Historically in Lancashire, it is located a few miles south-east of the town of Barrow-in-Furness, in the north-western corner of Morecambe Bay on the Furness peninsula.

[2] In the late 18th century, the village had a reputation as a bathing resort; at the time, it was larger than Barrow-in-Furness, which was still a small hamlet.

[1] His memory of his time at Rampside and his view towards Piel Castle led him to write the following in 1805:[3] In 1840, development began on a causeway to Roa Island, resulting in a rail ferry from Fleetwood to the island, the trains then passing through Rampside Station to get to Barrow and the southern Lake District.

The intensity at Rampside has been estimated as VIII on the European macroseismic scale; the magnitude of the earthquake is uncertain, but probably not more than 3 ML.

[4] In recent years, Roa Island and Rampside have retained their close links to the sea, with sailing and windsurfing popular in the surrounding waters.