Lancashire

Lancashire is in the North of England, on the Irish Sea. The North/West section of the county is part of the Lake District; in the West and South are lowlands (the Lancashire plain) and occasional moors. The main rivers are the Mersey (which forms much of the county's Southern border), the Lune, the Wyre and the Ribble. The coastline is low and broken by estuaries, with Morecambe Bay separating Furness from the rest of the county. Lancashire's principal cities are Manchester and Liverpool. Along with tourism, vegetables and dairy products are also economically important and market gardening is a major source of income near the Ribble estuary. Lancashire's economic growth began in medieval times with the introduction of the woollen industry and was accelerated by the Industrial Revolution. For the visitor today, Lancashire offers incredible diversity from the tranquil beauty of the Lakes to the vibrant, exciting hub of city life in Manchester. Blackpool Pleasure Beach is in this county and for thrill seekers, presents the largest roller coaster in Europe the "Big One" drops you down with a view out over the beautiful coast for the ride of your life. This amusement park has been around since 1896, when Alderman William George Bean bought the 42 acre site on which the Pleasure Beach now stands. Various rides, including the still popular Sir Hiram Maxim Flying Machines, were introduced to the area. The First World War curtailed further development of the site until 1921 when it became possible to import new rides from the USA. Today it is one of the U.K.'s biggest, most visited tourist attractions.