Oldham
Encyclopedia
Oldham icon is a large town in Greater Manchester
, England. It lies amid the Pennines
on elevated ground between the rivers Irk
and Medlock
, 5.3 miles (8.5 km) south-southeast of Rochdale
, and 6.9 miles (11.1 km) northeast of the city of Manchester
. Oldham is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
, of which Oldham is the administrative centre.
Historically
a part of Lancashire
, and with little early history
to speak of, Oldham rose to prominence during the 19th century as an international centre of textile manufacture
. It was a boomtown
of the Industrial Revolution
, and among the first ever industrialised
towns, rapidly becoming "one of the most important centres of cotton and textile industries in England". At its zenith, it was the most productive cotton spinning
mill town
in the world, spinning more cotton than France and Germany combined. Oldham's textile industry began to fall into decline during the mid-20th century, and its last mill closed in 1998.
The demise of textile processing in Oldham depressed the local economy. Today Oldham is a predominantly residential town, and a centre for further education
and the performing arts
. It is, however, still distinguished architecturally by the surviving cotton mill
s and other buildings associated with that industry. The town's population of 103,544 lives in an area of around 26 square miles (67 km²).
of Oldham (ˈ) seems to imply "old village or place" from Eald (Saxon) signifying oldness or antiquity, and Ham (Saxon) a house, farm or hamlet
. However, Oldham is known to be a derivative of Aldehulme; undoubtedly an Old Norse
name. It is believed to be derived from the Old English
ald combined with the Old Norse holmi or holmr, meaning "old promontory or outcrop", possibly describing the town's hilltop position. It has alternatively been suggested that it may mean "holm or hulme of a farmer named Alda". The name is understood to date from 865, during the period of the Danelaw
.
flint arrow-heads and workings found at Werneth
and Besom Hill, implying habitation 7–10,000 years ago. Evidence of later Roman
and Celtic activity is confirmed by an ancient Roman road
and Bronze Age
archaeological relics found at various sites within the town. Although Anglo-Saxons
occupied territory around the area centuries earlier, Oldham as a permanent, named place of dwelling is believed to date from 865, when Danish invaders
established a settlement called Aldehulme.
From its founding in the 9th century until the Industrial Revolution
, Oldham is believed to have been little more than a scattering of small and insignificant settlements spread across the moorland
and dirt tracks which linked Manchester
to York
. Although not mentioned in the Domesday Book
, Oldham does appear in legal documents from the Middle Ages
, invariably recorded as territory under the control of minor ruling families
and baron
s. In the 13th century, Oldham was documented as a manor held from The Crown
by a family surnamed Oldham
, whose seat was at Werneth Hall
.
Much of Oldham's history is concerned with textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
; it has been said that "if ever the Industrial Revolution
placed a town firmly and squarely on the map of the world, that town is Oldham." Oldham's soils were too thin and poor to sustain crop
growing, and so for decades prior to industrialisation
the area was used for grazing sheep, which provided the raw material for a local wool
len weaving trade.
By 1756, Oldham had emerged as centre of the hatting
industry in England. The rough felt
used in the production process is the origin of the term "Owdham Roughyed" a nickname
for people from Oldham. It was not until the last quarter of the 18th century that Oldham changed from being a cottage industry township producing woollen garments via domestic manual labour
, to a sprawling industrial metropolis of textile factories. The climate, geology, and topography of Oldham were unrelenting constraints upon the social and economic activities of the human inhabitants. Located 700 feet (213 m) above sea level with no major river or visible natural resources, Oldham had poor geographic attributes compared with other settlements for investors and their engineers. As a result, Oldham played no part in the initial period of the Industrial Revolution, although it did later become seen as obvious territory to industrialise because of its convenient position between the labour forces of Manchester
and southwest Yorkshire
.
Cotton
spinning
and milling
were introduced to Oldham when its first mill, Lees Hall, was built by William Clegg in about 1778, the beginning of a spiralling process of urbanisation and socioeconomic
transformation. Within a year, 11 other mills had been constructed, and by 1818 there were 19 – not a large number in comparison with other local settlements. Oldham's small local population was greatly increased by the mass migration of workers from outlying villages, resulting in a population increase from just over in 1801 to in 1901. The speed of this urban growth meant that Oldham, with little pre-industrial history to speak of, was effectively born as a factory town
.
Oldham became the world's manufacturing centre for cotton spinning in the second half of the 19th century. In 1851, over 30% of Oldham's population was employed within the textile sector, compared to 5% across Great Britain. It overtook the major urban centres of Manchester
and Bolton
as the result of a mill building boom in the 1860s and 1870s, a period during which Oldham became the most productive cotton-spinning town in the world. In 1871 Oldham had more spindles
than any country in the world except the United States, and in 1909, was spinning more cotton than France and Germany combined. By 1911 there were 16.4 million spindles in Oldham, compared with a total of 58 million in the United Kingdom and 143.5 million in the world; in 1928, with the construction of the UK's largest textile factory Oldham reached its manufacturing zenith. At its peak, there were over 360 mills, operating night and day; Oldham's townscape was dominated by distinctive rectangular brick-built mills. Oldham was hit hard by the Lancashire Cotton Famine of 1861–1865, when supplies of raw cotton from the United States were cut off. Wholly reliant upon the textile industry, the cotton famine created chronic unemployment in the town. By 1863 a committee had been formed, and with aid from central government, land was purchased with the intention of employing local cotton workers to construct Alexandra Park
, which opened on 28 August 1865. Said to have over-relied upon the textile sector, as the importation of cheaper foreign yarn
s grew during the 20th century, Oldham's economy declined into a depression, although it was not until 1964 that Oldham ceased to be the largest centre of cotton spinning. In spite of efforts to increase the efficiency and competitiveness of its production, the last cotton spun in the town was in 1998.
and mechanical engineering
sectors during the 18th and 19th centuries. The manufacture of spinning and weaving machinery
in Oldham belongs to the last decade of the 19th century, when it became a leading centre in the field of engineering
. The Platt Brothers
, originated in nearby Dobcross
village, but moved to Oldham. They were pioneers of cotton-spinning machinery, developing innovatory products which enabled the mass-production of cotton yarn. Platt Brothers became the largest textile machine makers in the world, employing over people in the 1890s, twice the number of their nearest rivals Dobson & Barlow in Bolton and Asa Lees on Greenacres Moor
. They were keen investors in the local area and at one time, were supporting 42% of the population. The centre of the company lay at the New Hartford Works in Werneth
, a massive complex of buildings and internal railways on a site overlooking Manchester. The railway station which served this site later formed the basis of Oldham Werneth railway station
, which together with the main building exists to this day. Platts gained prestigious awards from around the world, and were heavily involved with local politics and civic pride in Oldham. John and James Platt were the largest subscribers for promoting Oldham from a township to a Borough
, pledging £100 (more than double the next largest sum) in advance towards any expenses which may have been incurred by the Royal Charter
. In 1854 John Platt
was made the (fourth) Mayor of Oldham, an office he was to hold twice more in 1855–56 and 1861–62. John Platt was elected in 1865 to become Member of Parliament
for Oldham
, and was re-elected in 1868; he remained in office until his death in 1872. A bronze statue of Platt existed in the town centre for years, though was moved to Alexandra Park
. There have been recommendations for it to be returned to the town centre.
Abraham Henthorn Stott, the son of a stonemason, was born in nearby Shaw and Crompton
in 1822. He served a seven-year apprenticeship with Sir Charles Barry, before starting a structural engineering practice in Oldham in 1847 that went on to become the pre-eminent mill architect firm in Lancashire
. Philip Sydney Stott, third son of Abraham and later titled as Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet
, was the most prominent and famous of the Stott mill architects. He established his own practice in 1883 and designed over a hundred mills in several countries. His factories, which improved upon his father's fireproof
mills, accounted for a 40% increase in Oldham's spindles between 1887 and 1914.
Although textile-related engineering declined with the processing industry, leading to the demise of both Stotts and Platts, other engineering firms existed, notably electrical and later electronic engineers Ferranti
in 1896. Ferranti went into receivership in 1993, but some of its former works continue in other hands. Part of the original Hollinwood site was operated by Siemens
Metering and Semiconductor divisions. The remainder of the site is occupied by Mirror Colour Print Ltd; the printing division of the Trinity Mirror
group, which prints and distributes thirty-six major newspapers, and employs five hundred staff.
stretched from Royton
in the north to Bardsley
in the south and in addition to Oldham, included the towns of Middleton
and Chadderton
to the west. The Oldham Coalfield was the site of over 150 collieries during its recorded history
. Although some contemporary sources suggest there was coal mining in Oldham at a commercial scale by 1738, older sources attribute the commercial expansion of coal mining with the arrival in the town of two Welsh
labourers, John Evans and William Jones, around 1770. Foreseeing the growth in demand for coal as a source of motive and steam power, they acquired colliery rights for Oldham, which by 1771 had 14 colliers. The mines were largely to the southwest of the town around Hollinwood and Werneth
and provided enough coal to accelerate Oldham's rapid development at the centre of the cotton boom. At its height in the mid-19th century, when it was dominated by the Lees and Jones families, Oldham coal was mainly sourced from many small collieries whose lives varied from a few years to many decades, although two of the four largest collieries survived to nationalisation
. In 1851, collieries employed over 2,000 men in Oldham, although the amount of coal in the town was somewhat overestimated however, and production began to decline even before that of the local spinning industry. Today, the only visible remnants of the mines are disused shafts and boreholes.
, like that of other former unenfranchised
towns, is marked by politicised civil disturbances, as well as events related to the Luddite
, Suffragette
and other Labour movement
s from the working class
es. There has been a significant presence of "friendly societies
". It has been put that the people of Oldham became radical in politics in the early part of the 19th century, and movements suspected of sedition
found patronage in the town. Oldham was frequently disturbed by bread and labour riots, facilitated by periods of scarcity and the disturbance of employment following the introduction of cotton-spinning machinery
. On 20 April 1812, a "large crowd of riotous individuals" compelled local retailers to sell foods at a loss, whilst on the same day Luddites numbering in their thousands, many of whom were from Oldham, attacked a cotton mill in nearby Middleton
. On 16 August 1819, Oldham sent a contingent estimated at well above 10,000 to hear speakers in St Peter's Fields at Manchester discuss political reform. It was the largest contingent sent to Manchester. John Lees, a cotton operative and ex-soldier who had fought at Waterloo
, was one of the fifteen victims of the Peterloo Massacre
which followed. The 'Oldham inquest' which proceeded the massacre was anxiously watched; the Court of King's Bench, however, decided that the proceedings were irregular, and the jury were discharged without giving a verdict.
Annie Kenney
, born in nearby Springhead
, and who worked in Oldham's cotton mills, was a notable of the Suffragette
movement credited with sparking off suffragette militancy when she heckled Winston Churchill
, and later (with Emmeline Pankhurst
) the first Suffragist to be imprisoned. Oldham Women's Suffrage Society was established in 1910 with Margery Lees as president and quickly joined the Manchester and District Federation of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies
. The Chartist
and Co-operative movements
had strong support in the town, whilst many Oldhamers protested against the emancipation of slaves
. The Riot Act
was read in 1852 on election day
following a mass public brawl over the Reform Act
, and irregularities with parliamentary candidate nominations.
For three days in late May 2001, Oldham became the centre of national and international media attention. Following high profile race-related
conflicts, and long-term underlying racial tensions between local White British
and Asian
communities, major riots broke out in the town. Occurring with particular intensity in the Glodwick
area of the town, the Oldham riots
were the worst racially motivated riots in the United Kingdom for fifteen years prior, briefly eclipsing the sectarian violence in Northern Ireland
in the media. At least 20 people were injured in the riots, including 15 police officers, and 37 people were arrested. Similar riots took place in other towns in northern England
over the following days and weeks. The 2001 riots prompted governmental and independent inquiries, which collectively agreed on community relations improvements and considerable regeneration schemes for the town.
Lying within the historic county boundaries
of Lancashire
since the early 12th century
, Oldham was recorded in 1212 as being one of five parts of the thegn
age estate of Kaskenmoor, which was held on behalf of King John
by Roger de Montbegon
and William de Nevill. The other parts of this estate were Crompton
, Glodwick
, Sholver
, and Werneth
. Oldham later formed a township
within the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham
, in the hundred of Salford
.
In 1826 commissioners for the social and economic improvement of Oldham were established. The town was made part of a parliamentary borough
, in 1832, though it was in 1849 when Oldham was incorporated as a municipal borough
, giving it borough status in the United Kingdom
, and in 1850 the Borough Council obtained the powers of the improvement commissioners. In 1880, parts of the Hollinwood and Crossbank
areas of Chadderton
and Ashton-under-Lyne
townships were added to the Borough of Oldham. Oldham Above Town
and Oldham Below Town
were, from 1851 until c.1881, statistical units used for the gathering and organising of civil registration information, and output of census
data.
The Local Government Act 1888
created elected county council
s to administer services throughout England and Wales. Where a municipal borough had a population of more than 50,000 at the 1881 Census
it was created a county borough
, with the powers and duties of both a borough and county council. As Oldham had an 1881 population of 111,343 it duly became a county borough on 1 April 1889. The borough, while independent of Lancashire County Council for local government, remained part of the county for purposes such as the administration of justice and lieutenancy
.
In 1951 parts of the Limehurst Rural District
were added to the County Borough of Oldham, and in 1954 further parts of the same district added to it on its abolition. Since 1961, Oldham has been twinned with Kranj
in Slovenia
. Under the Local Government Act 1972
, the town's autonomous County borough
status was abolished, and Oldham has, since 1 April 1974, formed part of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
, within the Metropolitan county
of Greater Manchester
.
divide Oldham: Oldham East and Saddleworth, and Oldham West and Royton (which includes the town centre), represented by Labour
Members of Parliament
Debbie Abrahams
and Michael Meacher
respectively.
Created as a parliamentary borough
in 1832
, Oldham's first parliamentary representatives were the radicals
William Cobbett
and John Fielden
. Winston Churchill
began his political career in Oldham. Although unsuccessful at his first attempt in 1899, Churchill was elected as the member of Parliament for the Oldham parliamentary borough constituency
in the 1900 general election
. He held the constituency for the Conservative Party
until the 1906 general election
, when he won the election for Manchester North West
as a Liberal
MP. After he became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
in 1940, Churchill was made a Honorary Freeman of the Borough of Oldham
, on 2 April 1941.
At 53°32′39"N 2°7′0.8"W (53.5444°, -2.1169°), and 164 miles (264 km) north-northwest of London, Oldham stands 700 feet (213 m) above sea level
, 6.9 miles (11.1 km) northeast of Manchester city centre
, on elevated ground between the rivers Irk
and Medlock
. Saddleworth
and the South Pennines
are close to the east, whilst on all other sides, Oldham is bound by smaller towns, including Ashton-under-Lyne
, Chadderton
, Failsworth
, Royton
and Shaw and Crompton
, with little or no green space
between them. Oldham experiences a temperate
maritime climate
, like much of the British Isles, with relatively cool summers and mild winters. There is regular but generally light precipitation throughout the year.
Oldham's topography
is characterised by its rugged, elevated Pennine terrain. It has an area of 6.91 square miles (17.9 km²). The geology
of Oldham is represented by the Millstone Grit
and Coal Measures
series of rocks. The River Beal
, flowing northwards, forms the boundary between Oldham on one side and Royton
and Shaw and Crompton
on the other.
