Borough of Rossendale
Shown within non-metropolitan Lancashire
Geography
Status:	Borough
Region:	North West England
Admin. County:	Lancashire
Area: - Total	Ranked 218th 138.05 km²
Admin. HQ:	Rawtenstall
ONS code:	30UM
Demographics
Population: - Total (2005 est.) - Density	Ranked 317th 66,000 478 / km²
Ethnicity:	96.2% White 3.1% S.Asian
Politics
Rossendale Borough Council http://www.rossendale.gov.uk/
Leadership:	Alternative - Sec.31
Control:	Conservative
MPs:	Janet Anderson, Greg Pope

Rossendale is a local government district with borough status. It is made up of a number of small former mill towns in Lancashire, England centred around the valley of the River Irwell in the industrial North West. The district combines urban with rural aspects, and is close to the more populated areas of Bury, Bolton, Burnley and Manchester. map File links The following pages link to this file: Rossendale Categories: GFDL images ... Lancashire is a county in North West England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... The region, also known as Government Office Region, is currently the highest tier of local government subnational entity of England in the United Kingdom. ... North West England is one of the nine regions of England. ... Lancashire is a county in North West England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... Area is the measure of how much exposed area any two dimensional object has. ... This is a list of districts of England ordered by area. ... To help compare different orders of magnitude and geographical regions, we list here areas between 100 km² and 1000 km². See also areas of other orders of magnitude. ... Square kilometre (US spelling: Square kilometer), symbol km², is an SI unit of surface area. ... Rawtenstall is a town of industrial origin located at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire. ... The Office for National Statistics coding system is a hierarchical code used in the United Kingdom for tabulating census and other statistical data. ... In physics, density is mass m per unit volume V. For the common case of a homogeneous substance, it is expressed as: where, in SI units: ρ (rho) is the density of the substance, measured in kg·m-3 m is the mass of the substance, measured in kg V is... The figures are mid-year estimates for 2005 from the Office for National Statistics [1]. See also: List of English cities by population - List of English counties by population - List of Ceremonial counties of England by Population - List of English districts by area - List of English districts by ethnic diversity... Arms of Rossendale Borough Council. ... The United Kingdom is divided into four parts, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. ... The Conservative Party (officially the Conservative and Unionist Party) is the second largest political party in the United Kingdom in terms of sitting Members of Parliament (MPs), the largest in terms of public membership, and is the second oldest extant political party in the world. ... This is a list of MPs elected in the UK general election, 2005 to the House of Commons for the Fifty-Fourth Parliament of the United Kingdom at the United Kingdom general election, 2005, arranged by constituency. ... Janet Anderson (born 6 December 1949) is the British Member of Parliament for Rossendale and Darwen. ... Gregory James Pope (born 29 August 1960, Blackburn) is a Roman Catholic politician in the United Kingdom. ... Non-metropolitan districts or commonly Shire districts are a type of local government district in England. ... Look up Borough in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Lancashire is a county in North West England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the  United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total 130... The River Irwell is a river in the counties of Lancashire and Greater Manchester in England. ... North West England is one of the nine regions of England. ... Bury is a town in the north of Greater Manchester in the North West of England. ... Bolton is a large town in the north-west of England. ... Burnley is a large market town in the north-east of Lancashire in north-west England with a population of 89,542[1] (2001 census). ... Manchester (pronounced ) is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. ...

In 2001 the population of Rossendale was 65,652 (Government census records), spread between the larger towns of Bacup, Rawtenstall and Haslingden; the villages of Whitworth, Waterfoot, Helmshore, Crawshawbooth and Edenfield, as well as Cloughfold, Greave, Laund, Loveclough, Lumb, Newchurch, Rockcliffe, Shawforth, Stacksteads, Stubbins, and Weir. Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Bacup is a town of the Rossendale Borough, in Lancashire, England. ... Rawtenstall is a town of industrial origin located at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire. ... Haslingden is a small town in the Rossendale Valley in Lancashire, lying 19 miles north of Manchester. ... Whitworth View Whitworth is a town situated in the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire, in England. ... Waterfoot, Rossendale is a village near Rawtenstall. ... Helmshore is a village in the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire. ... Crawshawbooth is a small village in England just north of the market town ofRawtenstall, Lancashire, and a part of the valley of Rossendale. ... Edenfield is an upland village in the southern part of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire in England. ... Newchurch could be Newchurch, Isle of Wight Newchurch, Kent Newchurch, Wales This article consisting of geographical locations is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ... Rockcliffe is a village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England. ... Shawforth is a village near Bacup, Whitworth and Rochdale. ... Stubbins is an industrial village in the southern part of the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire. ... The bridge and weir mechanism at Sturminster Newton on the River Stour, Dorset. ...

