Leigh, Greater Manchester
Leigh | ||
---|---|---|
Metropolitan county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | LEIGH | |
Postcode district | WN7 | |
Dialling code | 01942 | |
Police | Greater Manchester | |
Fire | Greater Manchester | |
Ambulance | North West | |
UK Parliament | ||
Leigh is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, on low-lying land northwest of Chat Moss.
Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, Leigh was originally the centre of a large ecclesiastical parish covering six vills or townships. When the three townships of Pennington, Westleigh and Bedford merged in 1875, forming the Leigh Local Board District, Leigh became the official name for the town, although it had been applied to the area of Pennington and Westleigh around the parish church for many centuries.[2] The town became an
Originally an agricultural area (noted for dairy farming), domestic spinning and weaving led to a considerable silk industry and, in the 20th century, the cotton industry. Leigh also exploited the underlying coal measures, particularly after the town was connected to the canals and railways. Leigh had an important engineering base. The legacy of Leigh's industrial past can be seen in the remaining red brick mills – some of which are listed buildings – although it is now a mainly residential town, with Edwardian and Victorian terraced housing packed around the town centre. Leigh's present-day economy is based largely on the retail sector.
History
Toponymy
Leigh is derived from the Old English leah which meant a place at the wood or woodland clearing, a glade and subsequently a pasture or meadow, it was spelt Legh in 1276.[4] Other recorded spellings include Leech, 1264; Leeche, 1268; Leghthe, 1305; Leght, 1417; Lech, 1451; Legh, 16th century. As its name denotes it was a district rich in meadow and pasture land, and the produce of its dairies, the Leigh cheese, was formerly noted for its excellence.[2] Westleigh, the west clearing, was Westeley in 1237, Westlegh in 1238 and Westlay in Legh in 1292.[5] Pennington was recorded as Pininton and Pynynton in 1246 and 1360, Penynton in 1305, Pynyngton in 1351 and 1442 and Penyngton in 1443, the ending tun denotes an enclosure, farmstead or manor in Old English.[6] The ford of Beda, probably through the Pennington Brook gave its name to Bedford which was recorded as Beneford from 1200 to 1221 and Bedeford in 1200 and 1296.[7]
Early history
The earliest signs of human activity in Leigh are evidenced by a Neolithic stone axe found in Pennington and a bronze spearhead from south of Gas Street.[8] A single Roman coin was found at Butts in Bedford.[9] After the Roman departure from Britain, and into the history of Anglo-Saxon England, nothing was written about Leigh. However, evidence for the presence of Saxons in what was a sparsely populated and isolated part of the country is provided by local township place names that incorporate the Old English suffix leah, such as Leigh, Tyldesley, Shakerley and Astley.[10]
Townships
In the 12th century the
The land to the south of Atherton includes the feudal barony of Atherleigh, created by Queen Elizabeth, and Bedford manor, which was mentioned in documents in 1202 when it was held by Sir Henry de Kighley whose family held it until the 16th century, but never actually lived there.[7] The Shuttleworths, landowners from the 14th century, were another prominent Bedford family. Richard Shuttleworth married a daughter of the Urmstons from Westleigh and brought part of the Westleigh inheritance to Bedford. This family lived at Shuttleworth House, or Sandypool Farm as it is also known, which is south of the
The manor house of Westleigh was at Higher Hall and existed in Richard I's time (1189–1199).[5] In 1292 Sigreda, the heiress of the manor, married Richard de Urmston, and the manor passed to the Urmston family and remained there until the last of the male Urmstons died in 1659.[5] It was later abandoned because of mining subsidence and Westleigh Old Hall became the manor by repute. The Ranicars and the Marsh families lived here.[5] Westleigh Old Hall was another Leigh hall that had a moat.[9]
The Pennington family owned Pennington Hall from about 1200 until they were replaced by the Bradshaw or Bradshaighs in 1312.[6] The Bradshaws held the manor until 1703 when John, the last of the male line died. Pennington Hall was rebuilt in 1748 by the then-owner Samuel Hilton and in 1807 sold to the Gaskell family of Thornes, Wakefield, who let it to a succession of tenants.[6] Around 1840 James Pownall, a founder member of the silk manufacturing firm, Bickham and Pownall, was a tenant. Later occupants were Charles Jackson, a cotton manufacturer, Jabez Johnson, and F.W. Bouth founder of Bouth's Mill in 1862, The last resident was the brewer George Shaw. On 3 December 1919 George Shaw & Co Ltd offered the hall and grounds to the people of Leigh. The gift was accepted and opened to the public on 25 August 1920.[16] The hall was converted to a museum and art gallery in 1928 but was demolished in 1963. The grounds are now Pennington Park.