To the east of this river the surface rises to a height of 1225 feet (373 m) at Woodward Hill, on the border with the parish of Saddleworth
. The rest of the surface is hilly, the average height decreasing towards the southwest to Failsworth
and the city of Manchester
. The ridge called Oldham Edge, 800 feet (244 m) high, comes southward from Royton into the centre of the town.
Oldham's built environment
is characterised by its 19th-century red-brick terraced house
s, the infrastructure that was built to support these and the town's former cotton mill
s – which mark the town's skyline. The urban structure
of Oldham is irregular when compared to most towns in England, its form restricted in places by its hilly upland terrain. There are irregularly constructed residential dwellings and streets loosely centred around a central business district
in the town centre
, which is the local centre of commerce. In 1849, Angus Reach of Inverness
said:
In the 1870s, John Marius Wilson described Oldham as consisting of:
Although Oldham had a thriving economy during the 19th century, the local merchants were broadly reluctant to spend on civic institutions, and so the town lacks the grandeur seen in comparable nearby towns like Bolton
or Huddersfield
; public expenditure was seen as an overhead that undermined the competitiveness of the town. Subsequently, Oldham's architecture has been described as "mediocre". The town has no listed buildings with a Grade I rating.
There is a mixture of high-density urban areas, suburb
s, semi-rural and rural
locations in Oldham. There is some permanent grassland
but overwhelmingly the land use
in the town is urban. The territory of Oldham is contiguous with other towns on all sides except for a small section along its eastern and southern boundaries, and for purposes of the Office for National Statistics
, forms the fourth largest settlement of the Greater Manchester Urban Area
, the United Kingdom's third largest conurbation. The M60 motorway
passes through the southwest of Oldham, through Hollinwood, and a heavy rail line enters Oldham from the same direction, travelling northeast to the town centre before heading northwards through Derker
towards Shaw and Crompton.
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Many of Oldham's present divisions and suburbs have origins as pre-industrial hamlets, manorial commons and ancient chapelries. Some, such as Moorside, exist as recently constructed residential suburbia
, whilst places like Hollinwood exist as electoral wards and thoroughly industrialised districts. Throughout most of its recorded history
, Oldham was surrounded by large swathes of moorland
, which is reflected in the placenames of Moorside, Greenacres moor
, Littlemoor, Northmoor among others.
A large portion of Oldham's residences are "low value" Victorian era
Accrington red-brick
terraced house
s in a row formation, built for the most part from 1870 to 1920, to house the town's cotton mill
workers. There is more modern housing in the semi-rural east of the town, in areas such as Moorside, although terraces are found in almost all parts of Oldham.
One of the oldest recorded named places of Oldham is Hathershaw
, occurring in a deed for 1280 with the spelling Halselinechaw Clugh. Existing as a manor in the 15th century, Hathershaw Hall was the home of a Royalist
family in the 17th century who lost part of their possessions due to the English Civil War
. Waterhead
, an upland area in the east of Oldham, traces its roots to a water cornmill over the border in Lees
.
Recorded originally as Watergate and Waterhead Milne, it was for a long time a hamlet in the parish of Oldham that formed a significant part of the Oldham Above Town
registration sub-district. Derker
was recorded as a place of residence in 1604 with the name Dirtcar. Bound by Higginshaw to the north, Derker is the location of Derker railway station
and, said to have terraced residencies "unsuited to modern needs", is currently being redeveloped as part of the Housing Market Renewal Initiative
.
Coldhurst
, an area along Oldham's northern boundary with Royton
, was once a chapelry and the site of considerable industry and commerce, including coal mining
, cotton spinning and hat manufacture. It is said to have been the scene of an action in the English Civil War in which the Parliamentarians were defeated.
, Oldham had a total resident population of 103,544, making it the 55th most populous settlement in England, and the 5th most populous settlement of the Greater Manchester Urban Area
. This figure in conjunction with its area provides Oldham with a population density
of 3,998 people per square mile (1,544 per km²). The local population has been described as broadly "working class
"; the middle class
es tending to live in outlying settlements.
Oldham, considered as a combination of the 2001 electoral wards of Alexandra, Coldhurst
, Hollinwood, St. James, St. Marys, St. Pauls, Waterhead
and Werneth
, has an average age of 33.5, and compared against the average demography of the United Kingdom, has a high level of people of South Asian heritage, particularly those with roots in Pakistan
and Bangladesh
. Due to the town's prevalence as an industrial centre and thus a hub for employment, Oldham attracted migrant workers throughout its history, including those from wider-England, Scotland, Ireland and Poland.
During the 1950s and 1960s, in an attempt to fill the shortfall of workers and revitalise local industries, citizens of the wider Commonwealth of Nations
were encouraged to migrate to Oldham and other British towns. Many came from the Caribbean
and Indian subcontinent
and settled throughout the Oldham borough.
Today, Oldham has large communities with heritage from Bangladesh
, India, Pakistan
and parts of the Caribbean. At the time of the 2001 census, over one in four of its residents identified themselves as from a South Asian or British Asian
ethnic group. Cultural divisions along ethnic backgrounds are strong within the town, with poor cross-community integration and cohesion along Asian and white backgrounds.
With only a small local population during medieval times, as a result of the introduction of industry, mass migration of village workers into Oldham occurred, resulting in a population change from under 2,000 in 1714 to 12,000 in 1801 to 137,000 in 1901. In 1851 its population of 52,820 made Oldham the 12th most populous town in England. The following is a table outlining the population change of the town since 1801, which demonstrates a trend of rapid population growth in the 19th century and, after peaking at 147,483 people in 1911, a trend of general decline in population size during the 20th century.
For years Oldham's economy was heavily dependent on manufacturing industry, especially textiles and mechanical engineering. Since the deindustrialisation of Oldham in the mid-20th century, these industries have been replaced by home shopping
, publishing
, healthcare and food processing
sectors, though factory-generated employment retains a significant presence. Many of the modern sectors are low-skill and low-wage.
Park Cake Bakeries, recently sold as part of a large shake-up by the Northern Foods Group, have a large food processing centre in Hathershaw
, which employs in excess of 1,600 people. Over 90% of the cake
s produced go to Marks & Spencer
. Long existing as an industrial district
, Hollinwood is home to the Northern Counties Housing Association, and Mirror Colour Print Ltd; the printing division of the Trinity Mirror
group, which prints and distributes 36 major newspapers, and employs 500 staff.
Oldham's town centre contains the highest concentration of retailing, cultural facilities and employment in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
. It has been extensively redeveloped during the last few decades, and its two shopping centres, Town Square and The Spindles, now provide one of the largest covered retail areas in Greater Manchester
. The Spindles (named with reference to textile spindles
) is a modern shopping centre
with over 40 retailers, banks, building societies and catering outlets. It houses one of Europe's largest stained glass roofs, created by local artist Brian Clarke in celebration of the music of one of Oldham's famous sons, composer
and conductor Sir William Walton
.
Ferranti Technologies
is an electronic, electromechanical and electrical engineering company based in Waterhead
.
A number of culinary and medical advances have been developed in Oldham. There are claims that Oldham was the birthplace of the first chip shop
. The sometimes disputed claim of trade in deep-fried chipped potatoes is said to have been started in around 1858–60 from an outlet owned by a John Lees, on what is the present site of Oldham's Tommyfield Market. In 1900 Oldham had the highest concentration of chip shops in the country; one for every 400 people. Rag Pudding
is a savoury dish said to be native to Oldham. Yates Wine Lodge was founded in Oldham by Peter and Simon Yates in 1884.
The tubular bandage
was invented and developed in Oldham in 1961. That "vital contribution to advancing medical science" resulted from a collaboration between local firm Seton and a cotton manufacturer in the town.
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neo-classical
town hall
built in 1841, eight years before Oldham received its borough status
. One of the last purpose built town halls in northwest England, it has a tetrastyle Ionic
portico
, copied from the temple of Ceres, on the River Ilissos
, near Athens
. Winston Churchill
made his inaugural acceptance speech from the steps of the town hall when he was first elected as a Conservative MP in 1900. A Blue Plaque
on the exterior of the building commemorates the event. Long existing as the political centre of the town, complete with courtroom
s, the structure has stood empty since the mid 1980s and has regularly been earmarked for redevelopment as part of regeneration project proposals; none have been actioned.
In September 2008, it was reported that "Oldham Town Hall is only months away from a major roof collapse". A tour taken by local councillors and media concluded with an account that "chunks of masonry are falling from the ceilings on a daily basis, [...] the floors are littered with dead pigeons and [...] revealed that the building is literally rotting away". In October 2009 the Victorian Society
, a charity responsible for the study and protection of Britain's Victorian and Edwardian architecture, declared Oldham Town Hall as the most endangered Victorian structure in England and Wales
.
, Oldham's war memorial
consists of a granite
base surmounted by a bronze
sculpture depicting five soldiers making their way along the trenches in order to go into battle. The main standing figure, having climbed out of the trenches, is shown calling on his comrades to advance. The base serves to house books containing the roll of honour of the 1st, 10th and 24th Battalions, Manchester Regiment. The pedestal has two bronze doors at either side.
Commissioned in 1919 by the Oldham War Memorial Committee, the memorial was designed and built by Albert Toft
. It was unveiled by General Sir Ian Hamilton
on 28 April 1923, before a crowd estimated at over 10,000. The monument was intended to symbolise the spirit of 1914–1918.
The inscriptions on the memorial read:
's centre of local governance. The 15-storey white-brick building has housed the vast majority of the local government's offices since its completion in 1977. Standing at the summit of the town, the tower stands over 200 feet (61 m) high. It was designed by Cecil Howitt & Partners, and the topping out
ceremony was held on 18 June 1976. The Civic Centre can be seen as far away as Salford
, Trafford
, Wythenshawe
and Winter Hill
in Lancashire, and offers panoramic views across the city of Manchester
and the Cheshire Plain
.
, in its present form, dates from 1830 and was designed in the Gothic Revival Style
by Richard Lane
, a Manchester based architect. It has been designated by English Heritage
as a Grade II* listed building. It was linked with the church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich
and together the sites were principal churches of the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham
.
A church building had existed on the site since 1280. During this time, a small chapel stood on the site to serve the local townships of Oldham, Chadderton
, Royton
and Crompton
. This was later replaced by an Early English Gothic
church in the 15th century. With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, the population of Oldham increased at a rapid rate (from under 2,000 in 1714, to over 32,000 by 1831). The rapid growth of the local population warranted that the building be rebuilt in to the current structure. Though the budget was originally agreed at £5,000, the final cost of building was £30,000, one third of which was spent on the crypt structure. Alternative designs by Sir Charles Barry, the designer of the Palace of Westminster
, although now regarded by some as superior, were rejected. The Church, of the Anglican
denomination, is in active use for worship, and forms part of the Diocese of Manchester
.
The geography of Oldham constrained the development of major transport infrastructure. It has been put that "if it had not grown substantially before the railway age it would surely have been overlooked". Oldham has never been on a main line railway route, and canals too have only been able to serve it from a distance, meaning that "Oldham has never had a train service worthy of a town of its size".
A principal destination along the former Oldham Loop Line, Oldham once had seven railway stations but this was reduced to four once Clegg Street
, Oldham Central
and Glodwick Road
closed in the mid-20th century; Hollinwood
, Oldham Werneth
, Oldham Mumps
and Derker
closed on 3 October 2009. Trains from Manchester Victoria station
to Oldham had to climb steeply through much of its 6 miles (9.7 km) route, from around 100 feet (30.5 m) at Manchester city centre to around 600 feet (182.9 m) at Oldham Mumps. The Werneth Incline, with its gradient of 1 in 27, made the Middleton Junction
to Oldham Werneth
route the steepest regular passenger line in the country. The Werneth Incline route closed in 1963. It had been replaced as the main route to Manchester by the section of line built between Oldham Werneth Station and Thorpes Bridge Junction, Newton Heath in May 1880. Oldham Mumps, the second oldest station on the line after Werneth, took its name from its location in the Mumps area of Oldham, which itself probably derived from the archaic word "mumper" which was slang for a beggar. The former Oldham Loop Line is to be converted for use with an expanded Manchester Metrolink
tram network, planned to open in 2012.
Oldham had electric tram
ways to Manchester in the early-20th century; the first tram was driven from Manchester into Oldham in 1900 by the Lord Mayor of Manchester. The system came to an end on 3 August 1946, however.
The £3.3m Oldham Bus Station
has frequent bus services to Manchester, Rochdale, Ashton-under-Lyne and Middleton with other services to the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Tameside
, and across the Pennines to Huddersfield
in West Yorkshire
. The roof canopy is supported internally on two rows of steel trees. The extensive use of glass and stainless steel maximises visibility, and there is a carefully co-ordinated family of information fittings, posters and seating, using robust natural materials for floors and plinths. The bus station is used by National Express
coaches. First Manchester
, FirstGroup plc
's bus operator for north-Greater Manchester
, has its headquarters in Oldham.
Oldham is about 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the major M62 motorway
, but is linked to it by the M60
at Hollinwood, and A627(M)
via Chadderton
. There are major A roads
to Ashton-under-Lyne
, Huddersfield
, Manchester
, and Rochdale
.
The Hollinwood Branch
of the Ashton Canal
was a canal that ran from Fairfield in Droylsden
, through Littlemoss and Daisy Nook Country Park
to the Hollinwood area of Oldham, with a branch from Daisy Nook to the Fairbottom Branch Canal
. The canal was mainly used for the haulage of coal
until it fell into disuse for commercial traffic in the 1930s. It included four aqueducts and a two-rise lock staircase.
Oldham Roughyeds
Rugby League Club was established in 1876 as Oldham Football Club, and Oldham Athletic Football Club
in 1895 as Pine Villa Football Club. Oldham Athletic have achieved both league and cup successes, particularly under Joe Royle
in the 1990s. They were Football League runners-up in the last season before the outbreak
of the First World War, but were relegated from the Football League First Division
in 1923. They reached the Football League Cup
final in 1990 and won the Football League Second Division
title in 1991, ending 68 years outside the top flight.
They secured their top division status a year later to become founder members of the new Premier League, but were relegated after two seasons
despite reaching that year's FA Cup
semi-finals. They are currently playing in Football League One
, the third tier of the English league. After the sacking of John Sheridan in mid-March 2009, Dave Penney was appointed manager, but was only to last for one season. The club's current manager is Paul Dickov
the former Manchester City player. Boundary Park
, where the club has played since the early 20th Century, had been proposed for regeneration, but plans are currently ongoing for a move to a new ground to be built in neighbouring Failsworth
.
Oldham Boro Football Club was established in 1964 as Oldham Dew FC, and after many years playing under the name of Oldham Town adapted its present name in 2009. The team currently plays in the North West Counties Football League
Division Two.
Renamed in 1997 to Oldham Roughyeds
, Oldham Rugby League Club has received several club honours during its history, winning the Rugby Football League Championship five times and Challenge Cup
three times. They played at Watersheddings
for years before joining Oldham Athletic at Boundary Park
until 2010 when they moved to Oldham Borough's previous ground, Whitebank Stadium
. Oldham has league cricket teams with a number of semi-professional league clubs including Oldham CC, and Werneth CC in the Central Lancashire League.
Almost every part of Oldham is served by a school of some kind, some with religious affiliations. According to the Office for Standards in Education
, schools within the town perform at mixed levels. The Blue Coat School
, which dates from 1834, is consistently Oldham's top performing secondary school for 11- to 16-year-olds, and has a sixth form college
of further education
for 16- to 18-year-olds on the same site.
