Heywood, Greater Manchester
Encyclopedia
Heywood is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...

, 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...

, England. It lies on the south bank of the River Roch
River Roch
The River Roch is a river in Greater Manchester in North West England, a tributary of the River Irwell that gives Rochdale its name.-Course:...

 and is 2.4 miles (3.9 km) east of 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...

, 3.7 miles (6 km) west-southwest 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 7.4 miles (11.9 km) north 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...

. The town 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...

 lies to the south, whilst to the north is the Cheesden Valley
Cheesden Valley
The Cheesden Valley is a valley in the Heywood area of Greater Manchester, England. It runs on a north-south alignment between Bury and Rochdale in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. Cheesden Brook runs through the valley, joining with Naden Brook to eventually run into the River Roch near Heywood...

, open 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 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...

. Heywood's nickname is Monkey Town, a name with unclear origin, but known to date as far back as 1857.

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...

, Heywood as a settlement is believed to date from Early Medieval England
History of Anglo-Saxon England
Anglo-Saxon England refers to the period of the history of that part of Britain, that became known as England, lasting from the end of Roman occupation and establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th century until the Norman conquest of England in 1066 by William the Conqueror...

, when the 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...

 cleared the densely wooded area, and divided it into heys or fenced clearings. During 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...

, Heywood formed a chapelry
Chapelry
A chapelry was a subdivision of an ecclesiastical parish in England, and parts of Lowland Scotland up to the mid 19th century. It had a similar status to a township but was so named as it had a chapel which acted as a subsidiary place of worship to the main parish church...

 in the 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...

 of Heap. This chapelry was centred on Heywood Hall, a manor house owned by a family with the surname Heywood. Farming was the main industry of this sparsely populated rural area, which in the 15th century "consisted of a few cottages". The local population supplemented their incomes by hand-loom woollen weaving in the domestic system.

The factory system
Factory system
The factory system was a method of manufacturing first adopted in England at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the 1750s and later spread abroad. Fundamentally, each worker created a separate part of the total assembly of a product, thus increasing the efficiency of factories. Workers,...

 in the town can be traced to a spinning 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....

 in the late 18th century. Following the introduction of textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
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...

, Heywood developed into populous 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:...

 and coal mining district. A period of "extraordinary growth of the cotton-trade" in the mid-19th century was so quick and profound that there was "an influx of strangers causing a very dense population". The town was granted borough status
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...

 in 1881. Imports of foreign cotton goods during the mid-20th century precipitated the decline of Heywood's textile and mining industries, although this resulted in a more diverse industrial pattern.

Economically, Heywood is supported by its proximity to junction 19 of the 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...

, which provides transport links for large distribution parks in the south of the town. The major landmark is the 1860s-built 188 feet (57 m) tall Parish Church of St Luke the Evangelist which dominates the town's centre and skyline. Heywood was the birthplace of Peter Heywood, the magistrate who aided the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...

 whose family seat was Heywood Hall. Heywood has a station on the East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...

, a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...

 and local tourist attraction.

History

Evidence attests that human activity in the area extends back to the Mesolithic
Mesolithic
The Mesolithic is an archaeological concept used to refer to certain groups of archaeological cultures defined as falling between the Paleolithic and the Neolithic....

 period; flints have been found in Heywood, in the Cheesden Valley
Cheesden Valley
The Cheesden Valley is a valley in the Heywood area of Greater Manchester, England. It runs on a north-south alignment between Bury and Rochdale in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. Cheesden Brook runs through the valley, joining with Naden Brook to eventually run into the River Roch near Heywood...

 and Knowl Moor areas. Artefacts
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...

 from the Roman period
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 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...

 have been discovered. A Bronze Age cairn
Cairn
Cairn is a term used mainly in the English-speaking world for a man-made pile of stones. It comes from the or . Cairns are found all over the world in uplands, on moorland, on mountaintops, near waterways and on sea cliffs, and also in barren desert and tundra areas...

 0.6 metres (2 ft) high and 10 metres (32.8 ft) in diameter was discovered in the 1960s. Excavations by the Bury Archaeological Group revealed beakers associated with human burials. The name Heywood is believed to derive from the Old English word "haga", meaning hedge or animal-enclosure. In the 12th century, Heywood was recorded as a 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...

 in the 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...

 of Heap.

A family surnamed Heywood can be traced back to the 11th century, and in 1286, Adam de Bury granted the land of Heywood to Peter of Heywood. Heywood Hall, the administrative centre of the manor and the seat of the Heywood family, was built in the 13th century. A member of the family and a resident of Heywood Hall was Peter Heywood, the magistrate who, with a party of men, arrested Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes , also known as Guido Fawkes, the name he adopted while fighting for the Spanish in the Low Countries, belonged to a group of provincial English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605.Fawkes was born and educated in York...

 during the Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...

 of 1605. Another member of the family, also called Peter Heywood, was aboard the HMS Bounty
Mutiny on the Bounty
The mutiny on the Bounty was a mutiny that occurred aboard the British Royal Navy ship HMS Bounty on 28 April 1789, and has been commemorated by several books, films, and popular songs, many of which take considerable liberties with the facts. The mutiny was led by Fletcher Christian against the...

 when its crew mutinied in 1789.

