Manchester,
Wigan & the Northwest Region of England
Papillon
Graphics' Virtual Encyclopaedia of Greater Manchester
Including
Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside,
Trafford & Wigan
NAVIGATION Virtual
Hosting by
TheServerBank
Photos
by Gary Burns
The
Borough of Wigan
In the Greater Manchester Metropolitan County
The Leeds &
Liverpool Canal at Wigan
The Market Place
in Wigan
Inside the Galleries
Shopping Centre
The restored
Jaxon's Court in Wigan
Towns
& Villages of Wigan
Abram
A
former mining town, now fully reclaimed. It became notorious for
the mining disaster of 1908 when 75 miners died in a pit explosion.
Its name derives from Abraham, the family name of the Lords of
the Manor until the 17th century.
Ashton-in-Makerfield
Ashton
means "ash town" and Makerfield means "the area in the clearing".
One of Wigan's largest towns, close to the M6 Motorway, it is
a thriving town, and has the Three Sisters Recreation Area nearby
at Bryn.
Aspull
North-east
of Wigan, Aspull is a pleasant residential town, whose past was
predominantly in mining and textiles, though all trace of spoil
heaps has been removed and the area is fully reclaimed with newly
planted trees. Haigh Hall and the West Pennine Moors are nearby.
The Leigh-Pemberton family, (Robin Leigh-Pemberton is Governor
of the Bank of England), are from Aspull.
Atherton
There
are several possible explanations for Atherton's name : it may
have been named after the Alder trees which grew there in great
numbers, or perhaps from the old English word "Adder", or Elder,
meaning chief, or else from the many small steams (or "athers")
which run through it. A strong Puritan town during the Civil War,
it was noted for the manufacture of nails, and later by nuts and
bolts in the 19th century. Weaving and mining came to Atherton
in the mid-19th century. One of Britain's worst ever mining disasters
occurred at Atherton Collieries in 1910, when 333 men lost their
lives in a fire damp explosion at the Pretoria Pit.
Billinge
& Winstanley
These
two south-westerly areas contain 2 of the boroughs oldest surviving
buildings - Bispham Hall built about 1560 for the Bispham family,
and Winstanley Hall which had been occupied for 400 years up to
1984. Billinge is known for its quarried stone, from which many
of Wigan's buildings are constructed, as well as for its chair-making.
Golborne
& Lowton
Until
recent times, Golborne was dominated by its colliery. But since
its closure in 1989 its old spoil heaps have been imaginatively
reclaimed for leisure activities and new light industries. The
name Golborne means "Golden Stream", alongside which yellow flowers
grew in abundance. Nearby Lowton has become a largely residential
area in recent years, though it has Byrom Hall nearby. This was
the ancestral home of the poet John
Byrom, who wrote the hymn "Christians Awake".
See
also: Lowton Community Website: www.lowton.co.nr
Haigh
Although
little more than a village, Haigh has had a considerable influence
in the history of Wigan. Haigh
Hall and its grounds were bought by Wigan Corporation in 1947
and now make up one of the region's most beautiful country parks.
Hindley
Originally
a farming community whose manor was first recorded as Hindele
in 1212. Hindley was a firm centre of Puritanism in the time of
the Civil War. Until the late 19th century, it was famous for
its two "burning wells", caused by the seepage of inflammable
coal gas through water. The home of Colonel Nathaniel Eckersley,
who lived at Laurel House in Hindley, and had outstanding service
as a soldier with the Duke of Wellington. A ceremonial sword,
presented to him, for his quelling of the Peterloo
Riots in Manchester in 1819 can still be seen in the town
library. Much residential development has taken place here and
nearby at Hindley Green in recent years, and this is complemented
by the picturesque Borsdane Woods and Hindley Golf Course which
is centred at Hindley Hall.
Ince
More
properly, Ince-in-Makerfield, once comprised open mosslands; hence
the name Ince from an old Celtic word meaning "island". Along
with Bryn, Ince Moss is still an important wildlife sanctuary.
In the 19th century, the area was considerably developed for its
rich coal deposits, and by the end of the century it was little
more than a spoil heap of factories and mines. Subsequent subsidence
due to these underground mines, has resulted in large areas of
surface water accumulation - known as "flashes". Ince has been
totally regenerated in recent times, with considerable amounts
of landscaping, new housing and residential facilities - all putting
the heart back into the town.
Leigh,
a major township in its own right, was dragged, kicking and screaming,
into the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan in 1974. Loyalties are
still very divided. The name Leigh simply derives from "lea"
meaning a meadow. It was famous until the 19th century for
its dairy produce, and its local cheese - the Leigh Toaster. Leigh
is in itself an old town, dating back well into the 12th century.
