Market Place, Wigton

Image: © Stephen McKay Taken: 2 Oct 2014

Shoppers stroll through the centre of this pleasant Cumbrian town on a bright autumn morning. Wigton traces its history back to 1100 when the local Lord of the Manor built a church from the remains of a nearby Roman fort. In 1262 Henry II granted a market charter and by the 18th century the town had become associated with the weaving trade. Later dye works were established and calico printing was important in the early 19th century. Other industries including metal working and clock making gradually established themselves but by the end of the 19th century the town found itself unable to compete with the larger industrial centres further south and the area became quite seriously depressed. Today the largest employer is a company producing polypropylene - a thermoplastic polymer used mainly in packaging - which has a workforce of about 900.

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