Everything about Heywood Greater Manchester totally explained
Heywood is a town within the
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in
Greater Manchester,
England. It is close to
Middleton and
Bury, and played a part during the
Industrial Revolution as a Lancashire
mill town.
Heywood can be reached via junction 19 of the
M62 Motorway and is also served by the
East Lancashire Railway (primarily a tourist attraction). Its main industry in the past has been
cotton milling, although this has long since declined. Heywood is now home to one of the largest distribution parks in the North-West, supported by significant motorway links with
Manchester and
Liverpool.
History
Early history
The town of Heywood has its origins in the 13th century, but the area owes much of its charm and character to
Sir Robert Peel, (the father of the Prime Minister of the same name, originator of Britain's first
police force), who created the
textile town virtually from a Greenfield site.
Industrial Revolution and cotton
The first spinning-mill commenced in it’s boundaries was at Wrigley Brook, now known as Queens Park Road in the latter part of the last
century, however the extraordinary growth of the
cotton-
trade in
Heywood was in 1845 when there were some thirty-six cotton-mills in the town, all with one exception were for the manufacture of heavy
cotton goods, and comprised of 129,936
spinning machines, 203,066
mule-spindles, and 5320
looms in operation; the manufacturing annually of 8506 tons of
cotton, and consuming 71,101
tons of
coal in its mills and in its two paper-mills, there were approximately 7510
persons employed.
In 1855,
Isambard Kingdom Brunel is reputed to have visited the
town, staying overnight in the
Freemason's Arms Hotel in the town centre.
In 1898 W.R.Lee & Company of "Hooley Bridge",
Towel Manufactures began operation as the largest weaving mill in
Heywood, employing some 800+ workers and over 1000 Lancashire and Northrop weaving Looms. It is responsible for the trade names
Leeona (named after W.R.Lee) and "Chortex" (named after "
Chrorley Textiles") brands which were sold
worldwide.
In 1905
Plum Mill began operation as the
largest mule-spinning mill in the
world under one
roof, however
Plum Mill and its sister-mill "
Unity Mill" were idled in the 1960s under the
government reorganization of the
cotton industry. The last large
weaving mill in the town was
J. Smith Hargreaves & Company,
towel manufactures; however this too was idled in the 1980s and operations were transferred to
W.T.Taylor & Co. Ltd, in
Horwich near
Bolton.
Heywood is an archetypal
mill town, and during the
Industrial Revolution its main industry was
cotton. Many of the
cotton mills have now been demolished, mainly for housing. One of the last mills remaining, though not in production since 1986, has recently been offered for redevelopment as apartments. The "
Mutual Mills", a complex of four, are grade II listed buildings.
Peter Heywood
Peter Heywood, a member of the famous family, and a resident of Heywood Hall was reputedly the man who snatched the torch from the hand of
Guy Fawkes as he was about to light the fuse which would have detonated kegs of gunpowder stashed in the cellars of the
Houses of Parliament in
Westminster on the evening of
November 5,
1605. Had Peter not grabbed the torch, it's likely that the entire building would have been destroyed - taking King James I and his MPs with it. Peter’s achievement and
Guy Fawkes' failure (or the attempt) is remembered by
Guy Fawkes Night (also known as Bonfire Night or Fireworks Night) on November 5.
Other history
Heywood became a borough on 18 February 1881, incorporating Heap, Hopwood, Pilsworth and Birtle-with-Bamford. At the time, the district included 67 cotton mills and weaving sheds, 67 machine works and other workshops, 75 cotton waste and other warehouses and 5,877 dwelling houses. It had 22 churches and chapels and 24 Sunday and day schools. The population was estimated at 25,000.
The town was originally served by railway, with a
station to the south of the town. There were services to Bury
Knowsley Street station and
Rochdale, but this line was closed in the 1970s. However, the line has recently been re-opened to
Bury, as an extension to the
East Lancashire Railway preservation project.
The town also had it's own canal, the
Heywood Branch Canal which is now infilled and largely gone.
Governance
Heywood is part of the
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale of
Greater Manchester.
Geography
Neighbouring towns, villages and places.>
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Hopwood is a locality within Heywood.
Economy
The main employer in the town is the distribution park with many of the country's major retailers having warehouse units there. Another major employer in the town is the government facility on Manchester Road; employment in this site is varied, and ranges from Department of Health administration to a local branch of the British Intelligence Services (
SIS).
The town centre of Heywood has declined in recent years. The shops along Market Street have suffered at the hands of retail parks and supermarket developments. The centre of the town includes
Morrisons supermarket and
Dunnes Stores, and some smaller shops.
The whole town is currently undergoing a major regeneration as part of the Government's
New Deal for Communities, and New Heart for Heywood are investing over £52m. This bid was initially won in 2000 and work to regenerate this town is still ongoing. Some of the planned works for 2006-2008 include a new Health Connections Centre, a new family Surestart Centre, a new Primary School (although several are being knocked down as a result) and a multi-million pound sports and leisure village.