During 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...

 the area was thinly populated and consisted of several hamlets. Apart from the Heywoods of Heywood Hall, the sparse population of Heywood comprised a small community of farmers, most of whom were involved with pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...

 but supplemented their incomes by weaving woollens and fustian
Fustian
Fustian is a term for a variety of heavy woven, mostly cotton fabrics, chiefly prepared for menswear. It is also used to refer to pompous, inflated or pretentious writing or speech, from at least the time of Shakespeare...

s in the domestic system. During the Early Modern period
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...

, the weavers of Heywood had been using spinning wheel
Spinning wheel
A spinning wheel is a device for spinning thread or yarn from natural or synthetic fibers. Spinning wheels appeared in Asia, probably in the 11th century, and very gradually replaced hand spinning with spindle and distaff...

s in makeshift weavers' cottage
Weavers' cottage
A weavers' cottage was a type of house used by weavers for cloth production in the Domestic system.Weavers' cottages were common in Great Britain, particularly in Yorkshire, usually with dwelling quarters on the lower floors and loom-shops on the top floor...

s, but as the demand for cotton goods increased and the technology 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...

 improved during the early 18th century, the need for larger structures to house bigger and more efficient equipment became apparent. Industrial 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...

 was introduced in the town in the late 18th century and the first spinning-mill - Makin Mill - was built at Wrigley Brook (later known as Queens Park Road). By 1780 there remained less than 100 hand-loom fustian weavers out of a population of 2,000 and industrialist Sir Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 1st Baronet
Sir Robert Peel, 1st Baronet , was a British politician and industrialist and one of early textile manufacturers of the Industrial Revolution...

 (father of 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...

 Robert Peel
Robert Peel
Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet was a British Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 10 December 1834 to 8 April 1835, and again from 30 August 1841 to 29 June 1846...

) converted Makin Mill for cotton production. This initiated a process of urbanisation and socioeconomic transformation in the area and the population moved away from farming, adopting employment in the factory system
Factory system
The factory system was a method of manufacturing first adopted in England at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in the 1750s and later spread abroad. Fundamentally, each worker created a separate part of the total assembly of a product, thus increasing the efficiency of factories. Workers,...

. The cotton-trade in Heywood grew, and by 1833 there were 27 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.

What was described as a period of "extraordinary growth of the cotton-trade" in the mid-19th century, led to "an influx of strangers causing a very dense population". Urbanisation caused by the expansion of factories and housing meant that in 1885, 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...

-born poet Edwin Waugh
Edwin Waugh
Edwin Waugh , poet, son of a shoemaker, was born in Rochdale, Lancashire, England, and, after a little schooling, apprenticed to a printer, Thomas Holden, at the age of 12...

, was able to describe Heywood as "almost entirely the creation of the cotton industry".

In 1905 Plum Tickle Mill began operation as the largest mule-spinning
Spinning mule
The spinning mule was a machine used to spin cotton and other fibres in the mills of Lancashire and elsewhere from the late eighteenth to the early twentieth century. Mules were worked in pairs by a minder, with the help of two boys: the little piecer and the big or side piecer...

 mill in the world under one roof, however, Plum Mill and its sister-mill, Unity Mill, were idled in the 1960s under the government reorganisation of the cotton industry. The last large weaving mill in the town was J. Smith Hargreaves & Company, towel manufacturers. However this mill was also idled in the 1980s and operations were transferred to W.T.Taylor & Company in Horwich
Horwich
Horwich is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Chorley, northwest of Bolton and northwest from the city of Manchester. It lies at the southern edge of the West Pennine Moors with the M61 motorway close to the...

.
Most of the 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 have now been demolished, mainly to make way 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.

The town also has a history of 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,...

. Coal pits were opened in Hooley Clough in the early 19th century by the Lord of the Manor of Rochdale. During the 19th century a colliery at Captain Fold was run by the Heywood Coal Company. Two people were killed at Captain Fold between 1844 and 1848. When the mine flooded in 1852 two more people were killed and the colliery closed soon after. Mining continued in the town with drift mining
Drift mining
Drift mining is either the mining of a placer deposit by underground methods, or the working of coal seams accessed by adits driven into the surface outcrop of the coal bed. Drift is a more general mining term, meaning a near-horizontal passageway in a mine, following the bed or vein of ore. A...

 in Bamford until 1950.

In 1881, the newly created Municipal Borough of Heywood
Municipal Borough of Heywood
The Municipal Borough of Heywood was, from 1881 to 1974, a local government district in the administrative county of Lancashire, England, with borough status and coterminate with the town of Heywood.-Civic history:...

