Upholland
Encyclopedia
Upholland is a civil parish and village in West Lancashire
, England. It is situated approximately 3 miles east of Skelmersdale
, also in West Lancashire, and 4½ miles west of Wigan
in Greater Manchester
.
, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
, Greater Manchester. The village is located on a small hill rising above the West Lancashire Coastal Plain
. There are views towards St Helens
and Liverpool
in the south west, Ormskirk
and Southport
in the north-west and towards Wigan
, Manchester
and on to the High Peak of Derbyshire
in the east.
, 10 miles to the west (on the other side of Ormskirk). Both derive their names from the manor of Holland, a possession of the de Holland family until 1534.
, is said to be buried
in the churchyard of the Anglican
parish church of St. Thomas the Martyr. The truth of the matter is that Lyon was little more than a common thief and receiver of stolen goods. The grave can be found under the concrete parapet opposite the White Lion pub.
A burial place of greater historical significance can be found at the south east corner of the church. Here, in a railed enclosure is the grave of Robert Daglish
; a pioneer in steam locomotive
engineering and design. In 1814, when George Stephenson
was still working on his early locomotive Blucher, Daglish built The Yorkshire Horse, a 'rack and pinion
' locomotive to haul coal wagons at a nearby colliery. This proved to be a great success. Daglish went on to construct other locomotives and work on railway systems both in Great Britain
and America
.
Upholland railway station is on the Kirkby Branch Line.
monastery
, the Priory of St. Thomas the Martyr of Upholland.
A Catholic
seminary
, St Joseph's College
, used for training Catholic priests, was once based in Upholland. The college closed down in 1987 after over 150 years of serving the northern Catholic dioceses of England. Notable former students include Paul Addison
, Tony Brindle-Wills, comedians Kenny Everett
, Tom O'Connor and Johnny Vegas
, the libel lawyer George Carman
, pop musician Paddy McAloon
of Prefab Sprout
, the editor of the Jerusalem Bible
and British Member of Parliament
John Battle
.
and Richard Ashcroft
(of The Verve
) come from Upholland. The comedian Ted Ray
(born Charles Olden), spent his childhood in the town, his father being the licensee of the Bull's Head public house, which used to stand in School Lane.
The life peer
Catherine Ashton, appointed as the European Union
's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in 2009, was born in Upholland.
West Lancashire
West Lancashire is a non-metropolitan district with the status of a borough in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Ormskirk. The other town in the borough is Skelmersdale....
, England. It is situated approximately 3 miles east of Skelmersdale
Skelmersdale
Skelmersdale is a town in West Lancashire, England. It lies on high-ground on the River Tawd, to the west of Wigan, to the northeast of Liverpool, south-southwest of Preston. As of 2006, Skelmersdale had a population of 38,813, down from 41,000 in 2004. The town is known locally as Skem.The...
, also in West Lancashire, and 4½ miles west of Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
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...
.
Geography
It forms part of the Lancashire/Greater Manchester county boundary with the neighbouring district of OrrellOrrell, Greater Manchester
Orrell is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The area is contiguous to the town of Wigan itself and the centre of the district is situated to the west of the town centre...
, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
Metropolitan Borough of Wigan
The Metropolitan Borough of Wigan is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in North West England. It is named after its largest component town, Wigan and also includes the towns of Leigh, Ashton-in-Makerfield, Ince-in-Makerfield, and Hindley. The borough was formed in 1974 and is an...
, Greater Manchester. The village is located on a small hill rising above the West Lancashire Coastal Plain
West Lancashire Coastal Plain
The West Lancashire Coastal Plain is a large area in the south west of Lancashire, England.The plain stretches from the Rimrose Valley in Seaforth, near Liverpool on the Mersey, to the south, to Preston on the Ribble, to the north. To the east, the plain is bounded by the foothills of the Pennines,...
. There are views towards St Helens
St Helens, Merseyside
St Helens is a large town in Merseyside, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens with a population of just over 100,000, part of an urban area with a total population of 176,843 at the time of the 2001 Census...
and Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
in the south west, Ormskirk
Ormskirk
Ormskirk is a market town in West Lancashire, England. It is situated north of Liverpool city centre, northwest of St Helens, southeast of Southport and southwest of Preston.-Geography and administration:...
and Southport
Southport
Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. During the 2001 census Southport was recorded as having a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England...
in the north-west and towards Wigan
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
, 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 on to the High Peak of 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...
in the east.
Etymology
The name Upholland differentiates it from another place locally called DownhollandDownholland
Downholland is a civil parish in Lancashire, England on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain. The area contains several villages including Haskayne, Barton and Downholland Cross, and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the A5147....
, 10 miles to the west (on the other side of Ormskirk). Both derive their names from the manor of Holland, a possession of the de Holland family until 1534.
Notable claims
One of Upholland's claims to fame is that George Lyon, reputed to be one of the last English highwaymenHighwayman
A highwayman was a thief and brigand who preyed on travellers. This type of outlaw, usually, travelled and robbed by horse, as compared to a footpad who traveled and robbed on foot. Mounted robbers were widely considered to be socially superior to footpads...
