County Borough of Bolton
Encyclopedia
Bolton was, from 1838 to 1974, a local government district in the northwest of England
, conterminate with the town of Bolton
.
in 1253 when William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby
granted a charter
. However the borough did not develop into a self-governing town, remaining under the control of officials appointed by the lord of the manor
. By the eighteenth century the town was rapidly expanding and the Bolton Improvement Act 1792 established two local government bodies for the area: the Great Bolton Improvement Trustees, and the Police Commissioners for the Township of Little Bolton
In 1838, under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
, the townships
of Great Bolton
and Little Bolton
, along with the Haulgh area from Tonge with Haulgh
township, were incorporated as a municipal borough
, making it the second to be created in England (after Devonport
). However, there was doubt about the validity of the charter, with the local Conservatives
refusing to stand for the first council elections, and the magistrate
s of Salford Hundred
disputing the jurisdiction of the new corporation. The first elections to the town council were uncontested, with Whigs and Radicals
holding all seats. The council was highly supportive of The People's Charter
.
The legality of the charter (as well as those of Devonport, Birmingham
and Manchester
) was resolved by the Borough Charters Confirmation Act 1842. The Act forced the new municipality to compensate the officers of the old corporation. The first contested elections were held in November, 1842, and Conservatives gained control in 1844. In 1850 the borough corporation took over the Great Bolton and Little Bolton trusts established in 1792.
In 1889, as it had a population in excess of 50,000, Bolton was constituted a county borough
by the Local Government Act 1888
. As a county borough, Bolton was independent of the administration of Lancashire County Council
, although it remained part of the county for judicial, shrievalty
and lieutenancy
purposes.
In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972
, the County Borough of Bolton was abolished and its territory transferred to Greater Manchester
to form part of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton
.
. In 1873 the number of wards was increased to eight, with the formation of a new North ward. In 1877 a further enlargement added the ward of Halliwell
.
The Bolton, Turton, and Westhoughton Extension Act 1898 allowed the county borough to absorb Astley Bridge Urban District and the bulk of Bolton Rural District
(the civil parish
es of Breightmet
, Darcy Lever
, Deane
, Great Lever
, Heaton
, Lostock, Middle Hulton
, Smithills and Tonge
). The area added to the borough was divided into eight wards (Astley Bridge, Tonge, Darcy Lever-cum-Breightmet, Great Lever, Hulton, Deane-cum-Lostock, Heaton, and Smithills), increasing the total number to seventeen. The Exchange Ward was subsequently abolished and the borough had sixteen wards until its abolition.
candidates were returned. From the beginning of the twentieth century a Labour
grouping began to emerge. By the 1920s Labour had become the second largest party on the council. The Liberals became the third party, while a Women's Citizen Association councillor sat on the council from 1921 to 1927. In 1933 the Conservatives lost their majority, and the council was under no overall control until 1937. Conservatives regained control in 1937 and held it at the following year's vote. Elections were postponed for the duration of World War II
., with the next municipal election being held in 1945. The Labour Party gained 17 seats from both the Conservatives and Liberals, and in 1946 gained control for the first time. The council was then under Labour control until 1949, Conservative from 1949 to 1952 and Labour from 1952 to 1954. After a year under no overall control, Conservatives were in power from 1955 to 1958 and Labour from 1958 to 1961. A Labour-Liberal coalition governed Bolton for two years before Labour regained a majority in 1963 The Conservatives regained the borough in 1965 and held it for seven years. In 1972, the final election before the borough's abolition was held, with Labour regaining control.
A coat of arms
was associated with the town prior to the borough's incorporation. This consisted of a shield bearing two bendlets or diagonal bands, variously depicted as gold on red or black on gold. The crest above the shield was an elephant bearing a castle on its back. In 1890 Major Otley Parry redesigned the arms for the borough, the new design being officially granted by letters patent
from the College of Arms
on June 5. The blazon
of the arms was as follows:
Gules two bendlets or a shuttle with weft pendent between an arrow point upwards and a mule spinning spindle in chief palewise all of the last and an escutcheon in base of the second thereon a rose of the first barbed and seeded proper, and for a Crest: Upon a rocky moor an elephant statant proper on its back a castle Or and thereon a rose as in the Arms the trapping per pale gules and vert and charged with a mitre also Or.
The bendlets do not seem to have had any particular significance: the corporation claimed that they represented a "soldier's belt". This was a common explanation for the heraldic symbol at the time. A number of symbols were added to the arms. In the upper part of the shield was an arrow, recalling that archers from Bolton played a part at the Battle of Flodden Field
in 1513. Next to this were two symbols of the cotton
industry: a spindle from Samuel Crompton
's spinning mule and a weaver's shuttle. In the lower section of the shield was a gold escutcheon
bearing the red rose of Lancaster
, denoting that the town was in Lancashire.
