By David Peter
The cross sands traffic, from Kent’s Bank on the west side of the Kent estuary to Hest Bank on the east, is well authenticated, and for hundreds of years this ‘road’ was followed by travellers on foot, on horseback, or in carts, carriages, and coaches between Lancaster and the north west of England. They preferred the risks attached to this eight mile crossing of the sands to the thirty mile, and often quite hazardous, alternative route via Kendal. The cross Bay ‘road’ was widely used until the opening of the UIverston-Lancaster railway, which bridged the river Kent at Arnside in 1857. Throughout this period the shorter crossing from Kent’s Bank to Silverdale was used by local traffic and by fishermen, but it also served as an escape route when the longer sands journey became impossible to use, due to adverse tidal or weather conditions. On such occasions landfalls would be made at Silverdale, either at Cow’s Mouth or at the Shore, and refreshment and shelter would be available at the Britannia Hotel (now the Silverdale Hotel).
The Britannia Hotel was built in 1826 to replace an earlier hostelry, the Blue Anchor (sited nearby, but on the opposite side of the road), which was established in 1744. The origin of the name ‘Cow’s Mouth’ is somewhat obscure. It represents a significant break in the line of low cliffs which form the western edge of the Silverdale peninsula. As such it would obviously be utilised by travellers, Including Drovers and their cattle, who had forded the river Kent The mai route for cattle droving (which flourished from approximately 1650 to 1850) was from farms in Northern Ireland, by boat to ports in South West Scotland. Here the Irish cattle linked up with the Scottish herds of black cattle, to be driven southwards to pastures and ultimately to markets in England.
Irish cattle were also landed at ports on the Cumberland coast, even as far south as Roa Island (near present day Barrow). They were destined for markets in Lancashire such as Lancaster, Garstang, Preston, Wigan, etc., after crossing the Leven and Kent sands. They provided food for the rapidly developing industrial communities in South East Lancashire. No doubt many of the herds would make the shorter crossing of the Kent estuary to Silverdale.
Could it be that the break in the line of cliffs here some slight resemblance to a cow’s mouth? Could it be that the pasture nearby, called Cow Close, was the place where the cattle were accommodated overnight to continue their journey the next day? A number of other facts lend support to this theory. Near to Cow’s Mouth is one of the oldest houses in the area, known as Waithman’s House. It once belonged to a well-known Quaker business man and bailor of that name, who was concerned with flax growing and linen manufacture in the Yealand and Holme districts. It is more than probable that his financial resources were placed at the disposal of the Drovers, from his base at Silverdale.
The cattle were moved inland from Silverdale. It is interesting to note that both the Warton-with -Lindeth and the Silverdale Enclosure Awards of 1811-17 established officially what had no doubt been, for some considerable time, watering places for animals. There were four of these. First, the ’Dripping’ well (Woodwell) at Lindeth. Two others were sited at points where ’roads’ crossed the Myers Dyke (draining Haweswater). The fourth was at Haweswater itself. The next logical stopping place for the cattle would appear to be somewhere in the Warton area, the existence in the village of an ancient hostelry called the ‘Black Bull’ suggests proximity to a droving road. Inn names such as ’Highland Laddie’, ’Drovers Arms’, ’Black Bull’, are usually an indication that they included Drovers amongst their clients. Incidentally, there is another ’Black Bull’ (and also a ’Brown Cow*) on this same line, but in the reverse direction at Dalton in Furness. Nor was the ’traffic’ restricted to cattle. sheep, pigs, and even geese were also driven in this way en masse to market.
Published in Mourholme Magazine Issue 1 Autumn 1982