Introduction
For other places with similar names, see Bowness (disambiguation).
Town in EnglandBowness-on-WindermereTownBowness-on-Windermere town centreBowness-on-WindermereLocation in the former South Lakeland districtShow map of the former South Lakeland districtBowness-on-WindermereLocation within CumbriaShow map of CumbriaPopulation3,814 OS grid referenceSD403969Civil parishWindermere and BownessUnitary authorityWestmorland and FurnessCeremonial countyCumbriaRegionNorth WestCountryEnglandSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townWINDERMEREPostcode districtLA23Dialling code015394PoliceCumbriaFireCumbriaAmbulanceNorth West
UK ParliamentWestmorland and Lonsdale
List of places
UK
England
Cumbria
54°21′52″N 2°55′05″W / 54.3644°N 2.9181°W / 54.3644; -2.9181
Looking northwards over Windermere
Bowness-on-Windermere is a town and former civil parish, now in the parish of Windermere and Bowness, in the Westmorland and Furness district, in the ceremonial county of Cumbria, England. It lies next to Lake Windermere and the town of Windermere to the north east and within the Lake District National Park. The town was historically part of the county of Westmorland and it also forms an urban area with Windermere. The town had a population of 3,814 in the 2011 Census.
Toponymy
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'Bowness' (originally 'Bulnes') means " 'the headland where the bull grazes', from OE 'bula', 'bull' and OE 'næss', 'headland', perhaps referring to the keeping of the parish bull." The 'on-Windermere' part was added later (found on the Ordnance Survey map of 1899).
History
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The town's ancient parish church of St Martin was built in 1483 but of an older foundation. The former rectory is said to have been built in 1415.
A grammar school was founded in about 1600. A new building was opened in 1836, funded by local landowner John Bolton of Storrs Hall. The foundation stone was laid by William Wordsworth.
During the 19th century, Bowness grew from a small fishing village to a town living almost entirely off tourism and holiday homes. It was the centre of the boat-building industry that provided the sailing yachts, rowing boats and steam launches used on the lake. A large number of hotels and boarding houses gave employment to the permanent population of the town. Queen Adelaide visited Bowness in 1840, staying at the Royal Hotel. The arrival of the railway in 1847 in Windermere (the residents of Bowness had opposed a station in their own town) provided much of the momentum for the growth.
Bowness-on-Windermere became a civil parish in 1894 and an urban district council was formed for the town at the same time. In 1905, the council merged with that of Windermere, and the two civil parishes merged on 1 April 1974 under the name of Windermere. At the 1951 census (one of the last before the abolition of the parish), Bowness on Windermere had a population of 3345. The civil parish of Windermere and Bowness is governed by a town council, Windermere and Bowness Town Council.
Transport
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Windermere railway station offers train and bus connections to the surrounding areas, Manchester, Manchester Airport and the West Coast Main Line, and is about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the lakefront.
As of March 2026[update] Stagecoach offers the main services in the Lake District
Some of the former open-top buses which ran the 599.
The council also runs wheelchair-accessible minibuses run around the edge of town.
The Windermere Ferry, a car carrying cable ferry, connects Bowness at Ferry Nab on the eastern side of the lake with Ferry House at Far Sawrey on the western side of the lake, a trip of approximately 10 minutes. For those looking for a more leisurely way to travel, Windermere Lake Cruises operate regular lake cruises running from Bowness Bay to the north end of the lake at Ambleside and south end at Fell Foot.
Media
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Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North West and ITV Border. Television signals are received from the local relay transmitter.
Local radio stations are BBC Radio Cumbria, Heart North West and Smooth Lake District. Community on-line stations are Lake District Radio, and Bay Trust Radio.
The town's local newspapers are The Westmorland Gazette and The Mail.
Readers of Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons series of books will recognise Bowness as the lakeside town of 'Rio'. The collection at the Windermere Steamboat Museum on Rayrigg Road includes TSSY Esperance, 1869; one of the iron steamboats on which Ransome modelled Captain Flint's houseboat. Bowness-on-Windermere is also home to The World of Beatrix Potter attraction, opened in July 1991 by Victoria Wood.
View of Windermere from Bowness-on-Windermere