The elephant and castle crest of the unofficial arms was retained. The elephant was believed to have been derived from the arms of the City of Coventry
, and the green and red colouring of the trappings was taken from the city's arms. The presence of the elephant was explained by the fact that Bolton anciently lay within the Diocese of Mercia, the see of which was at Coventry. The gold mitre in the crest referred to the diocese. The elephant stood on a representation of a "rocky moor": a depiction of the town's old name of Bolton-le-Moors.
In 1958 the corporation received a further grant of supporters
and heraldic badge
. The additions to the arms were blazoned as follows:
Supporters: On either side a lion sable gorged with a wreath argent and sable each supporting a staff Or flying therefrom a banner that on the dexter vair Or and gules that on the sinister argent on a bend azure three stags' heads caboshed Or; Badge or Device: Upon an oval gules encompassed by a garland of six roses also gules barbed seeded and leaved proper an arrow point upwards enfiled by a crown palisado Or.
The black lions came from the arms of Flanders
, in recognition of the fact that Flemish immigrants founded Bolton's textile industry. They supported flags bearing the arms of the two families who held the Earldom of Derby
and principal manors
of Bolton: the Ferrers and Stanley families.
The motto
adopted was Supera Moras or "Overcome Delays". It was a pun on the Latin
name of the town: "Bolton-super-Moras".
s of Astley Bridge, Farnworth and Kearsley. The services were leased to a private operator, and by 1898 had reached 31 miles in length. In 1897 the corporation gained powers to operate the tramways themselves, and began the process of electrification. The corporation officially took over operation on January 1, 1900, with horse traction ending on the following day. Later the same year the tram lines were extended to Horwich
. In 1902 the sections in Farnworth and Kearsley were taken over by Farnworth Urban District Council, who passed operation to South Lancashire Transport in 1906. In 1909 Bolton and SLT began a joint-running arrangement with corporation trams reaching Atherton
and Leigh
as well as Farnworth and Kearsley. The tramways continued to be extended until 1924, and from 1927 Bolton provided some of the trams for South Lancashire's routes.
Bolton first experimented with omnibuses
in 1904 - 1907, with steam and petrol-electric vehicles. Motor bus operation began in 1923. Express services followed in 1927, run jointly with operators such as Manchester and salford corporations, the Stalybridge Hyde Mossley and Dukinfield Transport Board and Lancashire United Transport
. The first tramway replacement by buses was in 1933, and the last Bolton tram ran on March 29, 1947. Bolton Corporation continued as a bus-only operation until it was acquired by the SELNEC PTE
on November 1, 1969. One Bolton Corporation Transport bus, a 1956 Leyland PD2, is preserved at the Museum of Transport Manchester.
was damaging boilers. In 1864 they also acquired the Turton and Entwistle Reservoir, contained by the Entwistle Dam for the supply of drinking water. In 1971 the Jumbles Reservoir
in the Bradshaw Valley
was opened. The County Borough Corporation supplied water to a number of neighbouring authorities including the municipal boroughs of Farnworth
, Radcliffe
and Swinton and Pendlebury
, and the urban districts of Kearsley
, Turton
, Westhoughton
and Worsley
Under the Water Act 1973
the undertaking passed to the North West Water Authority
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, conterminate with the town of Bolton
Bolton
Bolton is a town in Greater Manchester, in the North West of England. Close to the West Pennine Moors, it is north west of the city of Manchester. Bolton is surrounded by several smaller towns and villages which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, of which Bolton is the...
.
History
Bolton was created a free boroughBorough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
in 1253 when William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby
William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby
William III de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby was an English nobleman and head of a family which controlled a large part of Derbyshire including an area known as Duffield Frith....
granted a charter
Charter
A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified...
. However the borough did not develop into a self-governing town, remaining under the control of officials appointed by the lord of the manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
. By the eighteenth century the town was rapidly expanding and the Bolton Improvement Act 1792 established two local government bodies for the area: the Great Bolton Improvement Trustees, and the Police Commissioners for the Township of Little Bolton
In 1838, under 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...
, the townships
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 Great Bolton
Great Bolton
Great Bolton was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England. Despite its name, Great Bolton had a smaller acreage than its northern neighbour Little Bolton from which it was separated by the River...
and Little Bolton
Little Bolton
Little Bolton was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England. Besides the main part of Little Bolton, it had three detached parts which were separated by areas of Lower Sharples and Higher Sharples...
