County Borough of Oldham
County Borough of Oldham | |
---|---|
Old Town Hall, Oldham | |
Area | |
• 1911 | 4,736 acres (19.2 km2) |
• 1961 | 6,392 acres (25.9 km2) |
Population | |
• 1911 | 137,246 |
• 1971 | 105,922 |
History | |
• Created | 1889 |
• Abolished | 1974 |
• Succeeded by | Metropolitan Borough of Oldham |
Status | County borough |
Government | |
• HQ | Old Town Hall |
• Motto | Sapere aude (Dare to know) |
Oldham was, from 1849 to 1974, a
History
Improvement Commissioners
Oldham was anciently a
Municipal Borough
In December 1848 the inhabitant householders of the parliamentary borough of Oldham petitioned the Privy council for a charter of incorporation under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835.[3] The charter was granted on 13 June 1849, and the Municipal Borough of Oldham came into existence on 1 November.[2]
County Borough
Under the
The County Borough of Oldham was abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 and its territory transferred to Greater Manchester to form a part of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham.
Corporation and council
The charter of 1849 divided the borough into eight
Political control
By the 1880s groups aligned with the parliamentary
Coat of arms
Prior to 1894, the town council made use of the arms of the Oldham family. The arms were blazoned as:
Sable a chevron Or between three owls argent on a chief of the second as many roses gules.[18]
The owls suggest that the family, like the town, called itself 'Owdham', and adopted the birds in allusion to its name. It is possible that the family set the Red Rose of Lancaster on their shield to denote their Lancastrian sympathies. The most famous member of the family to use the arms was Hugh Oldham, Bishop of Exeter, who died in 1519. The arms form part of the insignia of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, founded by the bishop.[19]
The use of the family arms by the corporation was improper, and on 8 November 1894 they received letters patent from the Kings of Arms granting armorial bearings. The arms were based on the family arms, with necessary heraldic differences introduced to the design. The blazon was as follows:
Sable a chevron invected plain cottised Or between three owls argent on a chief engrailed of the second a rose Gules barbed and seeded proper between two annulets also gules, and for a Crest: On a wreath of the colours in front of a rock thereon an owl argent three roses fessewise gules barbed and seeded proper.[20]
The Latin motto adopted was Sapere Aude or "dare to be wise", and was a reference to the owls in the arms.
References
Notes
- ^ "Oldham MB/CB", A vision of Britain through time, retrieved 20 February 2007
- ^ a b c William Farrer; J. Brownbill, eds. (1911), "The parish of Prestwich with Oldham: Oldham", A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 5, British History Online, retrieved 23 July 2008
- ^ "No. 20928". The London Gazette. 19 December 1848. pp. 4581–4582.
- ^ Local Government Act 1888 C.41, S.31
- ^ "No. 25996". The London Gazette. 26 November 1889. pp. 6566–6568.
- ^ a b F A Youngs, Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol 2: Northern England, London 1991
- ^ Lawson & Johnson 1990, p. 7.
- ^ Bateson 1949, p. 209.
- ^ Local government boundaries – Commission's proposals, The Times, 16 May 1947
- ^ "Oldham MB/CB", A vision of Britain through time, retrieved 23 July 2008
- ^ "No. 25533". The London Gazette. 24 November 1885. p. 5491.
- ^ The Municipal Elections, The Times, 2 November 1904, p.6
- ^ The Municipal Elections, The Times, 2 November 1909, p.12
- ^ Municipal Polls, The Times, 2 November 1920, p.12
- ^ The Municipal Elections, The Times, 2 November 1927, p.9
- ^ The Municipal Elections, The Times, 2 November 1934, p.7
- ^ The Times, 8 May 1953, p.4; 8 May 1968 p.8; 14 May 1971, p.4
- ^ Bernard Burke, The General Armory of England, Scotland, Wales; Comprising A Registry of Armorial Bearings From the Earliest To the Present Time London, 1884.
- ^ C Wilfrid Scott-Giles, Civic Heraldry of England and Wales, 2nd edition, London, 1953
- ^ A C Fox-Davies, The Book of Public Arms, 2nd edition, London, 1915
Bibliography
- Bateson, Hartley (1949), A Centenary History of Oldham, Oldham County Borough Council, ISBN 5-00-095162-X
- Lawson, Michael; Johnson, Mark (1990), Looking Back at Chadderton, Oldham: Oldham Leisure Services, ISBN 0-902809-23-7
External links
- A vision of Oldham CB/MB, visionofbritain.org.uk.