Oldham produced someone who is considered to be one of the greatest benefactors of education for the nation, Hugh Oldham
, who in 1504 was appointed as Bishop of Exeter
, and later went on to found what is now Manchester Grammar School
.
University Centre Oldham is a centre for higher education
and a sister campus of the University of Huddersfield
. It was opened in May 2005 by actor Patrick Stewart
, the centre's Chancellor. The University Centre Oldham presented actress Shobna Gulati
and artist, Brian Clarke (both born in Oldham) with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters
at the Graduation Ceremony of November 2006, for their achievements and contributions to Oldham and its community.
policing in Oldham is provided by the Greater Manchester Police
. The force's "(Q) Division" have their headquarters for policing the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
at central Oldham. Public transport
is co-ordinated by the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive
. Statutory emergency fire and rescue service
is provided by the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service
, which has two stations in Oldham; at Hollins on Hollins Road, and at Clarksfield on Lees Road.
The Royal Oldham Hospital
, at Oldham's northern boundary with Royton
, is a large NHS
hospital administrated by Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
. It was opened under its existing name on 1 December 1989. Formerly known as Oldham District and General, and occupying the site of the town's former workhouse
(named Oldham Union Workhouse in 1851), the hospital is notable for being the birthplace of Louise Joy Brown – the world's first successful In vitro fertilised "test tube baby"
, on 25 July 1978. The North West Ambulance Service
provides emergency patient transport. Other forms of health care
are provided for locally by several small clinics and surgeries.
Waste management
is co-ordinated by the local authority via the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority
. Locally produced inert waste
for disposal is sent to landfill
at the Beal Valley. Oldham's Distribution Network Operator
for electricity is United Utilities
; there are no power station
s in the town. United Utilities also manages Oldham's drinking
and waste water; water supplies being sourced from several local reservoirs, including Dovestones
and Chew. There is a water treatment
works at Waterhead
.
and the Oldham Theatre Workshop
, which have facilitated the early careers of notable actors and writers, including Eric Sykes
, Bernard Cribbins
and Anne Kirkbride
, daughter of acclaimed cartoonist
Jack Kirkbride
who worked for the Oldham Evening Chronicle
. Oldham Coliseum Theatre is one of Britain's last remaining repertory theatres; Charlie Chaplin
and Stan Laurel
performed there in the early 20th century, and contemporary actors such as Ralph Fiennes
and Minnie Driver
, among others, have appeared more recently. In the nineteenth century, the circus
was a popular entertainment in Oldham, with Pablo Fanque
's circus, a regular visitor to town, filling a 3000-seat amphitheatre on Tommyfield in 1869. Criticised for its lack of a cinema
, there are plans to develop an "Oldham West End
". Oldham has a thriving bar and night club culture which attracts significant number of young people into the town centre. Oldham's "hard binge drinking
culture" has been criticised however for conveying a negative regional image of the town.
The Lyceum continued throughout the 20th century as a centre for the arts in Oldham, and in 1986 the local authority was invited by its directors and trustees to accept the building as a gift. The acceptance of the Lyceum building by the Education Committee provided the opportunity to re-locate The Music Centre and "further enhance the cultural activities of the town". In 1989 the Oldham Metropolitan Borough Music Centre moved into the Lyceum building, which is now the home of the Oldham Lyceum School of Music.
Oldham’s museum and gallery service dates back to 1883. Since then it has established itself as a cultural focus for Oldham and has developed one of the largest and most varied permanent collections in North West England
. The current collection includes over social and industrial history items, more than works of art, about items of decorative art, more than natural history specimens, over geological specimens, about archaeological artefacts, photographs and a large number of books, pamphlets and documents.
Oldham is now home to a newly built state-of-the-art art gallery, Gallery Oldham
, which was completed in February 2002 as the first phase of the Oldham Cultural Quarter. Later phases of the development saw the opening of an extended Oldham Library, a lifelong learning centre and there are plans to include a performing arts centre.
s in the town goes back much further, providing a "welcomed respite from the tedium of everyday life". The carnival parade was always held in mid-to-late summer, with the primary aim of raising money for charities. It often featured local dignitaries or popular entertainers, in addition to brass, military and jazz bands, the Carnival Queen, people in fancy dress, dancers and decorated floats
from local churches and businesses. Whenever possible, local people who had attained national celebrity status were invited to join the cavalcade. The carnival's route began in the town centre, wound its way along King Street, and ended with a party in Alexandra Park
.
The carnival was a popular and prestigious event, though it fell out of favour in the late 1990s. The carnival was resurrected in 2006, rebranded the People's Carnival.
from the 18th century when rough felt
was used in Oldham to make hats. The town has been the birthplace and home to notable people, of national and international acclaim. Edward Potts
was a renowned architect who moved to Oldham from nearby Bury
. He was the architect for fourteen new mills in the borough including the Bell mill (1904) and the Iris mill (1907). Other notable persons of historic significance with a connection to Oldham are acclaimed composer Sir William Walton
, former British Prime Minister
Sir Winston Churchill
, and Louise Brown
, the world's first baby to be conceived by in vitro fertilisation
. Notable Oldhamers from TV entertainment
include comedy double act
Tommy Cannon
and Bobby Ball
, TV host Phillip Schofield
, actress Shobna Gulati
and comedian, musician and actor Bernard Cribbins
. Notable musicians from Oldham include the Inspiral Carpets
, Drummer Simon Wright
and Mark Owen
of boyband Take That
. Notable sportsmen from Oldham include former England national football team
captain David Platt. and Manchester United and former England footballer Paul Scholes
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England. It lies amid the Pennines
Pennines
The Pennines are a low-rising mountain range, separating the North West of England from Yorkshire and the North East.Often described as the "backbone of England", they form a more-or-less continuous range stretching from the Peak District in Derbyshire, around the northern and eastern edges of...
on elevated ground between the rivers Irk
River Irk
The River Irk is a river in Greater Manchester in North West England that flows through the northern suburbs of Manchester before merging with the River Irwell in Manchester city centre....
and Medlock
River Medlock
The River Medlock is a river of Greater Manchester in North West England. It rises near Oldham and flows, south and west, for ten miles to join the River Irwell in the extreme southwest of Manchester city centre.-Source:...
, 5.3 miles (8.5 km) south-southeast of Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
, and 6.9 miles (11.1 km) northeast of the city of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. Oldham is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
, of which Oldham is the administrative centre.
Historically
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...
a part of Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, and with little early history
Early Modern Britain
Early modern Britain is the history of the island of Great Britain, roughly corresponding to the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. Major historical events in Early Modern British history include the English Renaissance, the English Reformation and Scottish Reformation, the English Civil War, the...
to speak of, Oldham rose to prominence during the 19th century as an international centre of textile manufacture
Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
The industrial revolution changed the nature of work and society. Opinion varies as to the exact date, but it is estimated that the First Industrial Revolution took place between 1750 and 1850, and the second phase or Second Industrial Revolution between 1860 and 1900. The three key drivers in...
. It was a boomtown
Boomtown
A boomtown is a community that experiences sudden and rapid population and economic growth. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although the term can also be applied to communities growing very rapidly for different reasons,...
of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, and among the first ever industrialised
Industrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
towns, rapidly becoming "one of the most important centres of cotton and textile industries in England". At its zenith, it was the most productive cotton spinning
Spinning (textiles)
Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
mill town
Mill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
in the world, spinning more cotton than France and Germany combined. Oldham's textile industry began to fall into decline during the mid-20th century, and its last mill closed in 1998.
The demise of textile processing in Oldham depressed the local economy. Today Oldham is a predominantly residential town, and a centre for further education
Further education
Further education is a term mainly used in connection with education in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is post-compulsory education , that is distinct from the education offered in universities...
and the performing arts
Performing arts
The performing arts are those forms art which differ from the plastic arts insofar as the former uses the artist's own body, face, and presence as a medium, and the latter uses materials such as clay, metal or paint which can be molded or transformed to create some physical art object...
. It is, however, still distinguished architecturally by the surviving cotton mill
Cotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
s and other buildings associated with that industry. The town's population of 103,544 lives in an area of around 26 square miles (67 km²).
Toponymy
The toponymyToponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
of Oldham (ˈ) seems to imply "old village or place" from Eald (Saxon) signifying oldness or antiquity, and Ham (Saxon) a house, farm or hamlet
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
. However, Oldham is known to be a derivative of Aldehulme; undoubtedly an Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
name. It is believed to be derived from the Old English
Old English language
Old English or Anglo-Saxon is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in parts of what are now England and southeastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century...
ald combined with the Old Norse holmi or holmr, meaning "old promontory or outcrop", possibly describing the town's hilltop position. It has alternatively been suggested that it may mean "holm or hulme of a farmer named Alda". The name is understood to date from 865, during the period of the Danelaw
Danelaw
The Danelaw, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , is a historical name given to the part of England in which the laws of the "Danes" held sway and dominated those of the Anglo-Saxons. It is contrasted with "West Saxon law" and "Mercian law". The term has been extended by modern historians to...
.
Early history
The earliest known evidence of a human presence in what is now Oldham is attested by the discovery of NeolithicNeolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
flint arrow-heads and workings found at Werneth
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
and Besom Hill, implying habitation 7–10,000 years ago. Evidence of later Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
and Celtic activity is confirmed by an ancient Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
and Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
archaeological relics found at various sites within the town. Although Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
occupied territory around the area centuries earlier, Oldham as a permanent, named place of dwelling is believed to date from 865, when Danish invaders
Danelaw
The Danelaw, as recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , is a historical name given to the part of England in which the laws of the "Danes" held sway and dominated those of the Anglo-Saxons. It is contrasted with "West Saxon law" and "Mercian law". The term has been extended by modern historians to...
established a settlement called Aldehulme.
From its founding in the 9th century until the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, Oldham is believed to have been little more than a scattering of small and insignificant settlements spread across the moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
and dirt tracks which linked Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
to York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
. Although not mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, Oldham does appear in legal documents from the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, invariably recorded as territory under the control of minor ruling families
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
and baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
s. In the 13th century, Oldham was documented as a manor held from The Crown
The Crown
The Crown is a corporation sole that in the Commonwealth realms and any provincial or state sub-divisions thereof represents the legal embodiment of governance, whether executive, legislative, or judicial...
by a family surnamed Oldham
Oldham (surname)
Oldham is a surname with origins tracing to the town of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. People named Oldham include:*Andrew Loog Oldham , British rock group manager*Arthur Oldham , English chorusmaster, composer...
, whose seat was at Werneth Hall
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
.
Industrial Revolution and cotton
Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
The industrial revolution changed the nature of work and society. Opinion varies as to the exact date, but it is estimated that the First Industrial Revolution took place between 1750 and 1850, and the second phase or Second Industrial Revolution between 1860 and 1900. The three key drivers in...
; it has been said that "if ever the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
placed a town firmly and squarely on the map of the world, that town is Oldham." Oldham's soils were too thin and poor to sustain crop
Crop (agriculture)
A crop is a non-animal species or variety that is grown to be harvested as food, livestock fodder, fuel or for any other economic purpose. Major world crops include maize , wheat, rice, soybeans, hay, potatoes and cotton. While the term "crop" most commonly refers to plants, it can also include...
growing, and so for decades prior to industrialisation
Industrialisation
Industrialization is the process of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial one...
the area was used for grazing sheep, which provided the raw material for a local wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
len weaving trade.
By 1756, Oldham had emerged as centre of the hatting
Hatter
A hatter is a person engaged in hatmaking.Hatter also may refer to:*The Hatter, a fictional character in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland* Luton Town F.C., team a.k.a. "The Hatters"* Stockport County F.C., team a.k.a. "The Hatters"...
industry in England. The rough felt
Felt
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any colour, and made into any shape or size....
used in the production process is the origin of the term "Owdham Roughyed" a nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
for people from Oldham. It was not until the last quarter of the 18th century that Oldham changed from being a cottage industry township producing woollen garments via domestic manual labour
Manual labour
Manual labour , manual or manual work is physical work done by people, most especially in contrast to that done by machines, and also to that done by working animals...
, to a sprawling industrial metropolis of textile factories. The climate, geology, and topography of Oldham were unrelenting constraints upon the social and economic activities of the human inhabitants. Located 700 feet (213 m) above sea level with no major river or visible natural resources, Oldham had poor geographic attributes compared with other settlements for investors and their engineers. As a result, Oldham played no part in the initial period of the Industrial Revolution, although it did later become seen as obvious territory to industrialise because of its convenient position between the labour forces of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and southwest Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
Cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
spinning
Spinning (textiles)
Spinning is a major industry. It is part of the textile manufacturing process where three types of fibre are converted into yarn, then fabric, then textiles. The textiles are then fabricated into clothes or other artifacts. There are three industrial processes available to spin yarn, and a...
and milling
Cotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
were introduced to Oldham when its first mill, Lees Hall, was built by William Clegg in about 1778, the beginning of a spiralling process of urbanisation and socioeconomic
Socioeconomics
Socioeconomics or socio-economics or social economics is an umbrella term with different usages. 'Social economics' may refer broadly to the "use of economics in the study of society." More narrowly, contemporary practice considers behavioral interactions of individuals and groups through social...
transformation. Within a year, 11 other mills had been constructed, and by 1818 there were 19 – not a large number in comparison with other local settlements. Oldham's small local population was greatly increased by the mass migration of workers from outlying villages, resulting in a population increase from just over in 1801 to in 1901. The speed of this urban growth meant that Oldham, with little pre-industrial history to speak of, was effectively born as a factory town
Mill town
A mill town, also known as factory town or mill village, is typically a settlement that developed around one or more mills or factories .- United Kingdom:...
.
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
as the result of a mill building boom in the 1860s and 1870s, a period during which Oldham became the most productive cotton-spinning town in the world. In 1871 Oldham had more spindles
Cotton-spinning machinery
Cotton-spinning machinery refers to machines which process prepared cotton roving into workable yarn or thread. Such machinery can be dated back centuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the Industrial Revolution cotton-spinning machinery was developed to bring mass production to...
than any country in the world except the United States, and in 1909, was spinning more cotton than France and Germany combined. By 1911 there were 16.4 million spindles in Oldham, compared with a total of 58 million in the United Kingdom and 143.5 million in the world; in 1928, with the construction of the UK's largest textile factory Oldham reached its manufacturing zenith. At its peak, there were over 360 mills, operating night and day; Oldham's townscape was dominated by distinctive rectangular brick-built mills. Oldham was hit hard by the Lancashire Cotton Famine of 1861–1865, when supplies of raw cotton from the United States were cut off. Wholly reliant upon the textile industry, the cotton famine created chronic unemployment in the town. By 1863 a committee had been formed, and with aid from central government, land was purchased with the intention of employing local cotton workers to construct Alexandra Park
Alexandra Park, Oldham
Alexandra Park is a public park in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. It was created in response to the Lancashire Cotton Famine of 1861–1865 as an attempt to keep local textile workers employed. The park is located in the Glodwick area of Oldham....
, which opened on 28 August 1865. Said to have over-relied upon the textile sector, as the importation of cheaper foreign yarn
Yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, suitable for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery and ropemaking. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufactured sewing threads may be finished with wax or...
s grew during the 20th century, Oldham's economy declined into a depression, although it was not until 1964 that Oldham ceased to be the largest centre of cotton spinning. In spite of efforts to increase the efficiency and competitiveness of its production, the last cotton spun in the town was in 1998.
