AS the last pints have been pulled at two of Barrow's traditional watering holes, we take a look at the story of the Derby and the Knights.

Members of the Knights of St Columba Club, in Dalkeith Street, were often involved in charity events and distributed £1,000 to a variety of good causes in February 1995.

In 1995 members staged events to raise the cash for a nebuliser for Barrow toddler Ben Merritt.

The Knights of St Columba is a Catholic fraternal society which was established in Glasgow in 1919.

Many of its associated clubs have closed in recent years.

The original Derby Arms Hotel of 1865 was demolished and rebuilt in Dalton Road to make way for a wider Abbey Road and the new Barrow Central Railway Station.

It was rebuilt again in 1900.

Back in February 1996 pints were pulled at the Derby by the light from candles after a major power cut left Dalton Road businesses in darkness,

Landlady Julie Cunningham said: "We stayed open by candle light but we will be looking for compensation.

"We couldn't serve tap beer it had to be bottled beer.

"A lot of people walked out. We've lost hundreds of pounds."

In the mid-1980s the pub had a change of name to The Boulevard but reverted to the old Derby Hotel name around 1993 when former Barrow and England Rugby League forward John Cunningham was in charge.

In August 2011 the venue hosted a three-day music festival featuring close to 30 bands ansd solo artists.

Both pubs are owned by Five (UK) Ltd and the closure was confirmed by company director John Wheeler.