, is said to be buried
Burial
Burial is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over.-History:...
in the churchyard of the Anglican
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
parish church of St. Thomas the Martyr. The truth of the matter is that Lyon was little more than a common thief and receiver of stolen goods. The grave can be found under the concrete parapet opposite the White Lion pub.
A burial place of greater historical significance can be found at the south east corner of the church. Here, in a railed enclosure is the grave of Robert Daglish
Robert Daglish
Robert Daglish was an English steam engineer.Robert Daglish was born in Northumberland but by 1804 had moved to Wigan, Lancashire as engineer and manager of the Haigh Ironworks of the Earl of Balcarres...
; a pioneer in steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
engineering and design. In 1814, when George Stephenson
George Stephenson
George Stephenson was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives...
was still working on his early locomotive Blucher, Daglish built The Yorkshire Horse, a 'rack and pinion
Rack and pinion
A rack and pinion is a type of linear actuator that comprises a pair of gears which convert rotational motion into linear motion. A circular gear called "the pinion" engages teeth on a linear "gear" bar called "the rack"; rotational motion applied to the pinion causes the rack to move, thereby...
' locomotive to haul coal wagons at a nearby colliery. This proved to be a great success. Daglish went on to construct other locomotives and work on railway systems both in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Community
Upholland has its own art society known as Upholland Artists' Society that consists of a group of amateur and professional artists that live in or near Upholland. They hold regular exhibitions and paint a wide range of subjects from local scenes to contemporary abstract pieces.Upholland railway station is on the Kirkby Branch Line.
Religion
The church was previously a BenedictineBenedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
, the Priory of St. Thomas the Martyr of Upholland.
A Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
, St Joseph's College
St Joseph's College, Upholland
St Joseph's College, Upholland is a Former Roman Catholic seminary, situated at Walthew Park, Upholland, Lancashire, England. The foundation of the large building was laid in April 1880 and college was opened in 1883...
, used for training Catholic priests, was once based in Upholland. The college closed down in 1987 after over 150 years of serving the northern Catholic dioceses of England. Notable former students include Paul Addison
Paul Addison
Paul Addison is a British author and historian, specializing in the British experience in the Second World War and its effects on post-war society. After graduating from Nuffield College, Oxford, in 1967, Addison became a Lecturer at Edinburgh University and subsequently a Reader, for 23 years...
, Tony Brindle-Wills, comedians Kenny Everett
Kenny Everett
Kenny Everett was an English comedian, radio DJ and television entertainer. Born Maurice James Christopher Cole, Everett is best known for his career as a radio DJ and for the Kenny Everett television shows.-Early life:...
, Tom O'Connor and Johnny Vegas
Johnny Vegas
Johnny Vegas is an English actor and comedian. He is known for his angry rants, portly figure, high husky voice and support of St Helens rugby league club. More recently he has moved into dramatic acting.-Early life:He was born in St Helens, Lancashire, the youngest of four children of Laurence...
, the libel lawyer George Carman
George Carman
George Alfred Carman, QC , was a leading English barrister of the 1980s and 1990s. He first came to the attention of the general public in 1979, when he successfully defended the former Liberal leader Jeremy Thorpe after he was charged with conspiracy to murder...
, pop musician Paddy McAloon
Paddy McAloon
Paddy McAloon is an English singer-songwriter and member of the band Prefab Sprout. Allmusic describes him as "one of the most underrated lyricists of the '80s".-Career:...
of Prefab Sprout
Prefab Sprout
Prefab Sprout are an alternative English pop rock band from Witton Gilbert, County Durham, England who rose to fame during the 1980s. Eight of their albums have reached the Top 40 in the UK Albums Chart, and one of their singles, "The King of Rock 'n' Roll", peaked at number seven in the UK...
, the editor of the Jerusalem Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
and British 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,...
John Battle
John Battle (politician)
John Dominic Battle, KC*SG is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Leeds West from 1987 to 2010.-Early life:...
.
People
Actor Ian BleasdaleIan Bleasdale
Ian Bleasdale is a British actor and television presenter. He was born in Upholland, Lancashire and divides his time between Haworth in West Yorkshire and Bristol...
and Richard Ashcroft
Richard Ashcroft
Richard Paul Ashcroft is an English singer-songwriter. He was the lead singer and occasional guitarist of alternative rock band The Verve from their formation in 1990 until their split in 1999, and continues as a lead vocalist working with guitars and keyboards...
(of The Verve
The Verve
The Verve were an English rock band formed in 1989 in Wigan by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bassist Simon Jones, and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboardist Simon Tong later became a member. Beginning with a psychedelic sound indebted to shoegazing and space...
) come from Upholland. The comedian Ted Ray
Ted Ray (comedian)
Ted Ray was a popular English comedian of the 1940s, 50s and 60s....
(born Charles Olden), spent his childhood in the town, his father being the licensee of the Bull's Head public house, which used to stand in School Lane.
The life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
Catherine Ashton, appointed as the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in 2009, was born in Upholland.