Engineering
Facilitated by its flourishing textile industry, Oldham developed extensive structuralStructural engineering
Structural engineering is a field of engineering dealing with the analysis and design of structures that support or resist loads. Structural engineering is usually considered a specialty within civil engineering, but it can also be studied in its own right....
and mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
sectors during the 18th and 19th centuries. The manufacture of spinning and weaving machinery
Cotton-spinning machinery
Cotton-spinning machinery refers to machines which process prepared cotton roving into workable yarn or thread. Such machinery can be dated back centuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the Industrial Revolution cotton-spinning machinery was developed to bring mass production to...
in Oldham belongs to the last decade of the 19th century, when it became a leading centre in the field of engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
. The Platt Brothers
Platt Brothers
Platt Brothers & Co Ltd, was a British company based at Oldham, in North West England. They were textile machinery manufacturers, iron founders and colliery proprietors, and by the end of the 19th century, had become the largest textile machinery company in the world, employing over 12,000 workers...
, originated in nearby Dobcross
Dobcross
Dobcross is a village in Saddleworth—a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is located in a valley in the South Pennines, along the course of the River Tame and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, east-northeast of Oldham and west-southwest of...
village, but moved to Oldham. They were pioneers of cotton-spinning machinery, developing innovatory products which enabled the mass-production of cotton yarn. Platt Brothers became the largest textile machine makers in the world, employing over people in the 1890s, twice the number of their nearest rivals Dobson & Barlow in Bolton and Asa Lees on Greenacres Moor
Greenacres, Greater Manchester
Greenacres , or archaically Greenacres Moor, is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the west side of the River Medlock opposite the village of Lees....
. They were keen investors in the local area and at one time, were supporting 42% of the population. The centre of the company lay at the New Hartford Works in Werneth
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
, a massive complex of buildings and internal railways on a site overlooking Manchester. The railway station which served this site later formed the basis of Oldham Werneth railway station
Oldham Werneth railway station
Oldham Werneth railway station was situated on the Oldham Loop Line, 10 km north east of Manchester Victoria. The station was situated on Featherstall Road South, in the Werneth area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
, which together with the main building exists to this day. Platts gained prestigious awards from around the world, and were heavily involved with local politics and civic pride in Oldham. John and James Platt were the largest subscribers for promoting Oldham from a township to a Borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
, pledging £100 (more than double the next largest sum) in advance towards any expenses which may have been incurred by the Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
. In 1854 John Platt
John Platt (MP)
John Platt ) was an English manufacturer of textile machinery and Liberal politician.Platt was born at Dobcross, Lancashire, the son of Henry Platt who founded Platt Brothers textile machinery manufacturers in 1770...
was made the (fourth) Mayor of Oldham, an office he was to hold twice more in 1855–56 and 1861–62. John Platt was elected in 1865 to become Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Oldham
Oldham (UK Parliament constituency)
Oldham was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Oldham, England. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
, and was re-elected in 1868; he remained in office until his death in 1872. A bronze statue of Platt existed in the town centre for years, though was moved to Alexandra Park
Alexandra Park, Oldham
Alexandra Park is a public park in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. It was created in response to the Lancashire Cotton Famine of 1861–1865 as an attempt to keep local textile workers employed. The park is located in the Glodwick area of Oldham....
. There have been recommendations for it to be returned to the town centre.
Abraham Henthorn Stott, the son of a stonemason, was born in nearby Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines, north of Oldham, southeast of Rochdale, and to the northeast of the city of Manchester...
in 1822. He served a seven-year apprenticeship with Sir Charles Barry, before starting a structural engineering practice in Oldham in 1847 that went on to become the pre-eminent mill architect firm in Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
. Philip Sydney Stott, third son of Abraham and later titled as Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet
Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet
Sir Philip Sidney Stott, 1st Baronet , usually known as Sidney Stott until 1920, was an English architect, civil engineer and surveyor....
, was the most prominent and famous of the Stott mill architects. He established his own practice in 1883 and designed over a hundred mills in several countries. His factories, which improved upon his father's fireproof
Fireproofing
Fireproofing, a passive fire protection measure, refers to the act of making materials or structures more resistant to fire, or to those materials themselves, or the act of applying such materials. Applying a certification listed fireproofing system to certain structures allows these to have a...
mills, accounted for a 40% increase in Oldham's spindles between 1887 and 1914.
Although textile-related engineering declined with the processing industry, leading to the demise of both Stotts and Platts, other engineering firms existed, notably electrical and later electronic engineers Ferranti
Ferranti
Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. Known primarily for defence electronics, the Company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but ceased trading in 1993.The...
in 1896. Ferranti went into receivership in 1993, but some of its former works continue in other hands. Part of the original Hollinwood site was operated by Siemens
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
Metering and Semiconductor divisions. The remainder of the site is occupied by Mirror Colour Print Ltd; the printing division of the Trinity Mirror
Trinity Mirror
Trinity Mirror plc is a large British newspaper and magazine publisher. It is Britain's biggest newspaper group, publishing 240 regional papers as well as the national Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and People, and the Scottish Sunday Mail and Daily Record. Its headquarters are at Canary Wharf in...
group, which prints and distributes thirty-six major newspapers, and employs five hundred staff.
Coal mining
On the back of the Industrial Revolution, Oldham developed an extensive coal mining sector, correlated to supporting the local cotton industry and the town's inhabitants, though there is evidence of small scale coal mining in the area as early as the 16th century. The Oldham CoalfieldCoalfield
A coalfield is an area of certain uniform characteristics where coal is mined. The criteria for determining the approximate boundary of a coalfield are geographical and cultural, in addition to geological...
stretched from Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
in the north to Bardsley
Bardsley, Greater Manchester
Bardsley is a suburban area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on undulating land by the River Medlock, on Oldham's southern boundary with Ashton-under-Lyne in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside.-History:...
in the south and in addition to Oldham, included the towns of Middleton
Middleton, Greater Manchester
Middleton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Irk, south-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester...
and Chadderton
Chadderton
Chadderton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire...
to the west. The Oldham Coalfield was the site of over 150 collieries during its recorded history
Recorded history
Recorded history is the period in history of the world after prehistory. It has been written down using language, or recorded using other means of communication. It starts around the 4th millennium BC, with the invention of writing.-Historical accounts:...
. Although some contemporary sources suggest there was coal mining in Oldham at a commercial scale by 1738, older sources attribute the commercial expansion of coal mining with the arrival in the town of two Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
labourers, John Evans and William Jones, around 1770. Foreseeing the growth in demand for coal as a source of motive and steam power, they acquired colliery rights for Oldham, which by 1771 had 14 colliers. The mines were largely to the southwest of the town around Hollinwood and Werneth
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
and provided enough coal to accelerate Oldham's rapid development at the centre of the cotton boom. At its height in the mid-19th century, when it was dominated by the Lees and Jones families, Oldham coal was mainly sourced from many small collieries whose lives varied from a few years to many decades, although two of the four largest collieries survived to nationalisation
National Coal Board
The National Coal Board was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the mines on "vesting day", 1 January 1947...
. In 1851, collieries employed over 2,000 men in Oldham, although the amount of coal in the town was somewhat overestimated however, and production began to decline even before that of the local spinning industry. Today, the only visible remnants of the mines are disused shafts and boreholes.
Social history
Oldham's social historySocial history
Social history, often called the new social history, is a branch of History that includes history of ordinary people and their strategies of coping with life. In its "golden age" it was a major growth field in the 1960s and 1970s among scholars, and still is well represented in history departments...
, like that of other former unenfranchised
Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918
The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918 was the result of centuries of development in different kinds of constituencies. The three Reform Acts of the nineteenth century brought about some order by amending franchises in a uniform manner .After 1885 the occupation franchise The...
towns, is marked by politicised civil disturbances, as well as events related to the Luddite
Luddite
The Luddites were a social movement of 19th-century English textile artisans who protested – often by destroying mechanised looms – against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution, which they felt were leaving them without work and changing their way of life...
, Suffragette
Suffragette
"Suffragette" is a term coined by the Daily Mail newspaper as a derogatory label for members of the late 19th and early 20th century movement for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, in particular members of the Women's Social and Political Union...
and other Labour movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
s from the working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
es. There has been a significant presence of "friendly societies
Friendly society
A friendly society is a mutual association for insurance, pensions or savings and loan-like purposes, or cooperative banking. It is a mutual organization or benefit society composed of a body of people who join together for a common financial or social purpose...
". It has been put that the people of Oldham became radical in politics in the early part of the 19th century, and movements suspected of sedition
Sedition
In law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
found patronage in the town. Oldham was frequently disturbed by bread and labour riots, facilitated by periods of scarcity and the disturbance of employment following the introduction of cotton-spinning machinery
Cotton-spinning machinery
Cotton-spinning machinery refers to machines which process prepared cotton roving into workable yarn or thread. Such machinery can be dated back centuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the Industrial Revolution cotton-spinning machinery was developed to bring mass production to...
. On 20 April 1812, a "large crowd of riotous individuals" compelled local retailers to sell foods at a loss, whilst on the same day Luddites numbering in their thousands, many of whom were from Oldham, attacked a cotton mill in nearby Middleton
Middleton, Greater Manchester
Middleton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Irk, south-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester...
. On 16 August 1819, Oldham sent a contingent estimated at well above 10,000 to hear speakers in St Peter's Fields at Manchester discuss political reform. It was the largest contingent sent to Manchester. John Lees, a cotton operative and ex-soldier who had fought at Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
, was one of the fifteen victims of the Peterloo Massacre
Peterloo Massacre
The Peterloo Massacre occurred at St Peter's Field, Manchester, England, on 16 August 1819, when cavalry charged into a crowd of 60,000–80,000 that had gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation....
which followed. The 'Oldham inquest' which proceeded the massacre was anxiously watched; the Court of King's Bench, however, decided that the proceedings were irregular, and the jury were discharged without giving a verdict.
Annie Kenney
Annie Kenney
Annie Kenney was an English working class suffragette who became a leading figure in the Women's Social and Political Union...
, born in nearby Springhead
Springhead, Greater Manchester
Springhead is a suburban area of Saddleworth, a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England.Situated along the eastern edge of the Greater Manchester Urban Area, Springhead is contiguous with the village of Lees, the Oldham districts of Greenacres and...
, and who worked in Oldham's cotton mills, was a notable of the Suffragette
Suffragette
"Suffragette" is a term coined by the Daily Mail newspaper as a derogatory label for members of the late 19th and early 20th century movement for women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, in particular members of the Women's Social and Political Union...
movement credited with sparking off suffragette militancy when she heckled Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
, and later (with Emmeline Pankhurst
Emmeline Pankhurst
Emmeline Pankhurst was a British political activist and leader of the British suffragette movement which helped women win the right to vote...
) the first Suffragist to be imprisoned. Oldham Women's Suffrage Society was established in 1910 with Margery Lees as president and quickly joined the Manchester and District Federation of the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies
National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies
The National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies , also known as the Suffragists was an organisation of women's suffrage societies in the United Kingdom.-Formation and campaigning:...
. The Chartist
Chartism
Chartism was a movement for political and social reform in the United Kingdom during the mid-19th century, between 1838 and 1859. It takes its name from the People's Charter of 1838. Chartism was possibly the first mass working class labour movement in the world...
and Co-operative movements
History of the cooperative movement
The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of cooperatives. Although cooperative arrangements, such as mutual insurance, and principles of cooperation existed long before, the cooperative movement began with the application of cooperative principles to business...
had strong support in the town, whilst many Oldhamers protested against the emancipation of slaves
Atlantic slave trade
The Atlantic slave trade, also known as the trans-atlantic slave trade, refers to the trade in slaves that took place across the Atlantic ocean from the sixteenth through to the nineteenth centuries...
. The Riot Act
Riot Act
The Riot Act was an Act of the Parliament of Great Britain that authorised local authorities to declare any group of twelve or more people to be unlawfully assembled, and thus have to disperse or face punitive action...
was read in 1852 on election day
United Kingdom general election, 1852
The July 1852 United Kingdom general election was a watershed election in the formation of the modern political parties of Britain. Following 1852, the Tory/Conservative party became, more completely, the party of the rural aristocracy, while the Whig/Liberal party became the party of the rising...
following a mass public brawl over the Reform Act
Reform Act
In the United Kingdom, Reform Act is a generic term used for legislation concerning electoral matters. It is most commonly used for laws passed to enfranchise new groups of voters and to redistribute seats in the British House of Commons...
, and irregularities with parliamentary candidate nominations.
For three days in late May 2001, Oldham became the centre of national and international media attention. Following high profile race-related
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
conflicts, and long-term underlying racial tensions between local White British
White British
White British was an ethnicity classification used in the 2001 United Kingdom Census. As a result of the census, 50,366,497 people in the United Kingdom were classified as White British. In Scotland the classification was broken down into two different categories: White Scottish and Other White...
and Asian
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
communities, major riots broke out in the town. Occurring with particular intensity in the Glodwick
Glodwick
Glodwick is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is south-east of Oldham town centre.Glodwick is a multi-ethnic residential area in the south of the Oldham, home particularly to a large community of Pakistanis and British Pakistanis....
area of the town, the Oldham riots
Oldham Riots
The Oldham riots were a short but intense period of violent rioting which occurred in Oldham, a town in Greater Manchester, England, in May 2001...
were the worst racially motivated riots in the United Kingdom for fifteen years prior, briefly eclipsing the sectarian violence in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
in the media. At least 20 people were injured in the riots, including 15 police officers, and 37 people were arrested. Similar riots took place in other towns in northern England
Northern England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
over the following days and weeks. The 2001 riots prompted governmental and independent inquiries, which collectively agreed on community relations improvements and considerable regeneration schemes for the town.
Civic history
Historic counties of England
The historic counties of England are subdivisions of England established for administration by the Normans and in most cases based on earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms and shires...
of Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
since the early 12th century
History of Lancashire
The History of Lancashire begins with its establishment as a county of England in 1182, making it one of the youngest of the historic counties of England.-Early history:In the Domesday Book, some of its lands had been treated as part of Yorkshire...
, Oldham was recorded in 1212 as being one of five parts of the thegn
Thegn
The term thegn , from OE þegn, ðegn "servant, attendant, retainer", is commonly used to describe either an aristocratic retainer of a king or nobleman in Anglo-Saxon England, or as a class term, the majority of the aristocracy below the ranks of ealdormen and high-reeves...
age estate of Kaskenmoor, which was held on behalf of King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
by Roger de Montbegon
Roger de Montbegon
Roger de Montbegon was a landowner in northern England , Baron of Horneby, and one of the Magna Carta sureties....
and William de Nevill. The other parts of this estate were Crompton
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines, north of Oldham, southeast of Rochdale, and to the northeast of the city of Manchester...
, Glodwick
Glodwick
Glodwick is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is south-east of Oldham town centre.Glodwick is a multi-ethnic residential area in the south of the Oldham, home particularly to a large community of Pakistanis and British Pakistanis....
, Sholver
Sholver
Sholver is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. An elevated, residential area, it lies near the middle of the Oldham part of the valley of the River Beal, northeast of Oldham's commercial centre, nearly at the northeastern-most extremity of the town, by open countryside close to the...
, and Werneth
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
. Oldham later formed a township
Township (England)
In England, a township is a local division or district of a large parish containing a village or small town usually having its own church...
within the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham
Prestwich-cum-Oldham
Prestwich-cum-Oldham was an ancient ecclesiastical parish of the hundred of Salford, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire, England...
, in the hundred of Salford
Salford (hundred)
The hundred of Salford was an ancient division of the historic county of Lancashire, in Northern England. It was sometimes known as Salfordshire, the name alluding to its judicial centre being the township of Salford...
.
