tervenes between the mainland and the long low island of
Walney, on which the erection of a strong fort was undertaken by the War
Office in 1904. In 1905 the connexion of Walney with the mainland by a
bridge was undertaken. In the channel is Barrow Island (among others) which
is connected with the mainland, reclamation having been carried on until
only a narrow channel was left, which was utilized as docks. Barrow is of
modern and remarkably rapid growth. Its rise was dependent primarily on the
existence and working of the veins of pure haematite iron ore in the
district of Furness (_q.v._). At the outset Barrow merely exported the ore
to the furnaces of South Wales and the midlands. At the beginning of the
19th century this export amounted at most to a few thousand tons, and
though by the middle of the century it had reached some 50,000 in 1847 the
population of Barrow was only 325. In 1846 the first section of the Furness
railway was opened, connecting Barrow with the mines near Dalton; in the
ensuing years a great increase in trade justified the opening of further
communications, and in 1859 the iron works of Messrs Schneider & Hannay
were instituted. The Barrow Haematite Steel Company (1866) absorbed this
company, and a great output of steel produced by the Bessemer process was
begun. Other industries followed. Of these the shipbuilding works have
surpassed the steel works in importance, the celebrated firm of Vickers,
Sons & Maxim having a yard where they construct numerous vessels of war as
well as others. There are also a petroleum storage establishment, a
paper-pulp factory, jute works, and engineering and wagon works.

The docks in the strait between Barrow Island and the mainland were
constructed in 1867, and named the Devonshire and Buccleuch docks. The
Ramsden docks are a subsequent extension. These are 24 ft. in depth. There
are also a graving dock 500 ft. long, a depositing dock accommodating
vessels of 16 ft. draught, and two electric cranes each able to lift 150
tons. The Furness railway company is the dock authority. Passenger steamers
run on weekdays to Belfast.

The town is laid out in rectangular form, and contains several handsome
churches, municipal buildings, exchange and other public buildings. An
electric tramway service connects the outskirts and the centre. There are
statues of Lord Frederick Cavendish (assassinated at Dublin, 1882), in
front of the town-hall, and of Sir James Ramsden (d. 1896)