Civil War
Leigh was divided in its allegiance during the English Civil War, some of the population supporting the Royalists' cause while others supported the Parliamentarians. A battle was fought in the town on 2 December 1642, when a group of Chowbenters, men from neighbouring Atherton, beat back and then routed Cavalier troops under the command of James Stanley, the 7th Earl of Derby.
Industrial Revolution
At the end of the 16th century, although agriculture and the dairy industry, particularly the production of Leigh cheese, sometimes known as Leigh Toaster, were important,
The Leigth Feight took place on 14 August 1839. The chartists had called for a strike at a time when there was social unrest over the high levels of unemployment and high cost of living. A mob of at least 2,000 gathered in Leigh. About 400–500 workers from Chowbent threatened to burn down Hayes Mill. A detachment of troops from Haydock was called out, and special constables sworn in by the local magistrate. The Riot Act was read by Squire Thomas Withington of Culcheth Hall and for a while the mob dispersed but reassembled later. Many were injured in the fighting that took place and arrests were made. Those arrested were severely punished, while others ensured that radicalism continued in Leigh, leading eventually to electoral reform and universal suffrage.[23]
The large multi-storey spinning mills came later, and five survive today. Mill complexes were built at Kirkhall Lane and Firs Lane in Westleigh, and in Pennington and Bedford.[9] Leigh Spinners[24] is a Grade II* listed building. Mather Lane Mill close to the Bridgewater Canal is a Grade II listed building.[25] More than 6,000 people were employed in textiles in Leigh in 1911.[9]
Coal mining
There had been
Mining disasters in Leigh included the
Colliery Name | Location | Owner | List & Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
Bankfield | Westleigh | J. Speakman | 1880[31] |
Bedford Colliery | Bedford | J. Speakman & Sons | 1880 1908[31] |
Bickershaw Colliery | Westleigh | Ackers Whitley & Co | 1854[31][32] 1918 |
Broadfield | Westleigh | John Speakman and Co. | 1854[32] 1869 1880[31] |
Hearts o' th' Meadow | Westleigh | Wigan Coal and Iron Co. | 1880[31] |
Heyfield | Westleigh | Thomas Livesey | 1854[32] 1869 1880 1908 1918[31] |
Lower Hall | Westleigh | James Diggle | 1880, 1908, 1918[31] |
Owens | Westleigh | James Diggle | 1869[31] |
Parsonage Colliery | Westleigh | Wigan Coal and Iron Company | 1918[31] |
Priestners | Westleigh | Wigan Coal and Iron Company | 1880, 1908[31] |
Sovereign | Westleigh | Wigan Coal and Iron Company | 1908, 1918[31] |
Snapes | Westleigh | James Diggle | 1869, 1880, 1908[31] |
Westleigh | Westleigh | James Diggle and Co. | 1854[32] 1869, 1880, 1918[31] |
Westleigh Lane | Westleigh | Samuel Banks | 1854[31][32] |
Manufacturing
Other notable industry included the
Governance
Leigh is covered by three electoral wards[
Historically, Leigh's townships were in the
Under the terms of the
In the early twentieth century
In 1969 there was an exchange of very small areas with Golborne Urban District. Following the Local Government Act 1972, the Municipal Borough of Leigh was abolished and its territory included as part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, a local government district of Greater Manchester.[39] In 1998, an area (Lately Common) was further ceded to the Borough of Warrington – one of the few parts of England to have been in three different counties since the mid-20th century[citation needed]: Lancashire, then Greater Manchester, then Cheshire.