In 1826 commissioners for the social and economic improvement of Oldham were established. The town was made part of a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...
, in 1832, though it was in 1849 when Oldham was incorporated as a municipal borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
, giving it borough status in the United Kingdom
Borough status in the United Kingdom
Borough status in the United Kingdom is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district...
, and in 1850 the Borough Council obtained the powers of the improvement commissioners. In 1880, parts of the Hollinwood and Crossbank
Crossbank
Crossbank is an area of Lees, a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England.Historically a part of Lancashire, the name Crossbank is thought to derive from the days of the Knights Templar when a cross was etched into an earthen bank to denote lands granted to...
areas of Chadderton
Chadderton
Chadderton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire...
and Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
townships were added to the Borough of Oldham. Oldham Above Town
Oldham Above Town
Oldham Above Town was, from 1851 until c.1881, a statistical unit used for the gathering and organising of civil registration information, and output of census information. It was a sub-district of the larger registration district of Oldham, in the then registration county of Lancashire, in...
and Oldham Below Town
Oldham Below Town
Oldham Below Town was, from 1851 until c.1881, a statistical unit used for the gathering and organising of civil registration information, and output of census information. It was a sub-district of the larger registration district of Oldham, in the then registration county of Lancashire,...
were, from 1851 until c.1881, statistical units used for the gathering and organising of civil registration information, and output of census
Census in the United Kingdom
Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with...
data.
The Local Government Act 1888
Local Government Act 1888
The Local Government Act 1888 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which established county councils and county borough councils in England and Wales...
created elected county council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...
s to administer services throughout England and Wales. Where a municipal borough had a population of more than 50,000 at the 1881 Census
Census in the United Kingdom
Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with...
it was created a county borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
, with the powers and duties of both a borough and county council. As Oldham had an 1881 population of 111,343 it duly became a county borough on 1 April 1889. The borough, while independent of Lancashire County Council for local government, remained part of the county for purposes such as the administration of justice and lieutenancy
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
.
In 1951 parts of the Limehurst Rural District
Limehurst Rural District
Limehurst was, from 1894 to 1954, a rural district in the administrative county of Lancashire, England.-History:Ashton-under-Lyne Rural Sanitary District was created in 1872 and included parishes in both Cheshire and Lancashire. The Local Government Act 1894 redesignated rural sanitary districts as...
were added to the County Borough of Oldham, and in 1954 further parts of the same district added to it on its abolition. Since 1961, Oldham has been twinned with Kranj
Kranj
' is the third largest municipality and fourth largest city in Slovenia, with a population of 54,500 . It is located approximately 20 km north-west of Ljubljana...
in Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. Under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
, the town's autonomous County borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
status was abolished, and Oldham has, since 1 April 1974, formed part of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
, within the Metropolitan county
Metropolitan county
The metropolitan counties are a type of county-level administrative division of England. There are six metropolitan counties, which each cover large urban areas, typically with populations of 1.2 to 2.8 million...
of Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
.
Parliamentary representation
The boundaries of two parliamentary constituenciesUnited Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...
divide Oldham: Oldham East and Saddleworth, and Oldham West and Royton (which includes the town centre), represented by Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Members of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Debbie Abrahams
Debbie Abrahams
Deborah Angela Elspeth Abrahams is a British politician, who has been the Labour Member of Parliament for the Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency since a by-election in January 2011. Her previous career was as a public health consultant.-Early and professional life:Abrahams was born in...
and Michael Meacher
Michael Meacher
Michael Hugh Meacher is a British Labour politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Oldham West and Royton since 1997. Previously he had been the MP for Oldham West, first elected in 1970. On 22 February 2007 he declared that he would be standing for the Labour Leadership, challenging...
respectively.
Created as a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...
in 1832
Reform Act 1832
The Representation of the People Act 1832 was an Act of Parliament that introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system of England and Wales...
, Oldham's first parliamentary representatives were the radicals
Radicalism (historical)
The term Radical was used during the late 18th century for proponents of the Radical Movement. It later became a general pejorative term for those favoring or seeking political reforms which include dramatic changes to the social order...
William Cobbett
William Cobbett
William Cobbett was an English pamphleteer, farmer and journalist, who was born in Farnham, Surrey. He believed that reforming Parliament and abolishing the rotten boroughs would help to end the poverty of farm labourers, and he attacked the borough-mongers, sinecurists and "tax-eaters" relentlessly...
and John Fielden
John Fielden
John Fielden , also known as Honest John Fielden, was a British social reformer and benefactor. He was the third son of Joshua Fielden, and began working in his father's mill at the age of 9. With his brothers, he expanded the family cotton business at Todmorden to become a wealthy businessman...
. Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
began his political career in Oldham. Although unsuccessful at his first attempt in 1899, Churchill was elected as the member of Parliament for the Oldham parliamentary borough constituency
Oldham (UK Parliament constituency)
Oldham was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Oldham, England. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
in the 1900 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1900
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
. He held the constituency for the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
until the 1906 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
, when he won the election for Manchester North West
Manchester North West (UK Parliament constituency)
Manchester North West was one of six single-member Parliamentary constituencies created in 1885 by the division of the three-member Parliamentary Borough of Manchester under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885. Its first MP, William Houldsworth, had previously sat for Manchester...
as a Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
MP. After he became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
in 1940, Churchill was made a Honorary Freeman of the Borough of Oldham
Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act 1885
The Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that gave the councils of municipal boroughs in England and Wales the power to award the title of honorary freeman to "persons of distinction and any persons who have rendered emininent services to the...
, on 2 April 1941.
Geography
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
, 6.9 miles (11.1 km) northeast of Manchester city centre
Manchester City Centre
Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England. It lies within the Manchester Inner Ring Road, next to the River Irwell...
, on elevated ground between the rivers Irk
River Irk
The River Irk is a river in Greater Manchester in North West England that flows through the northern suburbs of Manchester before merging with the River Irwell in Manchester city centre....
and Medlock
River Medlock
The River Medlock is a river of Greater Manchester in North West England. It rises near Oldham and flows, south and west, for ten miles to join the River Irwell in the extreme southwest of Manchester city centre.-Source:...
. Saddleworth
Saddleworth
Saddleworth is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It comprises several villages and hamlets amongst the west side of the Pennine hills: Uppermill, Greenfield, Dobcross, Delph, Diggle and others...
and the South Pennines
South Pennines
South Pennines is a region of moorland and hill country in northern England lying towards the southern end of the Pennines. It is bounded to the west by the Forest of Rossendale and the Yorkshire Dales to the north...
are close to the east, whilst on all other sides, Oldham is bound by smaller towns, including Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
, Chadderton
Chadderton
Chadderton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire...
, Failsworth
Failsworth
At Failsworth lies north-northwest of London. It shares common boundaries with Manchester and Oldham, on its west and northeast respectively. Failsworth is traversed by the A62 road, from Manchester to Oldham, the heavy rail line of the Oldham Loop and the Rochdale Canal, which crosses the...
, Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
and Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines, north of Oldham, southeast of Rochdale, and to the northeast of the city of Manchester...
, with little or no green space
Green belt
A green belt or greenbelt is a policy and land use designation used in land use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighbouring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges which have a linear character and may run through an...
between them. Oldham experiences a temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
maritime climate
Oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also called marine west coast climate, maritime climate, Cascadian climate and British climate for Köppen climate classification Cfb and subtropical highland for Köppen Cfb or Cwb, is a type of climate typically found along the west coasts at the middle latitudes of some of the...
, like much of the British Isles, with relatively cool summers and mild winters. There is regular but generally light precipitation throughout the year.
Oldham's topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
is characterised by its rugged, elevated Pennine terrain. It has an area of 6.91 square miles (17.9 km²). The geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
of Oldham is represented by the Millstone Grit
Millstone Grit
Millstone Grit is the name given to any of a number of coarse-grained sandstones of Carboniferous age which occur in the Northern England. The name derives from its use in earlier times as a source of millstones for use principally in watermills...
and Coal Measures
Coal Measures
The Coal Measures is a lithostratigraphical term for the coal-bearing part of the Upper Carboniferous System. It represents the remains of fluvio-deltaic sediment, and consists mainly of clastic rocks interstratified with the beds of coal...
series of rocks. The River Beal
River Beal
The Beal is a small river in Greater Manchester, England, and is a tributary of the River Roch. It rises in the Beal Valley in green space between Sholver and Royton, before continuing northwards through, Shaw and Crompton, Newhey, Milnrow and Belfield....
, flowing northwards, forms the boundary between Oldham on one side and Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
and Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines, north of Oldham, southeast of Rochdale, and to the northeast of the city of Manchester...
on the other.
To the east of this river the surface rises to a height of 1225 feet (373 m) at Woodward Hill, on the border with the parish of Saddleworth
Saddleworth
Saddleworth is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It comprises several villages and hamlets amongst the west side of the Pennine hills: Uppermill, Greenfield, Dobcross, Delph, Diggle and others...
. The rest of the surface is hilly, the average height decreasing towards the southwest to Failsworth
Failsworth
At Failsworth lies north-northwest of London. It shares common boundaries with Manchester and Oldham, on its west and northeast respectively. Failsworth is traversed by the A62 road, from Manchester to Oldham, the heavy rail line of the Oldham Loop and the Rochdale Canal, which crosses the...
and the city of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. The ridge called Oldham Edge, 800 feet (244 m) high, comes southward from Royton into the centre of the town.
Built environment
The term built environment refers to the human-made surroundings that provide the setting for human activity, ranging in scale from personal shelter and buildings to neighborhoods and cities that can often include their supporting infrastructure, such as water supply or energy networks.The built...
is characterised by its 19th-century red-brick terraced house
Terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace house, terrace, row house, linked house or townhouse is a style of medium-density housing that originated in Great Britain in the late 17th century, where a row of identical or mirror-image houses share side walls...
s, the infrastructure that was built to support these and the town's former cotton mill
Cotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
s – which mark the town's skyline. The urban structure
Urban structure
Urban structure is the arrangement of land use in urban areas. Sociologists, economists, and geographers have developed several models, explaining where different types of people and businesses tend to exist within the urban setting. Three models are described in this article...
of Oldham is irregular when compared to most towns in England, its form restricted in places by its hilly upland terrain. There are irregularly constructed residential dwellings and streets loosely centred around a central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
in the town centre
Town centre
The town centre is the term used to refer to the commercial or geographical centre or core area of a town.Town centres are traditionally associated with shopping or retail. They are also the centre of communications with major public transport hubs such as train or bus stations...
, which is the local centre of commerce. In 1849, Angus Reach of Inverness
Inverness
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
said:
In the 1870s, John Marius Wilson described Oldham as consisting of:
Although Oldham had a thriving economy during the 19th century, the local merchants were broadly reluctant to spend on civic institutions, and so the town lacks the grandeur seen in comparable nearby towns like Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
or Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
; public expenditure was seen as an overhead that undermined the competitiveness of the town. Subsequently, Oldham's architecture has been described as "mediocre". The town has no listed buildings with a Grade I rating.
There is a mixture of high-density urban areas, suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
s, semi-rural and rural
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
locations in Oldham. There is some permanent grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
but overwhelmingly the land use
Land use
Land use is the human use of land. Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as fields, pastures, and settlements. It has also been defined as "the arrangements, activities and inputs people undertake in a certain land cover...
in the town is urban. The territory of Oldham is contiguous with other towns on all sides except for a small section along its eastern and southern boundaries, and for purposes of the Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
, forms the fourth largest settlement of the Greater Manchester Urban Area
Greater Manchester Urban Area
The Greater Manchester Urban Area is an area of land defined by the Office for National Statistics consisting of the large conurbation that encompasses the city of Manchester and the continuous metropolitan area that spreads outwards from it, forming much of Greater Manchester in North West England...
, the United Kingdom's third largest conurbation. The M60 motorway
M60 motorway
The M60 motorway, or Manchester Orbital, is an orbital motorway circling Greater Manchester, a metropolitan county in North West England. It passes through all Greater Manchester's metropolitan boroughs except for Wigan and Bolton...
passes through the southwest of Oldham, through Hollinwood, and a heavy rail line enters Oldham from the same direction, travelling northeast to the town centre before heading northwards through Derker
Derker
Derker is an area of Oldham, a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in north-central Oldham, close to the boundary with Royton.Historically a part of Lancashire, Derker was recorded as a place of residence in 1604 with the name Dirtcar....
towards Shaw and Crompton.
Divisions and suburbs
SubUrbia
subUrbia is a play by Eric Bogosian chronicling the nighttime activities of a group of aimless 20-somethings still living in their suburban Boston hometown and their reunion with a former high school classmate who has become a successful musician...
, whilst places like Hollinwood exist as electoral wards and thoroughly industrialised districts. Throughout most of its recorded history
Recorded history
Recorded history is the period in history of the world after prehistory. It has been written down using language, or recorded using other means of communication. It starts around the 4th millennium BC, with the invention of writing.-Historical accounts:...
, Oldham was surrounded by large swathes of moorland
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...
, which is reflected in the placenames of Moorside, Greenacres moor
Greenacres, Greater Manchester
Greenacres , or archaically Greenacres Moor, is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the west side of the River Medlock opposite the village of Lees....
, Littlemoor, Northmoor among others.
A large portion of Oldham's residences are "low value" Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
Accrington red-brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
terraced house
Terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace house, terrace, row house, linked house or townhouse is a style of medium-density housing that originated in Great Britain in the late 17th century, where a row of identical or mirror-image houses share side walls...
s in a row formation, built for the most part from 1870 to 1920, to house the town's cotton mill
Cotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
workers. There is more modern housing in the semi-rural east of the town, in areas such as Moorside, although terraces are found in almost all parts of Oldham.
One of the oldest recorded named places of Oldham is Hathershaw
Hathershaw
Hathershaw is an urban area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It occupies a hillside to the immediate south of Oldham's town centre, and is bound by the districts of Coppice and Fitton Hill, on the northwest and southeast respectively...
, occurring in a deed for 1280 with the spelling Halselinechaw Clugh. Existing as a manor in the 15th century, Hathershaw Hall was the home of a Royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
family in the 17th century who lost part of their possessions due to the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. Waterhead
Waterhead, Greater Manchester
Waterhead , is an area of Oldham, and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
, an upland area in the east of Oldham, traces its roots to a water cornmill over the border in Lees
Lees, Greater Manchester
The village consists of a small cluster of shops and businesses on either side of the A669 Lees Road, surrounded by some terraced houses and some small estates...
.
Recorded originally as Watergate and Waterhead Milne, it was for a long time a hamlet in the parish of Oldham that formed a significant part of the Oldham Above Town
Oldham Above Town
Oldham Above Town was, from 1851 until c.1881, a statistical unit used for the gathering and organising of civil registration information, and output of census information. It was a sub-district of the larger registration district of Oldham, in the then registration county of Lancashire, in...
registration sub-district. Derker
Derker
Derker is an area of Oldham, a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in north-central Oldham, close to the boundary with Royton.Historically a part of Lancashire, Derker was recorded as a place of residence in 1604 with the name Dirtcar....
was recorded as a place of residence in 1604 with the name Dirtcar. Bound by Higginshaw to the north, Derker is the location of Derker railway station
Derker railway station
Derker railway station was a railway station in Derker, an area of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It was on the Oldham Loop Line, north east of Manchester Victoria and was managed by Northern Rail at the time of closure....
and, said to have terraced residencies "unsuited to modern needs", is currently being redeveloped as part of the Housing Market Renewal Initiative
Housing Market Renewal Initiative
The Housing Market Renewal Initiative is a package of policies in the North of England aimed to address housing market failure, which was defined as housing which in local markets was priced below the build cost, such that renovations were uneconomic and the sale of property would not generate...