There are controversial plans to build a second landfill site in the area.
Places of interest
- Ashworth Valley is a renowned local beauty spot.
The Corgi Heritage Centre attracted visitors from all around the world, who came to marvel at its unprecedented range of collectible models. Unfortunately, as of January 2007, there seems to be no signs of activity.
Heywood is twinned with Peine, Germany.
Queens Park in Heywood has recently undergone a multi-million pound facelift with many of its Victorian attractions restored such as the old fountain and many of the statues. It was officially 're-opened' in June 2006.
Transport
Rail
The nearest stations on the national rail network are Rochdale, and Bury Metrolink.
Heywood Railway Station re-opened on the East Lancashire Railway in September 2003.
Bus
Frequent services run to Manchester via Middleton (Service 163) and to Rochdale, Bury and Bolton (Service 471).
Road
The M62 motorway passes to the south of the town, and can be accessed at Junction 19.
Notable people
Peter Kane, World Flyweight Boxing Champion. (1918 - 1991).
Space Monkeys, The last ever band signed to the legendary Tony Wilson's Factory Records, had a top 10 US College Radio hit 'Sugar Cane' in 1998 and featured in the soundtrack to the 'Sliding Doors' movie and 'Dawsons Creek'.
Carol Anne Lowry, Heiress to the works of L.S. Lowry, though not related.
Coronation Street actress Julie Goodyear was born in Heywood and still lives in the town.
Football player David Cross is from Heywood.
TV Star Les Dennis maintains a holiday campervan in the scenic Ashworth Valley area, and is a frequent visitor to the town.
Pop band The Mock Turtles were formed in Heywood.
Heywood is home to several famous sportsmen, including footballer David Bentley and Lancashire cricketer Ian Austin. Rugby League legend and Superstars champion Des Drummond also currently resides in the Darnhill region of Heywood.
Roger Fenton, pioneering British photographer, was born and lived in Heywood.
Former Everton and Oldham Athletic goalkeeper Paul Gerrard was born and raised in Heywood.
Cricketer Steve Kirby is from Heywood. He currently plies his trade for Gloucestershire County Cricket Club.
Lisa Stansfield, singer of the UK and USA number one hit "All Around The World", is from Heywood.
Footballer Jon Macken owns a house in Heywood but currently plies his trade away from the area.
Christine Gaskell, Commonwealth 100m breaststroke gold medallist (Christchurch 1974), was born, raised and still lives in Heywood. The community swimming baths, Gaskell Pool, are named in her honour.
Comedian Bobby Ball lives in the Queens Park area in Heywood
Elliott Tittensor who plays Carl Gallagher in the channel 4 TV programme Shameless whose twin brother is LukeTittensor
Luke Tittensor who plays Daz Eden in Emmerdale was born in Heywood whose twin brother is Elliot Tittensor
Chris Hewitt Record Company and Recording Studio mogul and Deeply Vale Festival Organiser lived in Heywood in his teenage years and promoted concerts in Heywood in his mid twenties.
Arthur burgess Artist born in Heywood.
Trivia
Heywood is well known for its density of public houses, reputedly at one point, the highest per head of population in the country some 73 public houses "one on nearly every corner of each major street" and at some intersections four pubs were "competing for business". Highlights include the Queen Anne pub (also known as the 'Style Bar') in the town centre; in years gone by this pub it's reputedly told that it had staged public hangings in its back yard.
The only CAMRA rated pub in Heywood is "The Wishing Well", and is owned by an ordained Baptist minister, the rev. Mike Huck., .
Heywood is still often referred to as "Monkey Town" - which legend has it was attributed to the local penchant for bar stools with holes in the seat, ostensibly for tails. A more likely etymology is derived from a now much reduced part of the town called Heap Bridge, or in local patois, "'Ape Bridge", hence "Monkey Town".
The southern wing of St Luke's church, well known throughout the area for its beautiful proportions and ornate carvings, is suggested to have been one of Hitler's high-priority items for acquisition had he won the war. Although difficult to confirm, it's indeed one of the finest examples of its kind in the whole of England.
Edal, the angry otter who bit off Terry Nutkins's fingers, spent the later part of its life in the
Three Owls Animal sanctuary in Heywood.
Michaela Strachan has also filmed here as part of The Really Wild Show, to support BBC TV's Saving Planet Earth, hosted by Graham Norton and Alan Titchmarsh.
Banksy, the renowned graffiti artist, is reputed to have visited the town in 2007. His work in the town includes a picture of a smoking monkey on the side of the Civic Hall, and a stencil of Charles Manson on a block of flats in the Angel Meadow area.
References
Further Information
Get more info on 'Heywood Greater Manchester'.
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