 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 Heywood railway station
Heywood railway station
Heywood railway station serves the town of Heywood in Greater Manchester, England. The original station opened on the national rail network in 1841 and closed in 1970. It re-opened on 6 September 2003 as an extension of the East Lancashire Railway from Bury Bolton Street...

 to the south of the town. There were services to Bury Knowsley Street station 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...

, but this line was closed in the 1970s. However, the line has recently been re-opened to 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...

, as an extension to the East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...

 preservation project.

The town had its own canal, the Heywood Branch Canal
Heywood Branch Canal
The Heywood Branch Canal was a branch of the Rochdale Canal from Castleton which led to Heywood.-Current status:The branch canal is now almost completely lost. The M62 between junctions 19 and 20 has been built alongside the original junction with the Rochdale Canal and blocks the route of the...

 which is now infilled and largely gone.

There is a local legend that men from Heywood used to have tails and that public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...

s had holes in their benches for tails to fit through. The legend led to the town developing the nickname of "Monkey Town". This legend is actually fanciful, and the accepted reason is that the local area of "Heap Bridge", once a thriving part of the town was known as 'Ape Bridge' when said in the local accent.

In the 20th century, the town's cotton mills went into steep decline, only Glossop
Glossop
Glossop is a market town within the Borough of High Peak in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the Glossop Brook, a tributary of the River Etherow, about east of the city of Manchester, west of the city of Sheffield. Glossop is situated near Derbyshire's county borders with Cheshire, Greater...

 in Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...

 went into sharper recession; in contrast, the spinning capacity of nearby Rochdale shrank more slowly than any other mill-town apart from Wigan.

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 is indeed one of the finest examples of its kind in the whole of England.

In 2007 plans were announced to shake off an area's 'mill town' image and rejuvenate the town over a 10–15-year period to appeal to a younger generation. The plan involves creating new retail, business, and community spaces, demolishing 300 flats and houses and replacing them with 1,000 new homes.

Civic history

Lying within the historic county boundaries
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, Heywood during 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...

 constituted a chapelry
Chapelry
A chapelry was a subdivision of an ecclesiastical parish in England, and parts of Lowland Scotland up to the mid 19th century. It had a similar status to a township but was so named as it had a chapel which acted as a subsidiary place of worship to the main parish church...

 in the 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...

 of Heap, parish of 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...

, and 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...

. The Heywood family, who had their seat at Heywood Hall, exercised considerable political power throughout the Middle Ages on the locale.

Following the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834
Poor Law Amendment Act 1834
The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, sometimes abbreviated to PLAA, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed by the Whig government of Lord Melbourne that reformed the country's poverty relief system . It was an Amendment Act that completely replaced earlier legislation based on the...

, Heywood formed part of the Bury Poor Law Union
Poor Law Union
A Poor Law Union was a unit used for local government in the United Kingdom from the 19th century. The administration of the Poor Law was the responsibility of parishes, which varied wildly in their size, populations, financial resources, rateable values and requirements...

, an inter-parish unit established to provide social security
Social security
Social security is primarily a social insurance program providing social protection or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment and others. Social security may refer to:...

. Heywood's first local authority was a Local board of health
Local board of health
Local Boards or Local Boards of Health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate slaughterhouses and ensure the proper supply of water to their...

 established in 1864; Heap Middle Division Local Board of Health was a regulatory body responsible for standards of hygiene and sanitation for the Heywood part of Heap township. In 1867 the local board was reconstituted as the Heywood Local Board of Health which covered the whole of Heap township and parts of Hopwood, Birtle-with-Bamford, Pilsworth and Castleton
Castleton, Greater Manchester
Castleton is an area of Rochdale and an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It is south-southwest of Rochdale town centre and north-northwest of the city of Manchester....

 townships. In 1879 further parts of Hopwood and Pilsworth townships were added to the area under the local board. It was not recognised as a borough in the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835  – sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales...

, but on 18 February 1881 the area of the local board was granted 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...

 and became the Municipal Borough of Heywood
Municipal Borough of Heywood
The Municipal Borough of Heywood was, from 1881 to 1974, a local government district in the administrative county of Lancashire, England, with borough status and coterminate with the town of Heywood.-Civic history:...

. Following the Local Government Act 1894
Local Government Act 1894
The Local Government Act 1894 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level under the Local Government Act 1888...