Andy Burnham represented the parliamentary seat for Leigh for the Labour Party from 2001 general election. Between 10 June 2009 and the 2010 general election he was Secretary of State at the Department of Health.[40] At the 2010 general election Burnham retained the Leigh seat with 24,295 votes and a majority of 15,011, representing 51.3% of the vote.[41] Burnham was re-elected MP for the Leigh constituency in 2015 with 24,312 votes which was 53.9% of the total vote cast.[42] He stepped down in 2017 to stand as a candidate for the position of Mayor of Greater Manchester. Jo Platt, representing Labour, was elected in 2017 with 26,347 votes which was 56.2% of the total votes cast.[43] Jo Platt was defeated in the 2019 General Election, by James Grundy: the first ever Conservative representative for Leigh. [44]
Geography
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Leigh is low-lying; land to the south and east, close to Chat Moss, is 50 feet (15 m) above mean sea level.[2] The highest land, to the north and west, rises gently to 125 feet (38 m). Astley and Bedford Mosses are fragments of the raised bog that once covered a large area north of the River Mersey and along with Holcroft and Risley Mosses are part of Manchester Mosses, a European Union designated Special Area of Conservation.[46] The area is in the River Mersey Basin; drained into the Mersey by several streams, including the Westleigh and Pennington Brooks that join others flowing through Bedford to form the Glaze Brook.[2] The southeast of the town has alluvial and peaty soils,[7] but the rest is loam overlaying sandstone, or coal measures in the north.[5][7] Magnesian limestone occurs in Bedford and neighbouring Astley.[2][47] Mining subsidence and flooding have caused the formation of "flashes" to the south and west of the town, the largest of which is south of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal in Pennington. Pennington Flash Country Park is a 490-acre (200 ha) country park and nature reserve with a 170-acre (69 ha) flash or lake.[48]
Leigh is crossed by the Bolton to St Helens Road high road,[2] an old packhorse route that became a turnpike road in 1762.[20] The A579 road bypasses the town centre using the line of the Bolton and Leigh Railway. The Bridgewater Canal and the Leigh Branch of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal cross the town west to east, the canals meeting at Leigh Bridge just south of the town centre.[6][49] In the 1930s the A580 "East Lancashire Road" was built crossing to the south of the town.
Demography
Leigh Compared | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
2001 Census
|
Leigh | Wigan MB | GM Urban Area
|
England |
Total population | 43,006 | 301,415 | 2,240,230 | 49,138,831 |
White | 98.3% | 98.7% | 90.3% | 90.9% |
Asian | 0.8% | 0.4% | 6.2% | 4.6% |
Black | 0.2% | 0.2% | 1.3% | 2.3% |
Source: Office for National Statistics[50][51] |
At the time of the
The majority of the population of Leigh were born in England (95.92%); 2.10% were born elsewhere within the United Kingdom, 0.95% within the rest of the European Union, and 1.47% elsewhere in the world.[56]
Data on religious beliefs across the town in the 2001 census show that 85.5% declared themselves to be
Most of Leigh is within the Warrington & Wigan travel to work area (TTWA), whilst part of the eastern side of the town is within the Manchester TTWA.[58] The entire town is within the Manchester larger urban zone.[59]
At the time of the 2001 Census, there were 19,051 people (44.3%) in employment who were resident within Leigh. Of these, 18.36% worked within the wholesale and retail trade, including repair of motor vehicles; 21.60% worked within manufacturing industry; and 11.99% worked within the health and social work sector.[60] 45.16% of households owned a single car or van, with 30.77% owning none. The average car ownership per household was 0.98, compared with 0.93 across the Greater Manchester Urban Area.[53]
Population change
Population growth in Leigh from 1801 to 2001 | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | 1801 | 1811 | 1821 | 1831 | 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 | 1881 | 1891 | |
Population | no data | no data | 18,372 | 20,083 | 28,568 | 5,206 | 10,621 | no data | no data | 28,708 | |
Year | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1939 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 |
Population | 40,001 | 44,103 | 45,532 | 45,317 | 45,458 | 48,728 | 46,174 | no data | 42,929 | 43,150 | 43,006 |
Parish 1821–1861[61][62][63]
• Urban Sanitary District 1891[64] • Urban District 1901–1961[65] • Urban Subdivision 1981–2001[66][67][68] |
Economy
Leigh has a traditional town centre with daily outdoor and indoor markets.
