=28 September 2007 }}</ref> [[Warburtons]] and several other leading bakeries and confectioners. Carr's Flour Mill is now owned by [[Whitworths]].
===Cheri Foam===
[[File:Silloth Factory arial photo.jpg|thumb|Silloth Airfield factory]]
In the 1960s two businesses that had outgrown their factory in Whitehaven re-located to Silloth airfield. They were Cumberland Curled Hair and Cheri Foam. They were one of the largest employers in the area until the late 1970s.
Cheri Foam, was owned by Kurt Oppenheim, who had established his business originally in [[Whitehaven]] in 1946. He bought two of the hangars on the airfield and later joined them together to create large factory space and storage units for the manufacture of polyurethane foam blocks. This was an industrial chemical process and a foam block conversion unit ('Conversion' means that the blocks were cut up into shapes like cushions and sheets to be supplied to the furniture, bedding and motor industries). In 1973 an additional factory unit was added to house the production of foam moulded car parts by high pressure injection foam machines. Machinery equipment in the factory was largely manufactured by a team of Silloth metal fitters and local electricians employed full time by the factory. There was a laboratory and a fibreglass mould making unit on site as well as a garaging unit to service the fourteen container vans that the company used to ship its production all over the UK. It was a twenty four hours a day operation with production leaving the works at all hours. The logo ''Cheri Foam'' on the sides of vans was very familiar in the area. About a hundred and fifty people worked in this factory, some from Silloth and many bussed in from Maryport and surrounds each day. The business was acquired by the Beaver Group in 1976 and Oppenheim retired to join his family in London. The main customer Times Furnishing eventually closed and after this the business ran down and eventually closed.{{Citation needed|date=July 2023}}
===Other===
Local contractor D.A. Harrison are based in Silloth, employing 200 people.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Plans for new quarry in north Cumbria |url=https://cumbriacrack.com/2022/10/13/plans-for-new-quarry-in-north-cumbria/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Plans to demolish eight buildings at Silloth Industrial Estate |url=https://cumbriacrack.com/2021/12/31/plans-to-demolish-eight-buildings-at-silloth-industrial-estate/}}</ref>
==Tourism==
[[File:SillothPierPostcard.jpg|thumb|Silloth has long been a popular tourist destination.]]
Tourism is a major contributor to the economy in Silloth, with dozens of large and small static and touring caravan parks located within a {{convert|10|mi|km|round=5|abbr=off|adj=on|spell=in}} radius of the town centre, resulting in a large increase in the population during the summer months.
Silloth hosts several small annual events held on the town green. These include a [[beer festival]] held in September, plus a steam rally, kite and food festivals.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Silloth Green |url=http://sillothgreen.co.uk/}}</ref>
Amenities include a golf course.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-11-09 |title=Silloth Golf Club |url=http://www.sillothgolfclub.co.uk |access-date=2013-05-31 |publisher=Silloth Golf Club}}</ref>
==Transport==
===Railway===
{{main|Silloth railway station}}
The railway to Silloth opened in 1856. The line passed through the villages of [[Kirkbride, Cumbria|Kirkbride]] and [[Abbeytown]] to [[Carlisle railway station|Carlisle]]. The railway carried both passengers and freight from the port, and tourists visiting the town. It was closed as part of the [[Beeching axe|Beeching cuts]] in 1964.{{sfn|Barker|2010|p=426}}
===Road===
Silloth is on the B5302 road, which leads to the [[A596 road|A596]] and the town of [[Wigton]], and the [[B5300 road|B5300]] which connects the town to [[Maryport]].
== Sports ==
=== Silloth A.F.C. ===
Silloth A.F.C. (also known as the Silloth Seagulls) is an amateur football club currently competing in the Cumberland County League. The club features a range of teams, including a men's squad and a thriving junior section for both boys and girls, providing opportunities for players of all ages to develop and compete.
In 2025, Kian Orchard was appointed as Head Coach, bringing fresh ideas, strong leadership, and a new vision to the club.
The Seagulls play their home matches at Eden Street Playing Fields, a ground they have called home since 1954. In 2022, the club announced plans to construct a new clubhouse to support the expansion of its junior programs. This development aims to enhance facilities for both existing members and the wider community.
==Media==
A local 'free' newspaper published monthly entitled ''The Solway Buzz'', distributed to households in the area by a team of volunteers, covers news and events in Silloth and the surrounding area.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.solwaybuzz.co.uk/|title=The Solway Buzz |access-date=1 November 2023}}</ref> The town is also served by the regional newspaper the ''[[News & Star]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/|title=News & Star|access-date=1 November 2023}}</ref>
Local TV coverage is provided by [[BBC North East and Cumbria]] and [[ITV Border]]. Television signals are received from the [[Caldbeck transmitting station|Caldbeck]] TV transmitter.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ukfree.tv/transmitters/tv/Caldbeck|title= Full Freeview on the Caldbeck (Cumbria, England) transmitter|date=1 May 2004|website=UK Free TV|accessdate=1 November 2023}}</ref>
Local radio stations are [[BBC Radio Cumbria]], [[Greatest Hits Radio Cumbria & South West Scotland]] and Solway Radio, a community based radio station.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://solwayradio.co.uk/|title=Solway Radio |access-date=1 November 2023}}</ref>
==Notable people==
* [[Jim Brough]], a [[List of dual-code rugby internationals|dual-code international]] rugby player, was born in Silloth in 1903.
* [[Cecil Leitch]], golfer, was born in Silloth in 1891.
* [[Kathleen Ferrier]], a [[contralto]] singer.
==See also==
{{Portal|Cumbria}}
*[[Listed buildings in Silloth-on-Solway]]
*[[Solway Community School]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Sources==
*{{Cite journal |last=Barker |first=Oswald J. |date=August 2010 |editor-last=Smith |editor-first=Martin |title=Branch line to Silloth |journal=Railway Bylines |___location=[[Radstock]] |publisher=Irwell Press Limited |volume=15 |issue=9 |issn=1360-2098}}
*{{Cite book |last=Alan Taylor |title=Cheri Foam factory story}}{{incomplete citation |date=March 2022}}
==External links==
{{commons category-inline|Silloth}}
*[http://www.cumbriacountyhistory.org.uk/township/silloth Cumbria County History Trust: Silloth] (nb: provisional research only - see Talk page)
*[http://www.silloth-on-solway.co.uk/ Official page]
*[http://www.visitcumbria.com/wc/silloth.htm Silloth at Visitcumbria]
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20120311202647/http://www.solwayplain.co.uk/silloth1.htm History of Silloth]}}
{{authority control}}
{{Associated British Ports}}
{{Cumbria}}
[[Category:Silloth| ]]
[[Category:Towns in Cumbria]]
[[Category:Seaside resorts in England]]
[[Category:Ports and harbours of Cumbria]]
[[Category:Populated coastal places in Cumbria]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Cumbria]]
[[Category:Cumberland (unitary authority)]]
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