 (which formally dissolved all townships) the municipal borough became a local government district of the administrative county
Administrative counties of England
Administrative counties were a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government from 1889 to 1974. They were created by the Local Government Act 1888 as the areas for which county councils were elected. Some large counties were divided into several administrative...

 of Lancashire. The borough council was based out of Heywood's Municipal Buildings. In 1900 a part of Castleton Urban District was added to the Municipal Borough of Heywood, and in 1933 part of the Heywood borough was added to County Borough of Bury
County Borough of Bury
Bury was a local government district centred on Bury in the northwest of England from 1846 to 1974.Under the Bury Improvement Act 1846 a board of twenty-seven improvement commissioners was formed for Bury. The Improvement Commissioners District was enlarged in 1872...

 whilst in exchange, parts of Norden Urban District and of Birtle-with-Bamford and Unsworth
Unsworth
Unsworth is a residential area of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It is seven miles north of the city of Manchester and four miles south of Bury.-History:...

 civil parishes were added to the Borough of Heywood. In 1967, the Borough of Heywood became twinned with Peine
Peine
Peine is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, capital of the district Peine. It is situated on the river Fuhse and the Mittellandkanal, approx. 25 km west of Braunschweig, and 40 km east of Hanover.- History :...

, Germany.

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 Municipal Borough of Heywood was abolished, and Heywood has, since 1 April 1974, formed an unparished area
Unparished area
In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish. Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparished. Many towns and some cities in otherwise rural districts are also unparished areas and therefore no longer have a town council or city...

 of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...

, a local government district of 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...

. Municipal Buildings, which served as the former town hall, were demolished in the mid-1980s. Since 1992, Heywood has been one of four township committee areas
Area committee
Many large local government councils in the United Kingdom have a system of area committees, with responsibility for services in a particular part of the area covered by the council....

 of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. The Heywood Township Committee meets six times per year, with the vision of making Heywood "a safe, small town set in attractive countryside ... part of a successful borough and city region". Each meeting commences with an open forum session, which gives local residents the opportunity to ask questions of their local members or to raise issues of local concern.

Parliamentary representation

In terms of parliamentary representation, Heywood after the Reform Act 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...

 was represented as part of the South Lancashire constituency
South Lancashire (UK Parliament constituency)
South Lancashire, formally called the Southern Division of Lancashire or Lancashire Southern, is a former county constituency in England...

, of which the first Members of Parliaments (MPs) were the Liberals
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...

 George William Wood
George William Wood
George William Wood was an English businessman, Member of Parliament and leading member of civil society in Manchester.-Life:...

 and Charles Molyneux
Charles Molyneux, 3rd Earl of Sefton
Charles William Molyneux, 3rd Earl of Sefton , styled Lord Molyneux , was a British Whig politician.-Background:...

. Constituency boundaries changed throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, and Heywood has lain within the South East Lancashire
South East Lancashire (UK Parliament constituency)
South East Lancashire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was represented by two Members of Parliament...

 (1868–1885), Heywood
Heywood (UK Parliament constituency)
Heywood was a county constituency in the county of Lancashire of the House of Commons for the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, it was represented by one Member of Parliament...

 (1885–1918), Heywood and Radcliffe
Heywood and Radcliffe (UK Parliament constituency)
Heywood and Radcliffe was a county constituency centred on the towns of Heywood and Radcliffe in South Lancashire. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.-History:Under the Representation of...

 (1918–1950), and Heywood and Royton
Heywood and Royton (UK Parliament constituency)
Heywood and Royton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Heywood and Royton districts in the north-west of Greater Manchester. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....

 (1950–1983) constituencies. Since 1983, Heywood has lain within Heywood and Middleton. It is represented in the House of Commons by Jim Dobbin
Jim Dobbin
James "Jim" Dobbin is a British Labour Co-operative politician and microbiologist, who has been the Member of Parliament for Heywood and Middleton since 1997.-Education and career:...

, a member of the Labour Party
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...

.

Geography

At 53°35′26"N 2°13′8"W (53.5906°,-2.219°) and 169 miles (272 km) north-northwest of central London
Central London
Central London is the innermost part of London, England. There is no official or commonly accepted definition of its area, but its characteristics are understood to include a high density built environment, high land values, an elevated daytime population and a concentration of regionally,...

, Heywood lies south of 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 the south bank of the River Roch
River Roch
The River Roch is a river in Greater Manchester in North West England, a tributary of the River Irwell that gives Rochdale its name.-Course:...

. The larger towns of 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...

, 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 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...

 lie to the west, south and northeast respectively. 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 :...

, Heywood forms part 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...

, with 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...

 itself 7.4 miles (11.9 km) south of Heywood.

At the north of Heywood, the River Roch meanders westerly into 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...

, and then onwards to Radcliffe
Radcliffe, Greater Manchester
Radcliffe is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on undulating ground in the Irwell Valley, along the course of the River Irwell, south-west of Bury and north-northwest of Manchester. Radcliffe is contiguous with the town of Whitefield to the...

 where it unites its waters with the River Irwell
River Irwell
The River Irwell is a long river which flows through the Irwell Valley in the counties of Lancashire and Greater Manchester in North West England. The river's source is at Irwell Springs on Deerplay Moor, approximately north of Bacup, in the parish of Cliviger, Lancashire...