Opened in 2008
Another regeneration project on the site of the former Bickershaw Colliery complex which closed in 1992 will redevelop the site and canal side with a country park and housing.[74] In 2011 "The Loom" a £50million retail development opened on the north side of the Bridgewater Canal with a seven-screen cinema, Tesco Extra store,
Landmarks
Major landmarks in Leigh are the red sandstone parish church and across the civic square,
Transport
Historically, Leigh was well connected with local transport infrastructure but, with the closure of the railway in 1969, this is no longer the case. Leigh became, and remains, one of the largest towns in Britain without direct access to the National Rail network. Public transport in the area is co-ordinated by Transport for Greater Manchester.
Buses
There are bus services operated by
Canals
The Bridgewater Canal was extended from Worsley to the middle of Leigh in 1795.[85][86] In 1819 the fifth Leeds and Liverpool Canal Act was passed for the construction of the Leigh Branch and by 1820 the Leigh branch canal was cut from the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Poolstock, Wigan to meet the Bridgewater at Leigh Bridge, giving access from Leigh to all parts of Lancashire, Yorkshire and the Midlands.[87]
Railways
The nearest railway station to Leigh is at
In 1861, the
Trams and trolley buses
In 1900, a Bill authorising the
Education
Leigh
Religion
Parish churches have been built in each of the former townships. The first St Thomas's Church in Bedford was consecrated in 1840 and replaced by the present church in 1909. It is built of Accrington red brick with Runcorn red sandstone facings, to designs by J. S. Crowther.[101] Christ Church, Pennington, designed by architect E. H. Shellard, was built in Yorkshire stone and was consecrated in 1854. The site to the south of the canal was a rapidly growing area at this time. It is Grade II listed.[102] Westleigh St Paul, founded in 1847 is on Westleigh Lane. Westleigh St Peter, a Grade II* listed building by Paley and Austin, built in brick with red sandstone dressings, was founded 1881 is on Firs Lane.[103]
The first Catholic chapel was built in Bedford on the corner of Mather Lane and Chapel Street in 1778 and this lasted until it was replaced in 1855 by St Joseph's Church by architect Joseph Hansom.[104] A growing Catholic population in the area led to the building of Our Lady of the Rosary in Plank Lane in 1879, Twelve Apostles in 1879 and Sacred Heart in 1929. Other denominations catered for include Wesleyan, Independent, Primitive, Welsh and United Methodists. There are also Unitarian, Baptist and Jehovah's Witness places of worship in the town.[105]
Sport
Leigh has a professional
The town had a semi-professional
Leigh also has an athletics club, Leigh Harriers AC, founded in 1909,[109] and a Rugby Union club, Leigh RUFC, based at Round Ash Park, which gained promotion in 2007, to RFU league North 2 (West), and is current holder of the Lancashire Trophy which it won in May 2008 for the third consecutive year. Attached to the club is a crown green bowling section which runs several teams in local bowling leagues.[110] Leigh has two cricket clubs: Leigh Cricket Club play in the ECB Premier League Liverpool Competition,[111] and Westleigh Cricket Club,[112] have two senior and 4 junior teams playing in the Greater Manchester Cricket League.[113]
Media
Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC North West and ITV Granada. Television signals are received from the Winter Hill TV transmitter. [114]
The town is served by both BBC Radio Lancashire and BBC Radio Manchester. Other radio stations are Greatest Hits Radio Wigan & St Helens, Heart North West, Smooth North West, XS Manchester, Capital Manchester and Lancashire and Radio M29, a community based station. [115]
Local newspaper is the Leigh Journal which publishes on Thursdays. Other regional newspapers that cover the town are Manchester Evening News and North West Enquirer.[116]
Culture
Many of Leigh's old halls have been demolished but the sites of Lilford Park, once the grounds of Atherton Hall, a gift to Leigh from Lord Lilford in 1914[117][118] and Pennington Park, the grounds of Pennington Hall which was demolished in 1963 after being used as a museum, are open to the public.[119]