, along with the Haulgh area from Tonge with Haulgh
Tonge with Haulgh
Tonge with Haulgh was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England.-Toponymy:...
township, were incorporated as a municipal borough
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...
, making it the second to be created in England (after Devonport
Devonport, Devon
Devonport, formerly named Plymouth Dock or just Dock, is a district of Plymouth in the English county of Devon, although it was, at one time, the more important settlement. It became a county borough in 1889...
). However, there was doubt about the validity of the charter, with the local Conservatives
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
refusing to stand for the first council elections, and the magistrate
Magistrate
A magistrate is an officer of the state; in modern usage the term usually refers to a judge or prosecutor. This was not always the case; in ancient Rome, a magistratus was one of the highest government officers and possessed both judicial and executive powers. Today, in common law systems, a...
s of Salford Hundred
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...
disputing the jurisdiction of the new corporation. The first elections to the town council were uncontested, with Whigs and Radicals
Radicals (UK)
The Radicals were a parliamentary political grouping in the United Kingdom in the early to mid 19th century, who drew on earlier ideas of radicalism and helped to transform the Whigs into the Liberal Party.-Background:...
holding all seats. The council was highly supportive of The People's Charter
Chartism
Chartism was a movement for political and social reform in the United Kingdom during the mid-19th century, between 1838 and 1859. It takes its name from the People's Charter of 1838. Chartism was possibly the first mass working class labour movement in the world...
.
The legality of the charter (as well as those of Devonport, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
and 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...
) was resolved by the Borough Charters Confirmation Act 1842. The Act forced the new municipality to compensate the officers of the old corporation. The first contested elections were held in November, 1842, and Conservatives gained control in 1844. In 1850 the borough corporation took over the Great Bolton and Little Bolton trusts established in 1792.
In 1889, as it had a population in excess of 50,000, Bolton was constituted a county borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
by the Local Government Act 1888
Local Government Act 1888
The Local Government Act 1888 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which established county councils and county borough councils in England and Wales...
. As a county borough, Bolton was independent of the administration of Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. It currently consists of 84 councillors, and is controlled by the Conservative Party, who won control of the council in the local council elections in June 2009, ending 28 years of...
, although it remained part of the county for judicial, shrievalty
High Sheriff
A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
and lieutenancy
Lord Lieutenant
The title Lord Lieutenant is given to the British monarch's personal representatives in the United Kingdom, usually in a county or similar circumscription, with varying tasks throughout history. Usually a retired local notable, senior military officer, peer or business person is given the post...
purposes.
In 1974, 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 County Borough of Bolton was abolished and its territory transferred to 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...
to form part of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton
Metropolitan Borough of Bolton
The Metropolitan Borough of Bolton is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Bolton, but covers a far larger area which includes Blackrod, Farnworth, Horwich, Kearsley and Westhoughton, and a suburban and rural element from the West Pennine...
.
Boundaries and wards
The original borough was divided into six wards: Bradford, Church, Derby, East, Exchange and West. The borough was extended in 1872, taking in the Daubhill area, which became the seventh ward of RumworthRumworth
Rumworth is an electoral ward of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically it was part of the hundred of Salford in Lancashire and centre of the Parish of Deane which once covered roughly half of the present Metropolitan Borough of Bolton...
. In 1873 the number of wards was increased to eight, with the formation of a new North ward. In 1877 a further enlargement added the ward of Halliwell
Halliwell, Greater Manchester
Halliwell is predominantly a residential area of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. It gives its name to an electoral ward of the wider Metropolitan Borough of Bolton. Halliwell lies about to the north west of Bolton town centre and is bounded by Tonge Moor to the east and Heaton to the south...
.
The Bolton, Turton, and Westhoughton Extension Act 1898 allowed the county borough to absorb Astley Bridge Urban District and the bulk of Bolton Rural District
Bolton Rural District
Bolton was a short-lived rural district in the administrative county of Lancashire. It was created by the Local Government Act 1894 and comprised an area surrounding the County Borough of Bolton, and was abolished when the borough was extended in 1898....
(the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
es of Breightmet
Breightmet
Breightmet is a neighbourhood of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Bolton le Moors in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, it lies 2 miles north east of Bolton and 4 miles north-west of Bury...
, Darcy Lever
Darcy Lever
Darcy Lever is a township within the Metropoliton Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, the village lies on the B6209 , between Bolton and Little Lever...
, Deane
Deane, Greater Manchester
Deane is an area of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is about south west of Bolton and northwest of the city of Manchester.Historically a part of Lancashire, the Parish of Deane was once one of four parishes within the hundred of Salford and covered roughly half of the present...