. The general slope of the land in Heywood increases in height away from the Roch. From the north bank of the Roch is the Roch Valley and Cheesden Valley
Cheesden Valley
The Cheesden Valley is a valley in the Heywood area of Greater Manchester, England. It runs on a north-south alignment between Bury and Rochdale in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. Cheesden Brook runs through the valley, joining with Naden Brook to eventually run into the River Roch near Heywood...

. The Cheesden Valley is a wooded river valley of the Cheesden Brook, flanked on all sides by high moorland and small hamlets
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...

, like Birtle
Birtle, Greater Manchester
Birtle is a hamlet within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies in the Cheesden Valley, set amongst the Pennines....

. The soil is sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

y, and the subsoil is clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...

.

Heywood's built environment
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...

 follows a standard 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...

, consisting of residential dwellings centred around a Market Street in the town centre, which is the local centre of commerce. There is a mixture of low-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 Heywood, 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 residential. Heywood is surrounded on all sides by Green Belt
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...

, variously consisting of wooded river valleys and high moorland in the north, and flat farmland in the south.

Suburban localities in Heywood include Broadfield, Captain Fold, Crimble, Darnhill
Darnhill
Darnhill is an area of Heywood, a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. In the 20th century, Darnhill was chosen as the location for a planned overspill housing estate for Manchester, to allievate quality housing shortages in that city...

, and Hopwood
Hopwood, Greater Manchester
Hopwood is a suburb of Heywood, a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It is north of the M62 motorway....

. Hopwood was formerly 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...

 of itself, but was amalgamated into Heywood in the 19th century. Darnhill is the site of a planned overspill council estate
Overspill estate
An overspill estate is a housing estate planned and built for the rehousing of people from decaying inner city areas usually as part of the process of slum clearance....

, built in the 1950s and 1960s as part of a slum clearance project throughout inner-city Manchester. Heywood's population increased when thousands of people were moved out of Manchester's slums and into what was then the Heywood countryside of Darnhill.

Demography

Heywood Compared
2001 UK census Heywood Rochdale (borough)
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale
The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, but spans a far larger area which includes the towns of Middleton, Heywood, Littleborough and Milnrow, and the village of Wardle.The borough was...

England
Total population 28,024 205,357 49,138,831
White 96.8% 88.6% 90.9%
Asian 1.2% 9.8% 4.6%
Black 0.2% 0.3% 2.3%

According to 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 :...

, at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001
United 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....

, Heywood had a population of 28,024. The 2001 population density was 11,338 per mi² (4,378 per km²), with a 100 to 94.3 female-to-male ratio. Of those over 16 years old, 30.3% were single (never married) and 39.7% married. Heywood's 11,724 households included 31.2% one-person, 34.6% married couples living together, 10.5% were co-habiting
Cohabitation
Cohabitation usually refers to an arrangement whereby two people decide to live together on a long-term or permanent basis in an emotionally and/or sexually intimate relationship. The term is most frequently applied to couples who are not married...

 couples, and 12.6% single parents with their children. Of those aged 16–74, 38.3% had no academic qualifications
National Qualifications Framework
The National Qualifications Framework is a credit transfer system developed for qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland....

.

As of the 2001 UK census, 80.6% of Heywood's residents reported themselves as being Christian, 1.1% Muslim, 0.1% Hindu, 0.1% Buddhist and 0.1% Jewish. The census recorded 9.9% as having no religion, 0.1% had an alternative religion and 8.0% did not state their religion.

Heywood's population remained constant for most of the 20th century, but increased from 24,090 in 1960 to 30,443 in 1970, following the opening of the Darnhill
Darnhill
Darnhill is an area of Heywood, a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. In the 20th century, Darnhill was chosen as the location for a planned overspill housing estate for Manchester, to allievate quality housing shortages in that city...

 overspill council estate, which transferred thousands of people from inner-city Manchester, to Heywood. The first families to move to Heywood from Manchester as part of the slum clearances came in 1963.
Population change in Heywood since 1891
Year 1891 1901 1911 1921 1931 1939 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991 2001
Population 23,185 25,458 26,697 26,693 25,968 25,063 25,201 24,090 30,443 29,686 29,286 28,024

Urban Sanitary District 1891
Municipal Borough 1901–1971
Urban Subdivision 1981–2001

Economy

Heywood Compared
2001 UK Census
United 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....

Heywood Rochdale England
Population of working age 19,804 145,068 35,532,091
Full time employment 41.5% 39.5% 40.8%
Part time employment 12.5% 11.6% 11.8%
Self employed 6.2% 7.0% 8.3%
Unemployed 4.2% 3.9% 3.3%
Retired 12.9% 13.0% 13.5%

From the 18th century onwards, Heywood's economy was closely tied with that of Britain's textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
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...

