How working horses helped build, connect and serve Barrow

For centuries, horses have provided the main form of transport in Britain and working animals were a main source of power.

They were a familiar feature of everyday life in Britain’s streets, fields and workplaces and Barrow was no exception.

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Local family, the Sankeys, who captured life around them during the early 20th century, photographed many of them. 

So much so that a collection of images has been put together in The Sankey online archive.

The archive as a whole shows how the use of working horses declined from the end of the First World War to the mid-20th century as they feature far less. 

Horses were used in the construction of many of Furness' pivotal landmarks and can be seen in the construction of Walney Bridge in 1908.

They had the job of the many vehicles we take for granted today.

For example, the images in and around Barrow show a horse-drawn steam laundry van and even a butcher's van that made deliveries.

The animals were a vital part of the transport network too and the Furness Railway horse is shown here decked out in all its finery. 

Our four-legged friends did the jobs alongside us, quite literally with one horse pictured working inside Vickers, which is now BAE, alongside floor workers.

Blinkers have been put on the horse to stop it from getting startled by any loud machinery.

They also came to our aid which can be seen in the image of a horse-drawn carriage attending the scene of a fire in Gradwell's Timber Dock in 1908. 

One very lucky family from Bardsea also got to have their very own well-polished horse and trap in 1910. 

Some things haven't changed however and that is the use of horses in ceremonies.

They are pictured during a Victory Celebration Parade after the First World War in 1918 and also pulling a glass hearse down Hawcoat Lane.