By the 18th century, the town had a thriving home-made textile
industry. Local tradition has it that the Spinning Jenny and the
Water Frame were actually invented by a local man, Thomas Highs,
whose ideas were pirated by Richard
Arkwright, who subsequently earned a fortune from the patents
he took out on them. This is remembered in the town's new Spinning
Gate Shopping Centre, and the street named "Spinning Jenny Way".
Leigh was the place where the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the
Bridgewater Canal were to
meet, and it became a significant canal town on this account,
placed as it was between Wigan and Worsley.
Eventually, as the Wigan coalfields paid out, Leigh took over
as the largest supplier of coal to manchester factories in the
region. Today Leigh is the epitome of civic pride, with its busy
shopping centre being enhanced by a new market hall and shopping
centre. The Turnpike Centre, located opposite the 1516 Parish
Church of St Mary, is home to the Turnpike Gallery, an art gallery,
concert hall and library.
See
also: Leigh Life Website at: www.leighlife.com
Orrell
Close
to the junction of the M6 and the M58 Motorways, Orrell was originally
known as Orrell-in-Makerfield, to distinguish it from the nearby
town of Orrell in Sefton, near Liverpool. The town was named after
the Orrell family who held the estates on which the town stood
for many centuries. On the completion of the Leeds-Liverpool Canal,
Orrell saw an influx of traders and merchants from nearby Liverpool,
and the modern town dates from this period. Traditionally, Orrell
specialised in chair-making, with nail-making at Far Moor nearby.
The former reservoirs now known as Orrell Lakes are a popular
leisure and tourist attraction, with fishing, walking and picnic
facilities.
Pemberton
A
district within the borough of Wigan, situated about 2½
miles south-west of Wigan town itself, Pemberton has an old and
long history, much now obscured in the mists of time. But, according
to the 'British History Online' website (www.british-history.ac.uk),
Pemberton existed as an entity in its own right long before the
Norman Conquest of 1066, and afterwards probably formed part of
the Manor of Newton. During the 12th century it was held by one
Alan de Windle. Though once a major centre of coal mining in the
region, very little still survives of its industrial past, and
its once many pits and mines are long silent.
By 1835 Pemberton was a township in the parish of Wigan and was
adopted under the Local Government Act of 1854 . Later, in 1894,
it became an Urban District Council. However, as early as 1904
an inquiry was under way to look into an application by Wigan
Corporation for an extension of the Borough boundary by the inclusion
of the District of Pemberton, and despite local resistance, it
was agreed to do so in April of that year, and in November the
final meeting of the Pemberton District Council took place.
In 1974 the district of Pemberton was formally dissolved and added
to the borough of Wigan.
Shevington
The
name Shevington means "the settlement below the ridge", and it
stands on the gradual slopes of the valley cut by the River Douglas.
Shevington is predominantly rural, despite some 19th century mining,
and the building of the M6 Motorway on its doorstep in the 1960s.
Careful building and conservation controls have maintained its
semi-rural character, and the village centre is a designated conservation
area.
Standish
Standish
is an historic township on the Wigan-Preston Road. Its name has
two elements, meaning "Stone" and an "enclosed pasture". The Standish
Family held the lands for at least 700 years, dating from 1202.
John Standish is recorded as having killed the infamous Wat Tyler
in the Peasant's Revolt of 1381, a deed for which he was knighted.
Much of the original Standish Hall was dismantled and shipped
to America, as it was thought to be the ancestral home of Miles
Standish, military commander of the original Pilgrim Fathers who
colonised the East Coast of America. The 16th century church of
St Wilfred still has its medieval stocks and market cross.
Tyldesley
Like
many of Wigan's towns, Tyldesley grew to prominence as a mining
town. That has all gone now, and its pits have been restored to
their former beauty by extensive land reclamation and development.
The town is a bustling market town with its conservation area
and market square. The town stands on the line of the old Roman
road and Roman remains and artefacts were unearthed here in 1947.
The town also became a major centre for yarn spinning, and in
1823 after a strike and lockout had occurred at Messrs Jones'
Spinning Mill, all the workers were sacked, and new hands hired
to replace them. The new "scab" labour were known as "knobsticks",
and armed police had to be brought in to protect them from assault
by the dismissed labour force who angrily lined the streets to
the mill. Opposite the town's market is the old church known as
Top Chapel, built in 1789 for a breakaway sect of the Church of
England, known as the Countess of Huntingdon's Connection.