, particularly the cotton spinning sector. Since deindustrialisation in the 20th century, Heywood's economic activity has been focused around Heywood Town Centre, and the Heywood Distribution Park, one of the UK's largest single-owned industrial park
Industrial park
An industrial park is an area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development...

s. Heywood Town Centre lies at the convergence of Heywood's Market street and York street. Heywood Market Hall, on York street, offers a variety of stalls and small retail outlets. Heywood Distribution Park lies in the south of the town, in Pilsworth, and spans over 200 acres (81 ha). It is part of SEGRO, a property investment and development company with Real Estate Investment Trust
Real estate investment trust
A real estate investment trust or REIT is a tax designation for a corporate entity investing in real estate. The purpose of this designation is to reduce or eliminate corporate tax. In return, REITs are required to distribute 90% of their taxable income into the hands of investors...

 status. Heywood Distribution was sold to SEGRO (then Slough Estates) for £276M, and was one of a number of properties in Greater Manchester that Slough Estates described as "important strategic sites, and provide prime industrial property with high-calibre occupiers as well as development land". It is the largest single-owned distribution park in the region, and has won 16 awards for security. Companies with property in the park include Character Options
Character Options
Character Options is a British toy company, notable for having both the Disney and Doctor Who toy licenses. It hit the headlines during 2007 as the UK distributor for the Bindeez range of products was recalled due to a dangerous chemical.-Doctor Who:...

, Eddie Stobart, Argos
Argos (retailer)
Argos is the largest general-goods retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland with over 800 stores. It is unique amongst major retailers in the UK in that it is a catalogue merchant...

, and Shop Direct Group.

The whole town is undergoing a major regeneration as part of the government's New Deal
New Deal (UK)
The New Deal is a programme of active labour market policies introduced in the United Kingdom by the Labour government in 1998, initially funded by a one off £5bn windfall tax on privatised utility companies. The stated purpose is to reduce unemployment by providing training, subsidised employment...

 for Communities, and New Heart for Heywood are investing around £52 million. The scheme is designed to renew deprived areas. 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.

According to the 2001 UK census, the industry of employment of residents aged 16–74 was 24.6% retail and wholesale, 19.2% manufacturing, 10.7% health and social work, 5.5% education, 8.2% transport and communications, 8.1% property and business services, 7.9% construction, 4.2% public administration, 3.8% hotels and restaurants, 3.0% finance, 0.7% energy and water supply, 0.4% agriculture, 0.1 mining and 3.6% other. Compared with national figures, the town had a relatively low percentage working in agriculture. The census recorded the economic activity of residents aged 16–74, 1.9% students were with jobs, 3.3% students without jobs, 5.6% looking after home or family, 8.5% permanently sick or disabled, and 3.4% economically inactive for other reasons.

The Heywood Advertiser was founded in the 19th century. The newspaper has a readership of 16,500 and runs its own website.

Landmarks

Historically, Heywood's only landmark was Heywood Hall, the town's former manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...

 which was inhabited by the Heywood family. On Heywood in 1881, Edwin Waugh said:

The Parish Church of St Luke the Evangelist is Heywood's major landmark - the focal point of the town centre. A place of worship at the site of St Luke's is known to have existed prior to 1611. The church started life as a chantry
Chantry
Chantry is the English term for a fund established to pay for a priest to celebrate sung Masses for a specified purpose, generally for the soul of the deceased donor. Chantries were endowed with lands given by donors, the income from which maintained the chantry priest...

 chapel for the Heywood family. The Old Heywood Chapel was demolished in 1859 to make way for a new church building in the design of Joseph Clarke. The foundation stone of what is now the present church building was laid on 31 May 1860, and was completed in 1862 using stone from 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...

 and ashlar
Ashlar
Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...

 from Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...

 and Bath. St Luke's was consecrated on 8 October 1862 following a public subscription appeal, and dedicated to Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...

. The tower and spire is detached from the main church building and stands 188 feet (57 m) high, dominating Heywood's centre and townscape.

Heywood War Memorial lies in Memorial Gardens opposite the Parish Church of St Luke the Evangelist, and was originally erected "to the men of Heywood who gave their lives" during the First World War, but later, the Second World War. It is a grey granite cenotaph
Cenotaph
A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been interred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek κενοτάφιον = kenotaphion...

 decorated with wreaths and crosses. At the front is a bronze female figure holding a laurel wreath to symbolise victory. It was sculpted by Walter Marsden. Heywood War Memorial was commissioned by the Heywood War Memorial Committee and unveiled on 22 August 1925 by Hewlett Johnson
Hewlett Johnson
The Very Reverend Hewlett Johnson , was an English clergyman, Dean of Manchester and later Dean of Canterbury, where he acquired his nickname The Red Dean of Canterbury for his unyielding support for the Soviet Union and its allies.-Life:Born in Manchester, the third son of Charles Johnson, a wire...

, the Dean of Manchester
Dean of Manchester
The Dean of Manchester is based in Manchester, England and is the head of the Chapter of Manchester Cathedral. The current Dean is The Very Reverend Rogers Govender.-List of Deans of Manchester:* William Herbert 1840–1847...