The district was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, from the municipal boroughs of Bacup, Haslingden, Rawtenstall, part of Ramsbottom urban district and Whitworth urban district. April 1 is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... The Local Government Act 1972 (1972 c. ... A borough is a political division originally used in England. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In the British Isles an urban district was a type of local government district which covered an urbanised area. ...

Transport

The borough is linked by the motorway network to Manchester, Burnley and Blackburn via the A56/M65 and M66 motorways. Bordering Greater Manchester southwards, it is 17.4 miles to Deansgate (City Centre) via the Edenfield by-pass and M66, about 30 minutes in a car. However it can take up to an hour in busy periods. Alternatively 'B' roads can be taken via Edenfield, Walmersley, Whitefield, and Broughton. This article is about Blackburn in Lancashire, England. ... The A56 is a road in England which extends between the city of Chester in Cheshire and the town of Skipton in North Yorkshire. ... The M65 motorway is a major road in England. ... The M66 is a short motorway in England. ... Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England which has a population of 2. ...

There was once a rail link south to Manchester via Bury, but this was closed in the 1960s as part of cuts following the Beeching Report. Part of the old railway reopened in 1991 as the East Lancashire Railway operating a service to Bury via Ramsbottom and Summerseat, and manned by volunteers. In September 2003 an eastbound extension from Bury to Heywood was opened. The line is now just over 12 miles long and is open every weekend of the year. There are aspirations to redevelop this line as a link to Manchester providing a commuter service. Many railway lines were closed as a result of the Beeching Axe The Beeching Axe was an informal name for the British governments attempt in the 1960s to control the spiralling cost of running the British railway system by closing what it considered to be little-used and unprofitable... LMS Class 3F Jinty 0-6-0T No. ... Summerseat is a village in the valley of the river Irwell to the north of Bury, Greater Manchester, UK. It is popular with visitors, for its picturesque scenery, but also because there is a station on the East Lancashire steam Railway situated in the village. ... Heywood is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. ...

The area is well served by public transport, with bus services provided mainly by Rossendale Transport and Burnley & Pendle as well as Northern Blue. Rossendale Transport (RT) is an independent bus operator running within the Borough of Rossendale (including the towns of Rawtenstall, Bacup and Haslingden) and into the surrounding area, including Rochdale, Bury, Burnley, Accrington and Blackburn. ...

History and industry

Rossendale is part of the Forest of Rossendale, which consists of the steep-sided valleys of the River Irwell and its tributaries, which flow from the Pennines southwards to Manchester and cut through the moorland which is characteristic of the area. It was given the designation of "forest" in medieval times denoting a hunting reserve. The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, principally in Lancashire. ... Typical Pennine scenery. ...

The larger settlements grew into market towns, typically through the late middle ages. Farming and a cottage woollen industry developed during the reign of Henry VIII, but Rossendale's population only really expanded during the period of the Industrial Revolution. The population was 16,033 in 1801; in 1901 it had grown to 89,540 (relevant censuses). Its wet and damp climate are ideally suited to the development of watermills, and later to the mechanisation of the wool and cotton spinning and weaving industries in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the middle of the 19th Century a felt industry developed, and from this the manufacturing of slippers so that footwear also became a major employer in the area. Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England and Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) from 22 April 1509 until his death. ...

The area became one of the cradles of the Industrial Revolution, and was known as 'The Golden Valley'. There was great hardship among working people during this time, but many fortunes were made among the mill-owning classes. There was large-scale immigration from Ireland to find work building the railways and in the mills, which led to several instances of serious civil disturbances between the two communities. Michael Davitt, the Irish republican leader was among these immigrants, settling in Haslingden, where he received his education after losing an arm at the age of 11 in a mill accident. A Watt steam engine. ... Michael Davitt c. ...

