A Russian ship, the ‘Konstantin Paustovskiy’ leaving Silloth.
A Russian ship, the ‘Konstantin Paustovskiy’ leaving Silloth.
Silloth Docks are far from being just history. The port today handles cargo most of which is destined for Carr’s Flour Mill and their fertilizer factory. Innovia Films of Wigton import paper pulp from Spain for use in the manufacture of various protective coverings. Prime Molasses have a facility on the dock side. Here the liquid material, which is used in animal foodstuffs, is stored and then loaded into tankers for distribution throughout northern England and southern Scotland.
The ships belonging to the Ramsey Steam Ship Company of the Isle of Man are regular visitors to Silloth. The Ben Ellan (above) is arriving with a cargo of North American wheat taken from larger ships at Liverpool. Silloth once received grain directly from America until the ships employed on the Atlantic runs became too large for the port. The Ben Varry (below) is also used to convey grain.
Wheat also arrives from Europe. This German ship, the
Eilsum, visited in July 2005.
The Potosi (above)is leaving after delivering a cargo of phosphates from Sfax in North Africa which will be used in production of Fertilizer. A record cargo of Ammonium Nitrate, another major ingredient of fertilizer, arrived aboard the Arklow River (below) from Beverwijk in Holland. She belongs to Arklow Shipping, a large Irish company, whose vessels can often be seen in Siloth
Molasses often arrives at Silloth from Bremen where it has been taken larger ships coming from ports in India and the Far East. The ‘British Shield’ (above) is one of the largest ships to have brought this product to Silloth. The ‘Zapadnyy’ (below) is a Ukranian ship which is currently on charter and delivers the shipments from Bremen about once a month.
Today Silloth is the busiest cargo port in Cumbria, handling around 80 ships annually. and is able to receive vessels. The dock can accommodate ships of around 3,000 tons and up to sixteen metres wide. Vessels as long as 114 meters have been docked successfully.
Photographs © Stephen Wright and Simon Ledingham