HOW the Furness Railway introduced the Lake District to thousands of Edwardian holiday-makers is to be described in a talk at Kirkby.

Geoff Holme will be the guest speaker at the History of Kirkby Group on Tuesday, October 18.

His talk is called “A Tour of the Lake District, Courtesy of the Furness Railway” and can be heard from 2pm at the village hall, Beckside.

Admission costs £2 and all are welcome.

When Alfred Aslett arrived in the late 1890s as general manager of the Furness Railway he looked to replace declining copper and iron ore traffic with tourists.

The company had promotional posters designed to attract visitors and had a special display stand which appeared at places such as the 1910 Japan-British Exhibition held in London.

A series of tours was developed, involving railways, ferries and coaches to get visitors to all the Furness and Lake District attractions, including Furness Abbey and Coniston.

The railway company’s fleet of Windermere steamers included Swan, Cygnet and Teal.

Furness Abbey was promoted as a visitor attraction and the Furness Abbey Station and its own hotel, extended in the 1860s.

Most of it was demolished in the 1950s but once boasted 36 bedrooms.

The railway company looked after the medieval ruins on behalf of the Cavendish family and provided a uniformed guide.

You can find out more about the work of the History of Kirkby Group on its website at www.history-of-kirkby.org