. The roll of honour was not engraved on the memorial at the time of its unveiling owing to a lack of funds. Lobbying by the Heywood branch of The Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion , sometimes referred to as simply The Legion, is the United Kingdom's leading charity providing financial, social and emotional support to those who have served or who are currently serving in the British Armed Forces, and their dependants.-History:The British Legion was...

 secured a grant from Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council to cover the £5,000 required; names from both world wars were engraved in 1986.

Ashworth Valley is a renowned local beauty spot.

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

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...

 in Heywood 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...

, and services include bus and rail transport. Major A roads link Heywood with other settlements. The 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...

 passes to the south of the town, and can be accessed at Junction 19.

Heywood railway station
Heywood railway station
Heywood railway station serves the town of Heywood in Greater Manchester, England. The original station opened on the national rail network in 1841 and closed in 1970. It re-opened on 6 September 2003 as an extension of the East Lancashire Railway from Bury Bolton Street...

 is on the East Lancashire railway line
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...

, a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...

 which connects Heywood with Rawtenstall railway station
Rawtenstall railway station
Rawtenstall railway station serves the town of Rawtenstall in Lancashire, England, and is the northern terminus of the East Lancashire Railway. It was formerly on the national railway network and also had a connection to Bacup as well as Bury and Manchester....

 via Ramsbottom railway station
Ramsbottom railway station
Ramsbottom railway station serves the town of Ramsbottom in Greater Manchester, England.-History:The station was built by the East Lancashire Railway and opened on 28 September 1846...

. The original station opened on the national rail network in 1841 and closed in 1970. It re-opened in 2003 as an extension of the East Lancashire Railway from Bury Bolton Street railway station
Bury Bolton Street railway station
Bury Bolton Street railway station is a railway station in Bury, Greater Manchester.- History :It was formerly the main station serving the town, with links north to Ramsbottom, thence via Stubbins Junction either to Rawtenstall and Bacup or to Haslingden and Accrington; and south to Radcliffe...

.

Bus services operate to Bolton, Bury, Middleton, Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale, mainly operated by 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...

.

Education

Heywood Technical School was opened on 1 December 1894, on a site then known as the Market Ground. The building, which had technical school
Technical school
Technical school is a general term used for two-year college which provide mostly employment-preparation skills for trained labor, such as welding, culinary arts and office management.-Associations supporting technical schools:...

 status, also contained an Art School. The school was doubled in size eighteen years later and opened as the Heywood Day Secondary School. It was re-named 12 years after that as Heywood Grammar School. In 2010 Heywood Community High School
Heywood Community High School
Heywood Community High School was a secondary school in the Heywood district of the of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale in Greater Manchester, United Kingdom. The school closed 30 June 2010 to students but officially closed on 31 August 2010.-History:...

 closed despite being found outstanding in many areas by Ofsted
Ofsted
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 ....

 and being one of the countries most improved schools.

List
  • Hopwood County Primary School
  • St. Luke's C.E. Primary School
  • All Souls Primary School
  • St. Joseph's R.C. Primary School
  • Harwood Park Primary School
  • Heapbridge Primary School
  • Woodland Primary School
  • St. Margaret's Primary School
  • Our Ladies, and St. Paul's Primary School
  • Siddal Moor Sports College
    Siddal Moor Sports College
    Siddal Moor Sports College is a coeducational, comprehensive secondary school for 11–16 year olds in Heywood, Greater Manchester, England.-Admissions:...

  • Holy Family R.C & C.E. High School (Previously St. Joseph's R.C. High School)

Birtle View

Birtle View was a school for children with special needs. The school closed recently, the building has now been demolished and replaced by a doctors surgery.

Sports

Heywood Cricket Club plays in the Central Lancashire Cricket League
Central Lancashire Cricket League
The Central Lancashire League is a fifteen team cricket league, traditionally based in Lancashire, England. It is now based around Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire. The league runs competitions at First Team, Second Team, Third Team, Under 18, Under 15, Under 13 and Under 11 levels.The...

. The club has won the Wood Cup on nine occasions since the cup began in 1921.

Heywood, Heywood Central, Heywood St James, and Heywood United are all association football clubs that have been based in Heywood. Heywood St James F.C. plays in Division One of the Manchester Football League
Manchester Football League
The Manchester Football League, currently known under terms of sponsorship as Bridgewater Office Supplies Football League, is a football league in England, covering a 20-mile radius from Manchester Town Hall. It was formed in 1893, although play ceased between 1912 and 1920. The 2010–11 champions...

.

Heywood Hockey Club
Heywood hockey club
Heywood Hockey Club is a men’s field hockey club based in Heywood, Greater Manchester, England. The club was formed in the 1990s from various members from other clubs in Greater Manchester...

 is a men's field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...

 club based in Heywood.