The area is also notable for its quarrying, and Rossendale Flagstone was used widely throughout the country in the 19th century. The flagstones in Trafalgar Square in London were quarried in Rossendale. Upland farming is still carried out, largely of sheep but also of cattle. The history of Rossendale is well documented, largely through the efforts of the historian Chris Aspin, a specialist on the textile industry, and the late Derek Pilkington, whose efforts led to the preservation of Higher Mill in Helmshore, now Helmshore Mills Textile Museum. Trafalgar Square viewed from the northeast corner. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

With the steady decline of the cotton industry Rossendale suffered from serious economic decline which has only recently halted, and the area still has pockets of poverty. However the opening of fast road connections with Manchester, allied to the attractiveness of the local countryside has meant that Rossendale has developed a sizeable commuter population. Thus, in its wake, is bringing some signs of economic revival and Rawtenstall in particular now houses a number of shops that sell niche fashion and luxury consumer goods alongside the inevitable Asda and Tesco superstores. This, coupled with expensive redevelopment plans to regenerate the Valley Precinct and bus depot (both in Rawtenstall), would inevitably attract more businesses and visitors into Rossendale. ASDA is a chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom offering food, clothing and general merchandise products. ... Tesco plc is a UK-based international grocery and general merchandising retail chain. ...

Talks of turning the current railway into a commercial commuter line would be an obvious advantage, and the more optimistic ideas of applying for the Metrolink system to be extended to Rossendale are probably a long way off. Existing plans to extend to Rochdale, Oldham, Tameside and Manchester Airport have been put on hold, estimated to cost around £900 million, which the government seem unwilling to subsidise, Documented by the BBC here.

Etymology

The etymology is doubtful, although it is believed the second element of the name is Old English dæl "dale, valley". A record of the name as Rocendal (undated) suggests [[Celtic language|Celtic] ros "moor, heath", although this etymology is tentative. Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon[1], Old English: ) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. ... Fljótsdalur in East Iceland, a rather flat valley A valley or a low area between two hills dale (in Scotland, a glen) is a landform, which can range from a few square kilometres to hundreds or even thousands of square kilometres in area. ... Not to be confused with Entomology, the study of insects. ...

The Arts in Rossendale

Rossendale is the home to a large community of artists with several painters studios, many of which are centred on the area around Waterfoot. This is also the home of the internationally acclaimed Horse and Bamboo Theatre Company who specialise in visual theatre, often using distinctive masks. The Littoral Arts Trust, dedicated to arts, social and environmental research is based in the Rossendale Valley. The first part of the Irwell Sculpture Trail runs from Deerplay, above Bacup, to Stubbins. Horse and Bamboo Theatre or Horse + Bamboo Theatre is a British theatre company founded in 1978 by the Artistic Director, Bob Frith, that works internationally as well as within the UK and from its Centre in Waterfoot, Rossendale, Lancashire. ... This article is about masks fitted on the face as an article of clothing or equipment. ... The Irwell Sculpture Trail is the largest public art scheme in the United Kingdom commissioning regional, national and international artists. ...

The actress Jane Horrocks was born in Rawtenstall, Rossendale, and the composer Alan Rawsthorne was born in Haslingden. Betty Jackson, the fashion designer, is a native of Bacup. There is also a thriving brass band tradition as well as a vibrant amateur theatre scene. Jane Horrocks Jane Horrocks (born January 18, 1964) is an English actress and singer. ... Alan Rawsthorne (May 2, 1905 – July 24, 1971) was a British composer. ...

There has been a long tradition of dialect poetry and writing in Rossendale. This seems to have ended, but characters like Andrew Houston (The Rossendale Bard), Walter Hargreaves (Shepster) and Clifford Heyworth (Bill o' Bows) are still fondly remembered. Waugh's Well, above Edenfield and Cowpe marks the spot where Edwin Waugh wrote many of his poems, and is a favourite spot for walkers - a popular activity in Rossendale that does not appear to be in decline. A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language characteristic of a particular group of the languages speakers. ... : Andrew Houston, Rossendale Bard. ... Edwin Waugh (1817 - 1890), poet, son of a shoemaker, was born at Rochdale and, after a little schooling, apprenticed to a printer. ...