.
Coldhurst
Coldhurst
Coldhurst is an area of Oldham and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. At the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001, it had a population of 11,935...
, an area along Oldham's northern boundary with Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
, was once a chapelry and the site of considerable industry and commerce, including coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
, cotton spinning and hat manufacture. It is said to have been the scene of an action in the English Civil War in which the Parliamentarians were defeated.
Demography
According to data from the United Kingdom Census 2001United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, Oldham had a total resident population of 103,544, making it the 55th most populous settlement in England, and the 5th most populous settlement of the Greater Manchester Urban Area
Greater Manchester Urban Area
The Greater Manchester Urban Area is an area of land defined by the Office for National Statistics consisting of the large conurbation that encompasses the city of Manchester and the continuous metropolitan area that spreads outwards from it, forming much of Greater Manchester in North West England...
. This figure in conjunction with its area provides Oldham with a population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
of 3,998 people per square mile (1,544 per km²). The local population has been described as broadly "working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
"; the middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
es tending to live in outlying settlements.
Oldham, considered as a combination of the 2001 electoral wards of Alexandra, Coldhurst
Coldhurst
Coldhurst is an area of Oldham and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. At the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001, it had a population of 11,935...
, Hollinwood, St. James, St. Marys, St. Pauls, Waterhead
Waterhead, Greater Manchester
Waterhead , is an area of Oldham, and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
and Werneth
Werneth, Greater Manchester
Werneth is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of Oldham's most ancient localities.-History:...
, has an average age of 33.5, and compared against the average demography of the United Kingdom, has a high level of people of South Asian heritage, particularly those with roots in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. Due to the town's prevalence as an industrial centre and thus a hub for employment, Oldham attracted migrant workers throughout its history, including those from wider-England, Scotland, Ireland and Poland.
During the 1950s and 1960s, in an attempt to fill the shortfall of workers and revitalise local industries, citizens of the wider Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
were encouraged to migrate to Oldham and other British towns. Many came from the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
and Indian subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
and settled throughout the Oldham borough.
Today, Oldham has large communities with heritage from Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, India, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and parts of the Caribbean. At the time of the 2001 census, over one in four of its residents identified themselves as from a South Asian or British Asian
British Asian
British Asian is a term used to describe British citizens who descended from mainly South Asia, also known as South Asians in the United Kingdom...
ethnic group. Cultural divisions along ethnic backgrounds are strong within the town, with poor cross-community integration and cohesion along Asian and white backgrounds.
With only a small local population during medieval times, as a result of the introduction of industry, mass migration of village workers into Oldham occurred, resulting in a population change from under 2,000 in 1714 to 12,000 in 1801 to 137,000 in 1901. In 1851 its population of 52,820 made Oldham the 12th most populous town in England. The following is a table outlining the population change of the town since 1801, which demonstrates a trend of rapid population growth in the 19th century and, after peaking at 147,483 people in 1911, a trend of general decline in population size during the 20th century.
| Year | 1801 | 1811 | 1821 | 1831 | 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 | 1881 | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1939 | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 12,024 | 16,690 | 21,662 | 32,381 | 42,595 | 52,820 | 72,333 | 82,629 | 111,349 | 131,463 | 137,246 | 147,483 | 144,983 | 140,314 | 120,511 | 121,266 | 115,346 | 105,922 | 107,830 | 103,931 | 103,544 |
| Sources: A Vision of Britain through Time |
|||||||||||||||||||||
Economy
Home shopping
Home shopping commonly refers to the electronic retailing/home shopping channels industry, which includes such billion dollar television-based and e-commerce companies as HSN, QVC, eBay, ShopNBC, Buy.com, and Amazon.com, as well as traditional mail order and brick and mortar retailers as Hammacher...
, publishing
Publishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
, healthcare and food processing
Food processing
Food processing is the set of methods and techniques used to transform raw ingredients into food or to transform food into other forms for consumption by humans or animals either in the home or by the food processing industry...
sectors, though factory-generated employment retains a significant presence. Many of the modern sectors are low-skill and low-wage.
Park Cake Bakeries, recently sold as part of a large shake-up by the Northern Foods Group, have a large food processing centre in Hathershaw
Hathershaw
Hathershaw is an urban area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It occupies a hillside to the immediate south of Oldham's town centre, and is bound by the districts of Coppice and Fitton Hill, on the northwest and southeast respectively...
, which employs in excess of 1,600 people. Over 90% of the cake
Cake
Cake is a form of bread or bread-like food. In its modern forms, it is typically a sweet and enriched baked dessert. In its oldest forms, cakes were normally fried breads or cheesecakes, and normally had a disk shape...
s produced go to Marks & Spencer
Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer plc is a British retailer headquartered in the City of Westminster, London, with over 700 stores in the United Kingdom and over 300 stores spread across more than 40 countries. It specialises in the selling of clothing and luxury food products...
. Long existing as an industrial district
Industrial district
Industrial district was initially introduced as a term to describe an area where workers of a monolithic heavy industry live within walking-distance of their places of work...
, Hollinwood is home to the Northern Counties Housing Association, and Mirror Colour Print Ltd; the printing division of the Trinity Mirror
Trinity Mirror
Trinity Mirror plc is a large British newspaper and magazine publisher. It is Britain's biggest newspaper group, publishing 240 regional papers as well as the national Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and People, and the Scottish Sunday Mail and Daily Record. Its headquarters are at Canary Wharf in...
group, which prints and distributes 36 major newspapers, and employs 500 staff.
Oldham's town centre contains the highest concentration of retailing, cultural facilities and employment in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
. It has been extensively redeveloped during the last few decades, and its two shopping centres, Town Square and The Spindles, now provide one of the largest covered retail areas in Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
. The Spindles (named with reference to textile spindles
Spindle (textiles)
A spindle is a wooden spike used for spinning wool, flax, hemp, cotton, and other fibres into thread. It is commonly weighted at either the bottom middle or top, most commonly by a circular or spherical object called a whorl, and may also have a hook, groove or notch, though spindles without...
) is a modern shopping centre
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
with over 40 retailers, banks, building societies and catering outlets. It houses one of Europe's largest stained glass roofs, created by local artist Brian Clarke in celebration of the music of one of Oldham's famous sons, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and conductor Sir William Walton
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton OM was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera...
.
Ferranti Technologies
Ferranti
Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. Known primarily for defence electronics, the Company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but ceased trading in 1993.The...
is an electronic, electromechanical and electrical engineering company based in Waterhead
Waterhead, Greater Manchester
Waterhead , is an area of Oldham, and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
.
A number of culinary and medical advances have been developed in Oldham. There are claims that Oldham was the birthplace of the first chip shop
Fish and chips
Fish and chips is a popular take-away food in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Canada...
. The sometimes disputed claim of trade in deep-fried chipped potatoes is said to have been started in around 1858–60 from an outlet owned by a John Lees, on what is the present site of Oldham's Tommyfield Market. In 1900 Oldham had the highest concentration of chip shops in the country; one for every 400 people. Rag Pudding
Rag Pudding
Rag Pudding is an old fashioned savoury dish originated in Oldham, and popular throughout North West England. A traditional Rag Pudding broadly consists of minced meat and onions wrapped in a suet pastry which is then boiled or steamed ....
is a savoury dish said to be native to Oldham. Yates Wine Lodge was founded in Oldham by Peter and Simon Yates in 1884.
The tubular bandage
Bandage
A bandage is a piece of material used either to support a medical device such as a dressing or splint, or on its own to provide support to the body; they can also be used to restrict a part of the body. During heavy bleeding or following a poisonous bite it is important to slow the flow of blood,...
was invented and developed in Oldham in 1961. That "vital contribution to advancing medical science" resulted from a collaboration between local firm Seton and a cotton manufacturer in the town.
Landmarks
Town Hall
Oldham's Old Town Hall is a Grade II listed GeorgianGeorgian architecture
Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...
neo-classical
Neoclassical architecture
Neoclassical architecture was an architectural style produced by the neoclassical movement that began in the mid-18th century, manifested both in its details as a reaction against the Rococo style of naturalistic ornament, and in its architectural formulas as an outgrowth of some classicizing...
town hall
City hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall or a municipal building or civic centre, is the chief administrative building of a city...
built in 1841, eight years before Oldham received its borough status
Borough status in the United Kingdom
Borough status in the United Kingdom is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district...
. One of the last purpose built town halls in northwest England, it has a tetrastyle Ionic
Ionic order
The Ionic order forms one of the three orders or organizational systems of classical architecture, the other two canonic orders being the Doric and the Corinthian...
portico
Portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...
, copied from the temple of Ceres, on the River Ilissos
Ilissos
The Ilissos or Ilissus is a river in Athens, Greece. Originally a tributary of the Kifissos River, it is now largely channeled underground.-Ancient Athens:...
, near Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
. Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
made his inaugural acceptance speech from the steps of the town hall when he was first elected as a Conservative MP in 1900. A Blue Plaque
Blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
on the exterior of the building commemorates the event. Long existing as the political centre of the town, complete with courtroom
Courtroom
A courtroom is the actual enclosed space in which a judge regularly holds court.The schedule of official court proceedings is called a docket; the term is also synonymous with a court's caseload as a whole.-Courtroom design:-United States:...
s, the structure has stood empty since the mid 1980s and has regularly been earmarked for redevelopment as part of regeneration project proposals; none have been actioned.
In September 2008, it was reported that "Oldham Town Hall is only months away from a major roof collapse". A tour taken by local councillors and media concluded with an account that "chunks of masonry are falling from the ceilings on a daily basis, [...] the floors are littered with dead pigeons and [...] revealed that the building is literally rotting away". In October 2009 the Victorian Society
The Victorian Society
The Victorian Society is the national charity responsible for the study and protection of Victorian and Edwardian architecture and other arts in Britain....
, a charity responsible for the study and protection of Britain's Victorian and Edwardian architecture, declared Oldham Town Hall as the most endangered Victorian structure in England and Wales
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
.
War memorial
Erected as a permanent memorial to the men of Oldham who were killed in World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Oldham's war memorial
War memorial
A war memorial is a building, monument, statue or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or to commemorate those who died or were injured in war.-Historic usage:...
consists of a granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
base surmounted by a bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
sculpture depicting five soldiers making their way along the trenches in order to go into battle. The main standing figure, having climbed out of the trenches, is shown calling on his comrades to advance. The base serves to house books containing the roll of honour of the 1st, 10th and 24th Battalions, Manchester Regiment. The pedestal has two bronze doors at either side.
Commissioned in 1919 by the Oldham War Memorial Committee, the memorial was designed and built by Albert Toft
Albert Toft
Albert Toft was a British sculptor.Toft trained in Wedgwood's pottery and studied sculpture at the South Kensington Schools under Professor Edouard Lanteri.-Notable works:...
. It was unveiled by General Sir Ian Hamilton
Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton
General Sir Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton GCB GCMG DSO TD was a general in the British Army and is most notably for commanding the ill-fated Mediterranean Expeditionary Force during the Battle of Gallipoli....
on 28 April 1923, before a crowd estimated at over 10,000. The monument was intended to symbolise the spirit of 1914–1918.
The inscriptions on the memorial read:
- Over doors: "Mors Januva Vitae, 1914-1918" (death is the gate of life)
- Opposite side: "To God Be The Praise"
Civic Centre
The Civic Centre tower is the Metropolitan Borough of OldhamMetropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
's centre of local governance. The 15-storey white-brick building has housed the vast majority of the local government's offices since its completion in 1977. Standing at the summit of the town, the tower stands over 200 feet (61 m) high. It was designed by Cecil Howitt & Partners, and the topping out
Topping out
In building construction, topping out is a ceremony held when the last beam is placed at the top of a building. The term may also refer to the overall completion of the building's structure, or an intermediate point, such as when the roof is dried in...
ceremony was held on 18 June 1976. The Civic Centre can be seen as far away as Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
, Trafford
Trafford
The Metropolitan Borough of Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 211,800, covers , and includes the towns of Altrincham, Partington, Sale, Stretford, and Urmston...
, Wythenshawe
Wythenshawe
Wythenshawe is a district in the south of the city of Manchester, England.Formerly part of the administrative county of Cheshire, in 1931 Wythenshawe was transferred to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a massive housing estate there in the 1920s to resolve the problem of its inner...
and Winter Hill
Winter Hill (Lancashire)
Winter Hill is a hill on the border of the boroughs of Chorley, Blackburn with Darwen and Bolton, in North West England. It is located on Rivington Moor, Chorley and is high...
in Lancashire, and offers panoramic views across the city of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and the Cheshire Plain
Cheshire Plain
The Cheshire Plain is a relatively flat expanse of lowland situated almost entirely within the county of Cheshire in northwest England. It is bounded by the hills of North Wales to the west, and the Peak District of Derbyshire and North Staffordshire to the east and southeast...
.
Parish Church
The Oldham Parish Church of St. Mary with St. PeterOldham Parish Church
The Oldham Parish Church of St. Mary with St. Peter is the Church of England parish church for Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It forms part of the Diocese of Manchester, and is one of several Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester....
, in its present form, dates from 1830 and was designed in the Gothic Revival Style
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
by Richard Lane
Richard Lane (architect)
Richard Lane was a distinguished English architect of the early and mid 19th century. Born in London and based in Manchester, he was known in great part for his restrained and austere Greek-inspired classicism. He also designed a few buildings – mainly churches – in the Gothic style...
, a Manchester based architect. It has been designated by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
as a Grade II* listed building. It was linked with the church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich
Church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich
The Church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich, is located in Church Lane, Prestwich, Greater Manchester, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Radcliffe and Prestwich, the archdeaconry of Bolton, and the diocese of Manchester. The church has been designated by English...
and together the sites were principal churches of the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham
Prestwich-cum-Oldham
Prestwich-cum-Oldham was an ancient ecclesiastical parish of the hundred of Salford, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire, England...
.
A church building had existed on the site since 1280. During this time, a small chapel stood on the site to serve the local townships of Oldham, Chadderton
Chadderton
Chadderton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire...
, Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton
Shaw and Crompton is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Beal at the foothills of the South Pennines, north of Oldham, southeast of Rochdale, and to the northeast of the city of Manchester...
. This was later replaced by an Early English Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
church in the 15th century. With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, the population of Oldham increased at a rapid rate (from under 2,000 in 1714, to over 32,000 by 1831). The rapid growth of the local population warranted that the building be rebuilt in to the current structure. Though the budget was originally agreed at £5,000, the final cost of building was £30,000, one third of which was spent on the crypt structure. Alternative designs by Sir Charles Barry, the designer of the Palace of Westminster
Palace of Westminster
The Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament or Westminster Palace, is the meeting place of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
, although now regarded by some as superior, were rejected. The Church, of the Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
denomination, is in active use for worship, and forms part of the Diocese of Manchester
Anglican Diocese of Manchester
The Diocese of Manchester is a Church of England diocese in the Province of York, England. Based in the city of Manchester, the diocese covers much of the county of Greater Manchester and small areas of the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire.-History:...
.
Transport
A principal destination along the former Oldham Loop Line, Oldham once had seven railway stations but this was reduced to four once Clegg Street
Clegg Street railway station
Oldham Clegg Street railway station was one of five stations that served the town of Oldham in northwest England.-History:The station was the northernmost passenger station on the Oldham, Ashton and Guide Bridge Railway; it opened on 26 August 1861...