Darnhill and Heywood Amateur Boxing Club is based in Darnhill.

Heywood Sports Culture and Leisure Village is under construction, and is due to open in July 2010.

Notable people

Pioneering war photographer
War photography
War photography captures photographs of armed conflict and life in war-torn areas.Although photographs can provide a more direct representation than paintings or drawings, they are sometimes manipulated, creating an image that is not objectively journalistic.-History:Photography, presented to the...

 Roger Fenton
Roger Fenton
Roger Fenton was a pioneering British photographer, one of the first war photographers.-Early life:Roger Fenton was born in Crimble Hall, Heap, Bury, Lancashire, 28 March 1819. His grandfather was a wealthy cotton manufacturer and banker, his father a banker and Member of Parliament...

 was born at Crimble Hall in Heywood in 1819. His work on the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

 is particularly acclaimed. 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....

 marks his former home.

Peter Kane
Peter Kane
Peter Kane was one of England's greatest flyweight boxers and a world champion in the 1930s. Kane was born in Heywood, Lancashire, on February 28, 1918, but grew up in the town of Golborne, Lancashire, after his family moved there before his first birthday.-Boxing style:He was a two-fisted...

, the World flyweight boxing champion, 1938 / 1939, was born in Heywood.

Professional goalkeeper Paul Gerrard was born in Heywood in 1973. He played for Oldham Athletic A.F.C.
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...

 Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...

 and the England national under-21 football team
England national under-21 football team
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21, is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team....

. Keri-Anne Payne
Keri-Anne Payne
Keri-Anne Payne is a British swimmer, specialising in marathon open water swimming, and long-distance freestyle swimming in the pool. She is a two-time World 10 km Open Water champion, and an Olympic silver medallist.Payne was born in South Africa to British parents...

, British olympic swimmer and silver medallist, lives in Heywood. Christine Gaskell, 100 m breaststroke gold medallist at the 1974 British Commonwealth Games
1974 British Commonwealth Games
The 1974 British Commonwealth Games were held in Christchurch, New Zealand from 24 January to 2 February 1974. The bid vote was held in Edinburgh at the 1970 British Commonwealth Games....

, was born, raised and still lives in Heywood. The community swimming baths, Gaskell Pool, are named in her honour.

R&B and soul singer Lisa Stansfield
Lisa Stansfield
Lisa Stansfield is an English singer and songwriter.-Early years:Stansfield was born to Marion and Keith Stansfield in Heywood, Lancashire, in England, where she attended Redbrook School, Rochdale. Her first television appearance was on a talent programme in the Granada TV area in 1982...

 was raised in Heywood.

Julie Goodyear
Julie Goodyear
Julie Goodyear, MBE is an English television actress and media personality, best known for playing the long-running role of pub landlady Bet Lynch on British soap opera Coronation Street.-Biography:...

, Star of ITV's Coronation Street
Coronation Street
Coronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...

for many years. Brothers Elliott
Elliott Tittensor
Elliott John Tittensor is an English actor, best known for his role of Carl Gallagher in the Channel 4 show, Shameless.-Career:...

 and Luke Tittensor
Luke Tittensor
Luke James Tittensor is an English actor best known for playing Daz Eden in the ITV soap Emmerdale.-Television career:...

, were born and raised in Heywood.

Debbie Rush
Debbie Rush
Debbie Rush is an English actress. She is currently playing the role of Anna Windass in Coronation Street.After training at the Manchester School Of Acting when she was in her thirties, she has also starred in Shameless and Hollyoaks in the City. Rush also filmed the role of "Pam" in the horror...

, who plays Anna Windass
Anna Windass
Anna Windass is a fictional character in the UK television ITV soap opera, Coronation Street. Portrayed by actress Debbie Rush, the character first appeared onscreen during the episode airing on 14 November 2008.-Creation and casting:...

 in Coronation Street is also from the town.

Noorul Choudhury a candidate on series five of The Apprentice
The Apprentice (UK series five)
Series Five of The Apprentice was a British reality television series which was won by Yasmina Siadatan. The series began airing on BBC One on 25 March 2009 and ran for twelve weekly hour-long episodes, as in all previous years. Auditions and interviews took place during July 2008 in London,...

.

Matthew Heywood
Matthew Heywood
Matthew Stephen Heywood is a professional footballer who plays as a Defender and is currently without a club....

, one of the City's youngest traders. Often touted as the most exciting young talent and winner of Betting Magazines Best Young Trader 2011.

External links

  • www.heartofheywood.org, a community webspace.
  • www.heywood.org.uk, a community webspace.
  • www.heywoodadvertiser.co.uk, website of the local newspaper of the same name.
  • www.statsandmaps.co.uk Stats and Maps is the Rochdale Borough statistics and maps website. It is a shared evidence based that provides quick and easy on-line access to data, information, and intelligence about the borough of Rochdale, and aims to meet the needs of the local community, LSP partners, and the general public.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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