Miscellany

Three Rossendale towns have cricket clubs in the Lancashire League - Bacup, Haslingden, and Rawtenstall. The overseas professionals who are associated with the League have therefore often lived in the Rossendale Valley. For example, Everton Weekes was long associated with Bacup; Clive Lloyd with Haslingden. The Yorkshire League and the Lancashire League formed two sections of the Rugby League Championship for much of its history. ... Everton de Courcy Weekes (born 26 February 1925, Pickwick Gap, Westbury, St Michael, Barbados) was a West Indian cricketer. ... Clive Hubert Lloyd CBE, born 31 August 1944 in Georgetown, British Guiana (now Guyana), is a former West Indies cricketer. ...

The Whitworth Doctors were local surgeons and bone setters whose reputation spread far and wide, so that they treated patients from throughout the country, including Princess Elisabeth and the Archbishop of Canterbury. In 1819 William Hewitt described them as "the most remarkable men of their class that ever appeared in England".

R.S. Ireland (The Real Lancashire Black Pudding Co.) is based near Waterfoot; a family run business of specialist Black Pudding Makers, using only traditional methods and with a recipe dating back to 1879. Rawtenstall has Fitzpatricks Herbal Health, this is the last remaining functioning temperance bar in England, that makes and sells its own non-alcoholic drinks, such as sarsaparilla, black beers, and blood tonic. Black pudding or blood pudding is a sausage made by cooking blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled. ... Traditionally (and especially in Lancashire England), bars produced by the Temperance Society originally advocated a moderate approach to life, especially in regard to the consumption of alcohol, but later moved toward abstinance entirely. ... Binomial name Smilax regelii Killip & Morton Sarsaparilla (Smilax regelii and other closely related species of Smilax) is a vine that bears roots with many useful properties. ...

The popular comedy series, The League of Gentlemen is apparently based upon Rossendale (and perhaps Bacup in particular), playing upon stereotypes and exaggerations of the area. Subsequently, the producers filmed in various northern towns, one of which was Bacup itself, which Jeremy Dyson (writer) and Steve Pemberton (actor) proclaimed, "Bacup was the furthest we went into Lancashire. Bacup was our hot favourite, but it was too frightening - when we arrived there was this cartoon drunk with a bottle shaking his fist at us. Bacup in real life was worse than Royston Vasey". http://www.geocities.com/gwaddingham/log.htm The League of Gentlemen is a quartet of British comedy writer/performers, formed in 1995 by Jeremy Dyson, Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith. ... Jeremy Dyson Jeremy Dyson is one of the UK’s most successful screenwriters and, with Mark Gatiss, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith, makes up The League of Gentlemen. ... Steve Pemberton Steve Pemberton (b. ... Royston Vasey is: the real name of Roy Chubby Brown the fictional setting of The League of Gentlemen (comedy) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...

The most notable famous residents (past and present) include Jane Horrocks and Ted Robbins (of Phoenix Nights fame, amongst other things), William Roache, Phil Neville, Sam Aston, Natalie Casey and Jennie McAlpine (see Fiz Brown). Jane Horrocks Jane Horrocks (born January 18, 1964) is an English actress and singer. ... Ted Robbins (born in Liverpool, Merseyside) is an English comedian and actor. ... Peter Kays Phoenix Nights is a British sitcom about The Phoenix Club, a working mens club in the northern English town of Bolton. ... William Roache, as Ken Barlow on Coronation Street, in a still from the first episode. ... Phil Neville (born 21 January 1977) is an English footballer who plays for Manchester United and England. ... Samuel Sam Aston (b. ... Natalie Casey, is a British actress, born 15 April 1980 in Rossendale, Lancashire, UK. She is best known for her roles in TV series Hollyoaks and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps. ... Fiz (Fiona) Brown is a character in the British soap opera Coronation Street, played by Jennie McAlpine. ...

The area is has a sizeable ski slope, appropriately named Ski Rossendale, which attracts many visitors. The slope has spawned and aided the Brass brothers, Steve Bailey and Danny Wheeler; and more recently Johnny Greenwood, Colum Mytton and Molly Percival to fame in the snowboarding world.

Rossendale also hosts the very popular Rossendale Motorbike Show which brings in motorcyclist enthusiasts from far and wide. Music, stalls, food, tattoo's and bikes (of course) briefly turn the town into a very busy place. In 2007, however, the event looks unlikely to take place.

The area is served by the Rossendale Free Press which provides news, sport and so on. A web site can also be found at Rossendale Web.

