Kearsley
Coordinates: 53°32′N 2°22′W / 53.53°N 2.37°W
| Kearsley | |
 Kearsley looking north from St Stephen's church tower |
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 Kearsley
Kearsley shown within Greater Manchester |
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| Population | 9,287 [1] |
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| OS grid reference | SD755055 |
| Metropolitan borough | Bolton |
| Metropolitan county | Greater Manchester |
| Region | North West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BOLTON |
| Postcode district | BL4 |
| Dialling code | 01204 |
| Police | Greater Manchester |
| Fire | Greater Manchester |
| Ambulance | North West |
| EU Parliament | North West England |
| UK Parliament | Bolton South East |
| List of places: UK • England • Greater Manchester | |
Kearsley (or archaically Kersley)[2] is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically within Lancashire, it lies about 8 miles (12 km) northwest of Manchester,4.9 miles (8.9 km) south-west of Bury, and about 3¾ miles (6 km) south of Bolton.
It is bounded on the west by Walkden, the east by Whitefield, the north by Farnworth and the south by Clifton.
Kearsley was once a township in the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Deane, in the Hundred of Salford of Lancashire. Kearsley was an urban district of Lancashire from 1894 until 1974.[3] In 1933, part of Clifton was added to Kearsley Urban District. Part of Outwood, Radcliffe became part of Kearsley in line with the 1933 Lancashire Review.
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[edit] History
Kearsley lay within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire and was mentioned as an industrial area in 1752, when James Brindley worked on water drainage problems at the Wet Earth Colliery on the borders of Kearsley and Clifton. In 1780, a mill was built at the point where the River Croal meets the River Irwell[4] In 1830[2] it was described as:
"Kersley, a township in the parish of Deane, Hundred of Salford, 7 miles N.W. from Manchester. Inhabitants 1833. In this township is Kearsley Moor, an extensive common, under the surface of which there are many valuable coalmines".
In the Industrial Revolution a papermill, cotton mills, chemical works, an iron foundry, a quarry, and 15 coal mines operated within its boundaries.
[edit] Economy
Today Kearsley has little industry, the one remaining mill is now a multi occupancy building housing both retail and light engineering. There are three small industrial estates concerned mainly with the transport industry.
- Europa Industrial Estate, Stoneclough Road
- Fishbrook Industrial Estate, Stoneclough Road
- Lion Industrial Estate, Moss Road
There is a small shopping precinct and some isolated shops along Manchester Road (A666).
In the mid-19th century, the area was busy with the coal mining industry. Several street names such as Moss Colliery Road (in nearby Clifton) bear testimony to this. The largest coal mine was the Unity Brook Colliery. On 12 March 1878 an explosion[5] in the mine killed 43 men and boys.[6] Nineteen of the dead were buried in the Parish Church.[7] By 1900 the coal mining industry had all but disappeared from the area.
On the area now known as Nob End, a chemical works was built by Benjamin Rawson [8] producing soda ash (sodium carbonate) utilising the Leblanc process.
In the late 1920s a coal fired power station was built. Kearsley Power Station used water for cooling taken from the River Irwell. The power station closed, and was later demolished, on 12 May 1985. The power station had a railway line,[9] which has since been removed and forms part of a pedestrian trail.
[edit] Transport
The A666 from Manchester to Bolton passes through Kearsley. Today it lies on the A666 at a point where the Kearsley Roundabout connects it and Farnworth to the M61 motorway via the Kearsley Spur link road.
Kearsley railway station is located on the aptly named Station Road, from here there is a service westbound to Wigan Wallgate and southbound to Rochdale railway station via Manchester Victoria. In 1878, the mineral railway line to Kearsley was opened, at a cost of £100.[10]
It is on the main bus route from Bolton to Manchester. In earlier days, it was on the main tram route. On 3 June 1881, trams ran the full length of the system: Town Hall Square, Bolton to Farnworth & Kearsley. the main bus routes that run through Kearsley are the numbers 8 (to Shudehill, Manchester) and 22 (to Stockport).