, Oldham Central
Oldham Central railway station
Oldham Central Railway Station was opened on 1 November 1847 as part of the extension of the Middleton Junction to Oldham Werneth line to Oldham Mumps. It was eventually one of six stations in the town of Oldham and was adjacent to Clegg Street railway station which closed on 2 May 1959...
and Glodwick Road
Glodwick Road railway station
Oldham Glodwick Road railway station was one of five stations that served the town of Oldham. It was close to Oldham Mumps railway station, but was on a different line.-History:...
closed in the mid-20th century; Hollinwood
Hollinwood railway station
Hollinwood railway station opened on 17 May 1880 and was situated in the Hollinwood area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. The station was 7 km north east of Manchester Victoria on the Oldham Loop Line operated and managed by Northern Rail.The station was next to the M60 motorway...
, Oldham Werneth
Oldham Werneth railway station
Oldham Werneth railway station was situated on the Oldham Loop Line, 10 km north east of Manchester Victoria. The station was situated on Featherstall Road South, in the Werneth area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
, Oldham Mumps
Oldham Mumps railway station
Oldham Mumps Railway Station opened on 1 November 1847 and served the town of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. The station was a primary station located on the Oldham Loop Line north east of Manchester Victoria operated and managed by Northern Rail....
and Derker
Derker railway station
Derker railway station was a railway station in Derker, an area of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It was on the Oldham Loop Line, north east of Manchester Victoria and was managed by Northern Rail at the time of closure....
closed on 3 October 2009. Trains from Manchester Victoria station
Manchester Victoria station
Manchester Victoria station in Manchester, England is the city's second largest mainline railway station. It is also a Metrolink station, one of eight within the City Zone...
to Oldham had to climb steeply through much of its 6 miles (9.7 km) route, from around 100 feet (30.5 m) at Manchester city centre to around 600 feet (182.9 m) at Oldham Mumps. The Werneth Incline, with its gradient of 1 in 27, made the Middleton Junction
Middleton Junction railway station
Middleton Junction Railway Station was on the Caldervale Line, from 1842 until closure in 1966. It lay within Chadderton. Originally called Oldham Junction, it was opened on 31 March 1842 by the Manchester and Leeds Railway, whose chief engineer was George Stephenson, as part of the branch to...
to Oldham Werneth
Oldham Werneth railway station
Oldham Werneth railway station was situated on the Oldham Loop Line, 10 km north east of Manchester Victoria. The station was situated on Featherstall Road South, in the Werneth area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
route the steepest regular passenger line in the country. The Werneth Incline route closed in 1963. It had been replaced as the main route to Manchester by the section of line built between Oldham Werneth Station and Thorpes Bridge Junction, Newton Heath in May 1880. Oldham Mumps, the second oldest station on the line after Werneth, took its name from its location in the Mumps area of Oldham, which itself probably derived from the archaic word "mumper" which was slang for a beggar. The former Oldham Loop Line is to be converted for use with an expanded Manchester Metrolink
Manchester Metrolink
Metrolink is a light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. It consists of four lines which converge in Manchester city centre and terminate in Bury, Altrincham, Eccles and Chorlton-cum-Hardy. The system is owned by Transport for Greater Manchester and operated under contract by RATP Group...
tram network, planned to open in 2012.
Oldham had electric tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
ways to Manchester in the early-20th century; the first tram was driven from Manchester into Oldham in 1900 by the Lord Mayor of Manchester. The system came to an end on 3 August 1946, however.
The £3.3m Oldham Bus Station
Oldham Bus Station
Oldham bus station is a bus station located in the town of Oldham in Greater Manchester. The bus station is found on Cheapside at the junction of West Street. The bus station opened in January 2001 and replaced the previous bus station at Town Square and the bus stops on Cheapside and West Street...
has frequent bus services to Manchester, Rochdale, Ashton-under-Lyne and Middleton with other services to the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Tameside
Tameside
The Metropolitan Borough of Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after the River Tame which flows through the borough and spans the towns of Ashton-under-Lyne, Audenshaw, Denton, Droylsden, Dukinfield, Hyde, Mossley and Stalybridge. Its western...
, and across the Pennines to Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
. The roof canopy is supported internally on two rows of steel trees. The extensive use of glass and stainless steel maximises visibility, and there is a carefully co-ordinated family of information fittings, posters and seating, using robust natural materials for floors and plinths. The bus station is used by National Express
National Express
National Express Coaches, more commonly known as National Express, is a brand and company, owned by the National Express Group, under which the majority of long distance bus and coach services in Great Britain are operated,...
coaches. First Manchester
First Manchester
First Manchester is one of the bus companies serving Greater Manchester, a metropolitan county in North West England. It forms part of FirstGroup, a company operating transport services across the British Isles and in North America...
, FirstGroup plc
FirstGroup plc
FirstGroup plc is a public transport company, registered in Scotland at its headquarters in Aberdeen, operating in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Canada and the United States...
's bus operator for north-Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, has its headquarters in Oldham.
Oldham is about 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the major M62 motorway
M62 motorway
The M62 motorway is a west–east trans-Pennine motorway in Northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull via Manchester and Leeds. The road also forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22...
, but is linked to it by the M60
M60 motorway
The M60 motorway, or Manchester Orbital, is an orbital motorway circling Greater Manchester, a metropolitan county in North West England. It passes through all Greater Manchester's metropolitan boroughs except for Wigan and Bolton...
at Hollinwood, and A627(M)
A627(M) motorway
The A627 is a motorway that runs between Oldham and Rochdale in Greater Manchester, England. It is long and connects these two towns to the M62. It opened in 1972.-Route:...
via Chadderton
Chadderton
Chadderton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire...
. There are major A roads
Great Britain road numbering scheme
The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering scheme used to classify and identify all roads in Great Britain. Each road is given a single letter, which represents the road's category, and a subsequent number, with a length of between 1 and 4 digits. Originally introduced to arrange...
to Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne
Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it lies on the north bank of the River Tame, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines...
, Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, and Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
.
The Hollinwood Branch
Hollinwood Branch Canal
The Hollinwood Branch Canal was a canal near Hollinwood, in Oldham, England. It left the main line of the Ashton Canal at Fairfield Junction immediately above lock 18. It was just over long and went through...
of the Ashton Canal
Ashton Canal
The Ashton Canal is a canal built in Greater Manchester in North West England.-Route:The Ashton leaves the Rochdale Canal at Ducie St. Junction in central Manchester, and climbs for through 18 locks, passing through Ancoats, Holt Town, Bradford-with-Beswick, Clayton, Openshaw, Droylsden,...
was a canal that ran from Fairfield in Droylsden
Droylsden
Droylsden is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside, in Greater Manchester, England. It is to the east of Manchester city centre, and west-southwest of Ashton-under-Lyne, it has a population of 23,172....
, through Littlemoss and Daisy Nook Country Park
Daisy Nook
Daisy Nook is a country park in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, England. The park runs through the Medlock Valley in an area once called Waterhouses. Waterhouses was one of three 'houses' in the Failsworth area, the other two being Millhouses and Woodhouses.-History:The name Daisy Nook came from a...
to the Hollinwood area of Oldham, with a branch from Daisy Nook to the Fairbottom Branch Canal
Fairbottom Branch Canal
The Fairbottom Branch Canal was a canal near Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, England.-Route:The canal left the Hollinwood Branch Canal at Fairbottom Junction immediately above lock 22. It was just over one mile long and it was lock free...
. The canal was mainly used for the haulage of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
until it fell into disuse for commercial traffic in the 1930s. It included four aqueducts and a two-rise lock staircase.
Sports
Oldham Roughyeds
Oldham Roughyeds is an English professional rugby league club based in Oldham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Championship One. Oldham is one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895....
Rugby League Club was established in 1876 as Oldham Football Club, and Oldham Athletic Football Club
Oldham Athletic A.F.C.
Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is an English association football club based at Boundary Park, on Sheepfoot Lane in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The club currently competes in the Football League One, the third tier of the English league...
in 1895 as Pine Villa Football Club. Oldham Athletic have achieved both league and cup successes, particularly under Joe Royle
Joe Royle
Joseph "Joe" Royle is an English football manager. In his club career, he played for Everton , Manchester City, Bristol City, Norwich City, and the England national team...
in the 1990s. They were Football League runners-up in the last season before the outbreak
1914-15 in English football
The 1914–15 season was the 44th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:The 1914 Charity Shield was not contested due to suspension of football during World War I-Events:...
of the First World War, but were relegated from the Football League First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
in 1923. They reached the Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
final in 1990 and won the Football League Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
title in 1991, ending 68 years outside the top flight.
They secured their top division status a year later to become founder members of the new Premier League, but were relegated after two seasons
1993-94 in English football
The 1993-1994 season was the 114th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:From the start of this season, the FA Premier League would be sponsored by Carling Breweries - an association which would last for eight years...
despite reaching that year's FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
semi-finals. They are currently playing in Football League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
, the third tier of the English league. After the sacking of John Sheridan in mid-March 2009, Dave Penney was appointed manager, but was only to last for one season. The club's current manager is Paul Dickov
Paul Dickov
Paul Dickov is a retired Scottish footballer, turned manager who is currently in charge of League One side Oldham Athletic...
the former Manchester City player. Boundary Park
Boundary Park
Boundary Park is the main sports stadium of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies at the northwestern extremity of Oldham, with the towns of Royton and Chadderton lying immediately north and west respectively, giving rise to the name Boundary Park....
, where the club has played since the early 20th Century, had been proposed for regeneration, but plans are currently ongoing for a move to a new ground to be built in neighbouring Failsworth
Failsworth
At Failsworth lies north-northwest of London. It shares common boundaries with Manchester and Oldham, on its west and northeast respectively. Failsworth is traversed by the A62 road, from Manchester to Oldham, the heavy rail line of the Oldham Loop and the Rochdale Canal, which crosses the...
.
Oldham Boro Football Club was established in 1964 as Oldham Dew FC, and after many years playing under the name of Oldham Town adapted its present name in 2009. The team currently plays in the North West Counties Football League
North West Counties Football League
The North West Counties Football League is a football league in North west of England. As of 2011, the league covers Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Southern Cumbria, Northern Staffordshire, the High Peak area of Derbyshire, and the far west of West Yorkshire. In the past, the...
Division Two.
Renamed in 1997 to Oldham Roughyeds
Oldham Roughyeds
Oldham Roughyeds is an English professional rugby league club based in Oldham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Championship One. Oldham is one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895....
, Oldham Rugby League Club has received several club honours during its history, winning the Rugby Football League Championship five times and Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
three times. They played at Watersheddings
Watersheddings
Watersheddings is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England.Lying on the A672 approximately 2 miles north east of Oldham town centre it is home to Oldham Cricket Club whose ground situated on Broadbent Road is called "The Pollards"....
for years before joining Oldham Athletic at Boundary Park
Boundary Park
Boundary Park is the main sports stadium of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies at the northwestern extremity of Oldham, with the towns of Royton and Chadderton lying immediately north and west respectively, giving rise to the name Boundary Park....
until 2010 when they moved to Oldham Borough's previous ground, Whitebank Stadium
Whitebank Stadium
Whitebank Stadium on White Bank Road, Oldham is a rugby league and Association football stadium which forms part of Limehurst Village. It is the home stadium of Oldham Roughyeds and Oldham Boro F.C..-Structure:...
. Oldham has league cricket teams with a number of semi-professional league clubs including Oldham CC, and Werneth CC in the Central Lancashire League.
Education
Office for Standards in Education
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
, schools within the town perform at mixed levels. The Blue Coat School
The Blue Coat School, Oldham
The Blue Coat School is a mixed gender Church of England Academy for 11–18 year olds, located in the town of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England....
, which dates from 1834, is consistently Oldham's top performing secondary school for 11- to 16-year-olds, and has a sixth form college
Sixth form college
A sixth form college is an educational institution in England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Belize, Hong Kong or Malta where students aged 16 to 18 typically study for advanced school-level qualifications, such as A-levels, or school-level qualifications such as GCSEs. In Singapore and India, this is...
of further education
Further education
Further education is a term mainly used in connection with education in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is post-compulsory education , that is distinct from the education offered in universities...
for 16- to 18-year-olds on the same site.
Oldham produced someone who is considered to be one of the greatest benefactors of education for the nation, Hugh Oldham
Hugh Oldham
Hugh Oldham was a Bishop of Exeter and a notable patron of education. Born in Lancashire to a family of minor gentry, he probably attended both Oxford and Cambridge universities, following which he was a clerk at Durham, then a rector in Cornwall before being employed by Lady Margaret Beaufort ,...
, who in 1504 was appointed as Bishop of Exeter
Bishop of Exeter
The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. The incumbent usually signs his name as Exon or incorporates this in his signature....
, and later went on to found what is now Manchester Grammar School
Manchester Grammar School
The Manchester Grammar School is the largest independent day school for boys in the UK . It is based in Manchester, England...
.
University Centre Oldham is a centre for higher education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
and a sister campus of the University of Huddersfield
University of Huddersfield
The University of Huddersfield is a university located in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England.- History :The University traces its roots back to a Science and Mechanic Institute founded in 1825...
. It was opened in May 2005 by actor Patrick Stewart
Patrick Stewart
Sir Patrick Hewes Stewart, OBE is an English film, television and stage actor, who has had a distinguished career in theatre and television for around half a century...
, the centre's Chancellor. The University Centre Oldham presented actress Shobna Gulati
Shobna Gulati
Shobna Gulati is an English actress, writer, and dancer of Indian origin, best known for playing Anita in Victoria Wood's Dinnerladies, and Sunita Alahan in the long-running soap opera Coronation Street from 2001 to 2006, a role to which she returned at the end of 2009...
and artist, Brian Clarke (both born in Oldham) with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters
Doctor of Letters
Doctor of Letters is a university academic degree, often a higher doctorate which is frequently awarded as an honorary degree in recognition of outstanding scholarship or other merits.-Commonwealth:...
at the Graduation Ceremony of November 2006, for their achievements and contributions to Oldham and its community.
Public services
Home OfficeHome Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
policing in Oldham is provided by the Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police
Greater Manchester Police is the police force responsible for law enforcement within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester in North West England...
. The force's "(Q) Division" have their headquarters for policing the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
at central Oldham. Public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
is co-ordinated by the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive
Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive
Transport for Greater Manchester is the public body responsible for co-ordinating public transport services throughout Greater Manchester, in North West England. The organisation traces its origins to the Transport Act 1968, when the SELNEC Passenger Transport Executive was established to...
. Statutory emergency fire and rescue service
Fire service in the United Kingdom
The fire services in the United Kingdom operate under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales...
is provided by the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory emergency fire and rescue service for the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, England.Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service covers an area of approximately...
, which has two stations in Oldham; at Hollins on Hollins Road, and at Clarksfield on Lees Road.
The Royal Oldham Hospital
Royal Oldham Hospital
The Royal Oldham Hospital is a NHS hospital in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. It forms part of Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust and was opened with its present name on 1 December 1989. Its services are commissioned by NHS Oldham....
, at Oldham's northern boundary with Royton
Royton
Royton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Irk, on undulating land at the foothills of the Pennines, north-northwest of Oldham, south-southeast of Rochdale and northeast of the city of Manchester.Historically a...
, is a large NHS
National Health Service (England)
The National Health Service or NHS is the publicly funded healthcare system in England. It is both the largest and oldest single-payer healthcare system in the world. It is able to function in the way that it does because it is primarily funded through the general taxation system, similar to how...
hospital administrated by Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
Pennine Care NHS Trust is a NHS Trust established in April 2002 and became the 100th trust to be awarded Foundation status in July 2008.The Trust provides community and mental health services in Bury, Oldham and the Rochdale borough, as well as mental health services in Stockport and Tameside and...