External links

• Rossendale council website
• Rossendale Transport website
• Ski Rossendale
• Rossendale United F.C.
• Rossendale Rugby Union Club
• Rossendale Free Press
• Rossendale web
• Rossendale Online
• Rossendale Motorbike Show
• East Lancashire Railway Website
• Irish Democratic League, Haslingden Davitt Branch
• R.S.Ireland website - black puddings
• Fitzpatricks Temperance Bar website
• Horse + Bamboo Theatre website
• Littoral Arts Trust website
• Higher Mill Textile Museum website

Districts of North West England
Allerdale | Barrow-in-Furness | Blackburn with Darwen | Blackpool | Bolton | Burnley | Bury | Carlisle | Chester | Chorley | Congleton | Copeland | Crewe and Nantwich | Eden | Ellesmere Port and Neston | Fylde | Halton | Hyndburn | Knowsley | Lancaster | Liverpool | Macclesfield | Manchester | Oldham | Pendle | Preston | Ribble Valley | Rochdale | Rossendale | St Helens | Salford | Sefton | South Lakeland | South Ribble | Stockport | Tameside | Trafford | Vale Royal | Warrington | West Lancashire | Wigan | Wirral | Wyre The districts of England are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government. ... North West England is one of the nine regions of England. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_England. ... Allerdale is a local government district and borough in Cumbria, England. ... Barrow-in-Furness is a local government district and borough in Cumbria, England. ... Blackburn with Darwen (Dwrgwyn) is a borough in Lancashire, North West England. ... It has been suggested that South Shore, Blackpool be merged into this article or section. ... The Metropolitan borough of Bolton is a metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. ... Burnley is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire in North West England. ... The Metropolitan borough of Bury is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in the northwest of England. ... The City of Carlisle is a local government district with city status in Cumbria, England. ... For the smaller central city area, and principal settlement of this district, see Chester. ... Chorley is a local government district with borough status, in Lancashire, England. ... Congleton is a local government district and borough in Cheshire, in North West England. ... Copeland is a local government district and borough in western Cumbria, England. ... Crewe and Nantwich is one of six local government districts in the administrative county of Cheshire, England. ... Eden is a local government district in Cumbria, England. ... Ellesmere Port and Neston is a local government district, borough and parliamentary constituency in Cheshire, England. ... Fylde is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. ... Halton is a borough in North West England, administered by a unitary authority. ... Hyndburn is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. ... Knowsley is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Merseyside, England. ... Logo The City of Lancaster (2002 population: 133,914) is a local government district with city status in Lancashire, England. ... Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. ... Macclesfield is a local government district, borough and parliamentary constituency in Cheshire England. ... Manchester (pronounced ) is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. ... This article relates to the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham. ... Pendle is a district borough of Lancashire, England, on the North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire borders. ... Preston is a city and local government district in Lancashire, England and is located on the River Ribble. ... Ribble Valley is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. ... The Metropolitan borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester in North West England. ... St Helens is a Metropolitan Borough in Merseyside, North West England. ... The City of Salford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. ... See Sefton, New South Wales for the suburb of Sydney, Australia. ... South Lakeland is a local government district in Cumbria, England. ... South Ribble is a local government district and borough in Lancashire, England. ... The Metropolitan Borough of Stockport is a Metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, in north west England. ... Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in north west England. ... The Metropolitan Borough of Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. ... Vale Royal is a local government district and borough in Cheshire, North West England. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... West Lancashire is a local government district in Lancashire, England. ... The Metropolitan Borough of Wigan is a Metropolitan Borough of Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. ... Wirral is a metropolitan borough in Merseyside, North West England, which occupies the northern part of the Wirral Peninsula, more commonly known as The Wirral. ... This article is about the district of Wyre in England. ...
Counties with multiple districts: Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties are one of the four levels of English administrative division used for the purposes of local government. ... The Cheshire Plain - photo taken adjacent to Beeston Castle The Cheshire Plain - photo taken towards Merseyside The Cheshire Plain panorama - photo taken from Mid-Cheshire Ridge Cattle farming in the county Black-and-white timbered buildings on Nantwich High Street Cheshire (or, archaically, the County of Chester)[1] is a... Cumbria (IPA: ), is a shire county in the extreme North West of England. ... Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England which has a population of 2. ... Lancashire is a county in North West England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. ...