[edit] Landmarks
The main church being the parish church of St. Stephen's.[11] Located on Manchester Road, the Anglican St Stephen's Church, Kearsley Moor, was the vision of Harrison Blair.[12] who owned the chemical works at Moss Lane. The church has a graveyard which hold the remains of 19 miners killed in the Unity Brook Colliery disaster, The church was founded in 1870 erected in 1870–71 by the family of the Harrison Blair who died before his vision could be finished. It cost £3,600 and has seating for 538 parishioners.[11] The Bishop of Manchester, Dr Fraser consecrated the church on 1 July 1871.[12]
A United Reformed church, founded before 1890. It is now closed. The New Jerusalem church on Bolton Road was founded in 1836, the church has a disused graveyard. St John Fisher Roman Catholic Churchwas founded in 1969 on Manchester Road. Kearsley Mount Methodist Church was founded in 1836 and a Wesleyan Sunday School was built overlooking the Irwell Valley opposite the parish church. The first chapel was built in 1870. In 1914 this chapel was demolished due to mining subsidence and the present building was opened in 1916. A Wesleyan day school was built next to the church building in 1879 and this was extended in 1890. This school was demolished in 2009 and replaced by a block of apartments by St Vincent,s Housing Association.
After two years planning and ten months building, the Schoenstatt Shrine was dedicated on 1 October 2000 by Bishop Terence Brain of Salford. The opening was attended by visitors from Mexico, Australia and South America and Schoenstatt members from Ireland, Scotland and Germany.[13]
[edit] Education
The schools in Kearsley are under the control of Bolton Education Department.
The area has two nursery schools, Rompers, which is a private nursery taking 33 children[14] and Spindle Point School.[15] During 2009, Rompers Nursery was demolished for a housing development project. On Sunday 3 January 2010, the luxury apartment site was on fire for several hours with police closing Manchester Road to give the firemen room to put out the fire.[16]
There are four primary schools all under the direction of Bolton Education, Kearsley West Primary School (pupils 249 Ofsted Id 105/105186, Dfes Number 2061), St John's Church of England Primary School (pupils 176 Ofsted Id 105/105241, Dfes Number 3355), Spindle Point School (pupils 247 Ofsted Id 105/105196, Dfes Number 2075) and the church attached St. Stephen's Church of England Primary School (pupils 222, Ofsted Id 105/105240, Dfes Number: 3354).
There is one secondary school in Kearsley. Formerly George Tomlinson School, named after the Secretary for Education at the time of its construction, it was rebranded Kearsley Academy, and is located on Springfield Road. (Pupils 541, Ofsted Id 105/105268, Dfes Number: 5402). Its age rage is 11–16 years of age, extending to 18 with the introduction of a sixth form in 2012, and allows male and female students.
[edit] Political
Kearsley Ward is in the Parliamentary district of Bolton South East. In 2007, the Member of Parliament for the Ward is Dr Brian Iddon (Labour Party).[17]
The local councillors for Kearsley in 2007 are Councillor John Rothwell and Councillor Margaret Rothwell, both Liberal Democrats.[18]
[edit] Gallery
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Kearsley looking north, taken from St Stephen's Church tower
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Kearsley looking west, taken from St Stephen's Church tower
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Kearsley looking south, taken from St Stephen's Church tower
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Kearsley looking east, taken from St Stephen's Church tower
[edit] References
- ^ 2001 Census -Office of National Statistics
- ^ a b (1830) The New Lancashire Gazetteer or Topographical Dictionary
- ^ "Kearsley UD through time. Census tables with data for the Local Government District". A vision of Britain through time. http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_page.jsp?u_id=10002850.
- ^ Bolton Organisation
- ^ This is Lancashire
- ^ Durham Mining Museum
- ^ Genuki Kearsley
- ^ Manchester Geographical Society
- ^ Railway Byelines. 4. Irwell Valley Press. December '98 - November '99. pp. pages 226, 309.
- ^ Bolton Revisited
- ^ a b Genuki Churches
- ^ a b St Stephens official web site
- ^ Schoenstatt - German site in English
- ^ Day nurseries UK
- ^ Spindle Point School web site
- ^ Firefighters tackle large apartment blaze in Kearsley
- ^ Bolton MBC web site - Political
- ^ Bolton MBC website
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kearsley |
- Kearsley Mount Church
- St Stephens Church
- Bolton MBC Official web site
- Photos and information about Kearsley
- Chairmen of Kearsley Urban District Council 1865–1974
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