. It was opened under its existing name on 1 December 1989. Formerly known as Oldham District and General, and occupying the site of the town's former workhouse
Workhouse
In England and Wales a workhouse, colloquially known as a spike, was a place where those unable to support themselves were offered accommodation and employment...
(named Oldham Union Workhouse in 1851), the hospital is notable for being the birthplace of Louise Joy Brown – the world's first successful In vitro fertilised "test tube baby"
In vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation is a process by which egg cells are fertilised by sperm outside the body: in vitro. IVF is a major treatment in infertility when other methods of assisted reproductive technology have failed...
, on 25 July 1978. The North West Ambulance Service
North West Ambulance Service
The North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust was formed on 1 July 2006 as part of Health Minister Lord Warner's plans to reduce the number of NHS ambulance service trusts operating in the United Kingdom....
provides emergency patient transport. Other forms of health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
are provided for locally by several small clinics and surgeries.
Waste management
Waste management
Waste management is the collection, transport, processing or disposal,managing and monitoring of waste materials. The term usually relates to materials produced by human activity, and the process is generally undertaken to reduce their effect on health, the environment or aesthetics...
is co-ordinated by the local authority via the Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority
Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority
The Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority is a waste disposal authority created under the Local Government Act 1985 to carry out the waste management functions and duties of the Greater Manchester County Council after its abolition in 1986....
. Locally produced inert waste
Inert waste
Inert waste is waste which is neither chemically or biologically reactive and will not decompose. Examples of this are sand, drywall, and concrete. This has particular relevance to landfills as inert waste typically requires lower disposal fees than biodegradable waste or hazardous waste....
for disposal is sent to landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
at the Beal Valley. Oldham's Distribution Network Operator
Distribution Network Operator
Distribution network operators are companies licensed to distribute electricity in Great Britain by the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets....
for electricity is United Utilities
United Utilities
United Utilities Group PLC is the UK's largest listed water business. The Group owns and manages the regulated water and waste water network in the north west England, through it subsidiary United Utilities Water PLC , which is responsible for the vast majority of the group's assets and...
; there are no power station
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
s in the town. United Utilities also manages Oldham's drinking
Drinking water
Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...
and waste water; water supplies being sourced from several local reservoirs, including Dovestones
Dovestones Reservoir
Dovestone Reservoir is a reservoir situated in a valley above the village of Greenfield, in Saddleworth,Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Situated within the historic West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the edge of the Peak District national park in the Pennines...
and Chew. There is a water treatment
Water treatment
Water treatment describes those processes used to make water more acceptable for a desired end-use. These can include use as drinking water, industrial processes, medical and many other uses. The goal of all water treatment process is to remove existing contaminants in the water, or reduce the...
works at Waterhead
Waterhead, Greater Manchester
Waterhead , is an area of Oldham, and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
.
Culture
Oldham, though lacking in leisure and cultural amenities, is historically notable for its theatrical culture. Once having a peak of six "fine" theatres in 1908, Oldham is home to the Oldham Coliseum TheatreOldham Coliseum Theatre
Oldham Coliseum Theatre is a theatre in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England.Oldham Coliseum is a building-based producing theatre. It has a capacity in its main auditorium of 585 seats; in addition the theatre has a studio with a capacity of 50 seats...
and the Oldham Theatre Workshop
Oldham Theatre Workshop
The Oldham Theatre Workshop is a youth theatre group based in the north west of England.-Outline:Founded by David Johnson in 1968, the workshop is renowned for producing some of the best young acting talent in Britain...
, which have facilitated the early careers of notable actors and writers, including Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes
Eric Sykes, CBE is an English radio, television and film writer, actor and director whose performing career has spanned more than 50 years. He frequently wrote for and/or performed with many other leading comedy performers and writers of the period, including Tony Hancock, Spike Milligan, Peter...
, Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins, OBE is an English character actor, voice-over artist and musical comedian with a career spanning over half a century who came to prominence in films in the 1960s, has been in work consistently since his professional debut in the mid 1950s, and as of 2010 is still an active...
and Anne Kirkbride
Anne Kirkbride
Anne Kirkbride is an English actress, best known for her long-running role as Deirdre Barlow in Coronation Street which she has played for thirty-nine years.-Coronation Street:...
, daughter of acclaimed cartoonist
Cartoonist
A cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. This work is usually humorous, mainly created for entertainment, political commentary or advertising...
Jack Kirkbride
Jack Kirkbride
Jack Kirkbride was an English cartoonist, and father to Anne Kirkbride, the actress who plays Deirdre Barlow in the ITV soap opera Coronation Street....
who worked for the Oldham Evening Chronicle
Oldham Evening Chronicle
The Oldham Evening Chronicle is a daily newspaper published each weekday evening. It is a local newspaper which serves the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
. Oldham Coliseum Theatre is one of Britain's last remaining repertory theatres; Charlie Chaplin
Charlie Chaplin
Sir Charles Spencer "Charlie" Chaplin, KBE was an English comic actor, film director and composer best known for his work during the silent film era. He became the most famous film star in the world before the end of World War I...
and Stan Laurel
Stan Laurel
Arthur Stanley "Stan" Jefferson , better known as Stan Laurel, was an English comic actor, writer and film director, famous as the first half of the comedy team Laurel and Hardy. His film acting career stretched between 1917 and 1951 and included a starring role in the Academy Award winning film...
performed there in the early 20th century, and contemporary actors such as Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Fiennes
Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes is an English actor and film director. He has appeared in such films as The English Patient, In Bruges, The Constant Gardener, Strange Days, The Duchess and Schindler's List....
and Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver
Minnie Driver is an English actress and singer-songwriter. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1997 film Good Will Hunting, as well as for an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe for her work in the television series The Riches.- Early life...
, among others, have appeared more recently. In the nineteenth century, the circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
was a popular entertainment in Oldham, with Pablo Fanque
Pablo Fanque
Pablo Fanque was the first black circus proprietor in Britain. His circus, in which he himself was a performer, was the most popular circus in Victorian Britain for 30 years, a period that is regarded as the golden age of the circus...
's circus, a regular visitor to town, filling a 3000-seat amphitheatre on Tommyfield in 1869. Criticised for its lack of a cinema
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
, there are plans to develop an "Oldham West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
". Oldham has a thriving bar and night club culture which attracts significant number of young people into the town centre. Oldham's "hard binge drinking
Binge drinking
Binge drinking or heavy episodic drinking is the modern epithet for drinking alcoholic beverages with the primary intention of becoming intoxicated by heavy consumption of alcohol over a short period of time. It is a kind of purposeful drinking style that is popular in several countries worldwide,...
culture" has been criticised however for conveying a negative regional image of the town.
Communal facilities
The Lyceum is a Grade II listed building opened in 1856 at a cost of £6,500 as a "mutual improvement" centre for the working men of Oldham; it replaced an earlier building constructed in 1839. The facilities provided to members included a library, a newsroom, and a series of lectures on geology, geography and education, microscopy and chemistry, female education, and botany. Instrumental music was introduced and there were soon 16 violinists and 3 'cellists. Eventually the building was extended to include a School of Science and Art. Music had always been important in the life of the Lyceum, and in 1892 a school of music was opened, with 39 students enrolled for the "theory and practice of music".The Lyceum continued throughout the 20th century as a centre for the arts in Oldham, and in 1986 the local authority was invited by its directors and trustees to accept the building as a gift. The acceptance of the Lyceum building by the Education Committee provided the opportunity to re-locate The Music Centre and "further enhance the cultural activities of the town". In 1989 the Oldham Metropolitan Borough Music Centre moved into the Lyceum building, which is now the home of the Oldham Lyceum School of Music.
Oldham’s museum and gallery service dates back to 1883. Since then it has established itself as a cultural focus for Oldham and has developed one of the largest and most varied permanent collections in North West England
North West England
North West England, informally known as The North West, is one of the nine official regions of England.North West England had a 2006 estimated population of 6,853,201 the third most populated region after London and the South East...
. The current collection includes over social and industrial history items, more than works of art, about items of decorative art, more than natural history specimens, over geological specimens, about archaeological artefacts, photographs and a large number of books, pamphlets and documents.
Oldham is now home to a newly built state-of-the-art art gallery, Gallery Oldham
Gallery Oldham
Gallery Oldham is a free-to-view public art gallery found in the Cultural Quarter of central Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England.-Design:Designed by architects Pringle Richards Sharratt, Gallery Oldham was completed in its original form in February 2002...
, which was completed in February 2002 as the first phase of the Oldham Cultural Quarter. Later phases of the development saw the opening of an extended Oldham Library, a lifelong learning centre and there are plans to include a performing arts centre.
Carnival
The annual Oldham Carnival started around 1900, although the tradition of carnivalCarnival
Carnaval is a festive season which occurs immediately before Lent; the main events are usually during February. Carnaval typically involves a public celebration or parade combining some elements of a circus, mask and public street party...
s in the town goes back much further, providing a "welcomed respite from the tedium of everyday life". The carnival parade was always held in mid-to-late summer, with the primary aim of raising money for charities. It often featured local dignitaries or popular entertainers, in addition to brass, military and jazz bands, the Carnival Queen, people in fancy dress, dancers and decorated floats
Float (parade)
A float is a decorated platform, either built on a vehicle or towed behind one, which is a component of many festive parades, such as those of Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Carnival of Viareggio, the Maltese Carnival, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Key West Fantasy Fest parade, the...
from local churches and businesses. Whenever possible, local people who had attained national celebrity status were invited to join the cavalcade. The carnival's route began in the town centre, wound its way along King Street, and ended with a party in Alexandra Park
Alexandra Park, Oldham
Alexandra Park is a public park in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. It was created in response to the Lancashire Cotton Famine of 1861–1865 as an attempt to keep local textile workers employed. The park is located in the Glodwick area of Oldham....
.
The carnival was a popular and prestigious event, though it fell out of favour in the late 1990s. The carnival was resurrected in 2006, rebranded the People's Carnival.
Notable people
People from Oldham are called Oldhamers, though "Roughyed" is a nicknameNickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
from the 18th century when rough felt
Felt
Felt is a non-woven cloth that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing woollen fibres. While some types of felt are very soft, some are tough enough to form construction materials. Felt can be of any colour, and made into any shape or size....
was used in Oldham to make hats. The town has been the birthplace and home to notable people, of national and international acclaim. Edward Potts
Edward Potts (architect)
Edward Potts was an architect who practised in Oldham, Lancashire, England. He was born on 2 March 1839 in Bury, Lancashire. He moved to Oldham and designed many of the town's Cotton mills and was ranked with P. S. Stott as the greatest mill architect of Victorian Lancashire...
was a renowned architect who moved to Oldham from nearby Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
. He was the architect for fourteen new mills in the borough including the Bell mill (1904) and the Iris mill (1907). Other notable persons of historic significance with a connection to Oldham are acclaimed composer Sir William Walton
William Walton
Sir William Turner Walton OM was an English composer. During a sixty-year career, he wrote music in several classical genres and styles, from film scores to opera...
, former British Prime Minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Sir Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill, was a predominantly Conservative British politician and statesman known for his leadership of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wartime leaders of the century and served as Prime Minister twice...
, and Louise Brown
Louise Brown
Louise Joy Brown is the first person to be conceived by in vitro fertilization, or IVF.-Birth:...
, the world's first baby to be conceived by in vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation
In vitro fertilisation is a process by which egg cells are fertilised by sperm outside the body: in vitro. IVF is a major treatment in infertility when other methods of assisted reproductive technology have failed...
. Notable Oldhamers from TV entertainment
Entertainment
Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
include comedy double act
Double act
A double act, also known as a comedy duo, is a comic pairing in which humor is derived from the uneven relationship between two partners, usually of the same gender, age, ethnic origin and profession, but drastically different personalities or behavior...
Tommy Cannon
Tommy Cannon
Tommy Cannon is a comedian and the feed member of comedy double act Cannon and Ball, along with Bobby Ball....
and Bobby Ball
Bobby Ball
Bobby Ball is one half of the comedy double act Cannon and Ball, along with Tommy Cannon.He married his first wife, Joan, in 1964, with whom he had two sons, Robert and Darren , who are now a comedy double act in their own right, performing under their surname 'Harper'. Bobby and his first wife...
, TV host Phillip Schofield
Phillip Schofield
Phillip Bryan Schofield is an English broadcaster and television personality best known for presenting shows such as This Morning, Dancing on Ice, and various game shows including The Cube.-Early life and career:...
, actress Shobna Gulati
Shobna Gulati
Shobna Gulati is an English actress, writer, and dancer of Indian origin, best known for playing Anita in Victoria Wood's Dinnerladies, and Sunita Alahan in the long-running soap opera Coronation Street from 2001 to 2006, a role to which she returned at the end of 2009...
and comedian, musician and actor Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins
Bernard Cribbins, OBE is an English character actor, voice-over artist and musical comedian with a career spanning over half a century who came to prominence in films in the 1960s, has been in work consistently since his professional debut in the mid 1950s, and as of 2010 is still an active...
. Notable musicians from Oldham include the Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets
Inspiral Carpets are an alternative rock band from Oldham in Greater Manchester, England formed by Graham Lambert and Stephen Holt in 1983. The band is named after a clothing shop on their Oldham estate...
, Drummer Simon Wright
Simon Wright
Simon Wright is an English drummer best known for his stints with rock n' roll bands AC/DC and Dio. He first started playing drums at the age of 13 and cites Cozy Powell, Tommy Aldridge and John Bonham as his greatest influences...
and Mark Owen
Mark Owen
Mark Anthony Patrick Owen , is an English singer-songwriter. He is a member of pop band Take That. The band were hugely successful during the 1990s and have enjoyed even more success since their reunion in 2005...
of boyband Take That
Take That
Take That are a British five-piece vocal pop group comprising Gary Barlow, Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Barlow acts as the lead singer and primary songwriter...
. Notable sportsmen from Oldham include former England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
captain David Platt. and Manchester United and former England footballer Paul Scholes
Paul Scholes
Paul Scholes is a retired English footballer, a one-club man who played his entire professional career for Manchester United.Born in Salford, but later moving to Langley, Scholes excelled in both cricket and football in school. He first trained with Manchester United at the age of 14 after being...
External links
- www.oldham.gov.uk, Website of Oldham Council.
- www.genuki.org.uk, GENUKI entry for Oldham, including genealogical data and historic descriptions.
- www.oldhamadvertiser.co.uk, Website for one of Oldham's weekly newspapers, the Oldham AdvertiserOldham AdvertiserThe Oldham Advertiser is a weekly newspaper which serves the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Established in 1982, it is owned by Trinity Mirror plc, as part of MEN Media which contains a collection of newspapers across North West England including the Manchester Evening...
. - www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk, Website for Oldham's daily newspaper, the Oldham Evening ChronicleOldham Evening ChronicleThe Oldham Evening Chronicle is a daily newspaper published each weekday evening. It is a local newspaper which serves the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England...
. - www.coliseum.org.uk/, Official website of Oldham Coliseum TheatreOldham Coliseum TheatreOldham Coliseum Theatre is a theatre in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England.Oldham Coliseum is a building-based producing theatre. It has a capacity in its main auditorium of 585 seats; in addition the theatre has a studio with a capacity of 50 seats...
. - www.oldhamcarnival.org.uk, Official website for the planning and reporting of the annual Oldham Carnival.