ALLERDALE

district, administrative county of Cumbria, historic county of Cumberland, northwestern England, in the northwestern part of the county along the coast of the Solway Firth. Except for its coastal plain on the west and northwest, Allerdale is a scenic district of mountains and lake-filled valleys forming the northwestern part of the Lake District National Park in the Cumbrian Mountains. The two most populated centres of the district, Workington and Maryport, both on the western coast, have long been associated with the coalfield of Cumbria. Workington, the only deepwater port between Liverpool and Glasgow, has blast furnaces that reduce imported iron ore and metallurgical industries that utilize locally mined anhydrite. Maryport exports footwear, chemicals, and plastics. The fertile soils of the Solway coast northeast of these ports are used to grow oats and potatoes, except in the low-lying areas that are subject to tidal invasion. Dairy cattle are also raised along the Solway coast. The old stone-built parish of Keswick is a principal tourist centre of the Lake District. The prehistoric stone circles in the mountains and the Roman ruins and Viking graves nearer the seacoast are evidence of ancient settlement in the region. Workington is the administrative centre. Area 486 square miles (1,258 square km). Pop. (1998 est.) 96,100.