Leigh's wealth as an industrial town resulted in many outlets for the entertainment of its population, including theatres, cinemas and public houses. In 1908 the Hippodrome Theatre on Leigh Road was built on the site of Walker's silk mill of 1827, this subsequently became a cinema, first the Odeon, later the Classic.[120] Another theatre, the Theatre Royal, was built on Lord Street which later became the Leigh Casino Club.[121] The Palace Cinema was built in 1913 on Railway Road and the assembly rooms above the Conservative Club, were converted to a cinema known as the Sems in 1908.[122] Brewery Lane is a reminder that there was once a brewery in Bedford belonging to George Shaw & Co.[123] The old Leigh College and Library on Railway Road was built between 1894 and 1896 by the Leigh Literary Society to designs by J. C. Prestwich and J. H. Stephen.[124] The present library was built in 1971 between the parish church and town hall.[125]
Leigh Hackspace was founded as a UK Community interest company in 2015[126]
Notable people
- Brian Ashton (born 1946), is an English rugby union coach and former player. He has been head coach of the England and Ireland national teams.
- Sir Alan R. Battersby (1925–2018), organic chemist, was born in Leigh and was a pupil at Leigh Grammar School.[127]
- School of Slavonic and East European Studies at the University of London, 1947–1976, was a pupil at Leigh Grammar School.[128]
- Thomas Burke (1890–1969), operatic tenor, was born in Leigh and attended St Joseph's School.[129]
- Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (1934–2016) was a British composer and conductor [130]
- Kathleen Mary Drew-Baker (1901–1957) was a British phycologist, known for her research on the edible seaweed Porphyra laciniata (nori), which led to a breakthrough for commercial cultivation in Japan.
- Georgie Fame (born Clive Powell, 1943), rhythm and blues singer and musician, was born in Leigh.[131]
- Sir Maurice Flanagan (1928–2015), businessman, was the founding CEO of Emirates and executive vice-chairman of The Emirates Group.[132]
- Phil Gartside (1952–2016), businessman and Chairman of Bolton Wanderers F.C. (1999–2015).
- Goodbye, Mr Chips, was born in Leigh.
- Roger Hunt (1938–2021), professional footballer, was born in Leigh and was a pupil at Leigh Grammar School.
- Ann Fletcher Jackson (1833–1903), a New Zealand Quaker evangelist, was born in Leigh.[133]
- Shaun Keaveny (born 1972), DJ and broadcaster, grew up in Leigh.
- Journalist née Higginson) (1935–2004) was best known as a columnist for the Daily Mail
- Sir John Lennard-Jones (1894–1954) was a British mathematician and professor of theoretical physics at the University of Bristol, and then of theoretical science at the University of Cambridge.
- The journalist Paul Mason was born and educated in Leigh.[134]
- David Morris (born 1966), Conservative MP for Morecambe and Lunesdale, was born in Leigh.[135]
- The sculptor Mary Pownall, daughter of James Pownall the silk manufacturer, was born and raised in the town.[136]
- Pete Shelley (1955–2018), singer, songwriter and guitarist was a pupil at Leigh Grammar School.[137]
- Lemn Sissay (born 1967), the poet and Chancellor of the University of Manchester, lived in children's homes in and around Leigh and attended Leigh Church of England Secondary school, now closed.[138]
- The Manchester Regiment, British Army during the Battle of the Selle in the First World War. Victoria Crossrecipient.
- John Woods former professional rugby league player who played primarily for Leigh RLFC in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 1980s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England. Woods holds the record for most career points. There is a statue of him outside Leigh Sports Village.
See also
- Listed buildings in Leigh, Greater Manchester
- List of people from Wigan
- List of mills in Wigan
- List of mining disasters in Lancashire
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Bibliography
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- Sweeney, D. J. (1997), A Lancashire Triangle Part Two, Triangle Publishing, ISBN 0-9529333-2-2
External links