, Great Lever
Great Lever
Great Lever is mainly a residential suburb of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically within Lancashire, it is about 2½ miles south of Bolton town centre and the same distance north of Farnworth town centre. Great Lever has many shops and services serving the local community...
, Heaton
Heaton, Greater Manchester
Heaton is a mostly residential district and council ward of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England. It lies about two miles north west of Bolton town centre...
, Lostock, Middle Hulton
Middle Hulton
Middle Hulton was a township of the civil and ecclesiastical parish of Deane in the Salford hundred of Lancashire, England. It was located miles south west of Bolton.-History:...
, Smithills and Tonge
Tonge
-People:*Jenny Tonge, British politician*Israel Tonge, English devine*Roger Tonge, British actor*Michael Tonge, English footballer*Dale Tonge, English footballer*Gavin Tonge, West-Indian cricketer-Places:...
). The area added to the borough was divided into eight wards (Astley Bridge, Tonge, Darcy Lever-cum-Breightmet, Great Lever, Hulton, Deane-cum-Lostock, Heaton, and Smithills), increasing the total number to seventeen. The Exchange Ward was subsequently abolished and the borough had sixteen wards until its abolition.
Political control
As noted above, the first elections of the council were uncontested, with Whigs and Radicals forming an administration. Following the entry of Conservative candidates in 1842, they gained a majority in 1844. Until 1887 the only groupings on the council were the majority Conservative and minority Liberal groups, with elections frequently uncontested. The Bolton Engineers' Strike of 1887 led to a highly politicised situation and eight Labour representatives were successful. Three years later the council returned to two-party politics. There was little change over the next decade, although individual Labour and Home RuleHome rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
candidates were returned. From the beginning of the twentieth century a Labour
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...
grouping began to emerge. By the 1920s Labour had become the second largest party on the council. The Liberals became the third party, while a Women's Citizen Association councillor sat on the council from 1921 to 1927. In 1933 the Conservatives lost their majority, and the council was under no overall control until 1937. Conservatives regained control in 1937 and held it at the following year's vote. Elections were postponed for the duration of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
., with the next municipal election being held in 1945. The Labour Party gained 17 seats from both the Conservatives and Liberals, and in 1946 gained control for the first time. The council was then under Labour control until 1949, Conservative from 1949 to 1952 and Labour from 1952 to 1954. After a year under no overall control, Conservatives were in power from 1955 to 1958 and Labour from 1958 to 1961. A Labour-Liberal coalition governed Bolton for two years before Labour regained a majority in 1963 The Conservatives regained the borough in 1965 and held it for seven years. In 1972, the final election before the borough's abolition was held, with Labour regaining control.
Demographics
| Census Census in the United Kingdom Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with... population of the County Borough of Bolton |
|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1939 † | 1951 | 1961 | 1971 |
| Population | 146,487 | 168,215 | 180,851 | 178,683 | 177,250 | 163,823 | 167,167 | 160,789 | 154,223 |
| Sources: (a) Encyclopædia Britannica. (b) Vision of Britain. † The 1939 population is estimated from the National Registration Act National Registration Act 1939 The National Registration Act 1939 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. It became law on 5 September 1939 as an emergency measure at the start of World War II... figures. The 1941 census did not take place because of the Second World War World War II World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis... . |
|||||||||
Coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
was associated with the town prior to the borough's incorporation. This consisted of a shield bearing two bendlets or diagonal bands, variously depicted as gold on red or black on gold. The crest above the shield was an elephant bearing a castle on its back. In 1890 Major Otley Parry redesigned the arms for the borough, the new design being officially granted by letters patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
from the College of Arms
College of Arms
The College of Arms, or Heralds’ College, is an office regulating heraldry and granting new armorial bearings for England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
on June 5. The blazon
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
of the arms was as follows:
Gules two bendlets or a shuttle with weft pendent between an arrow point upwards and a mule spinning spindle in chief palewise all of the last and an escutcheon in base of the second thereon a rose of the first barbed and seeded proper, and for a Crest: Upon a rocky moor an elephant statant proper on its back a castle Or and thereon a rose as in the Arms the trapping per pale gules and vert and charged with a mitre also Or.
The bendlets do not seem to have had any particular significance: the corporation claimed that they represented a "soldier's belt". This was a common explanation for the heraldic symbol at the time. A number of symbols were added to the arms. In the upper part of the shield was an arrow, recalling that archers from Bolton played a part at the Battle of Flodden Field
Battle of Flodden Field
The Battle of Flodden or Flodden Field or occasionally Battle of Branxton was fought in the county of Northumberland in northern England on 9 September 1513, between an invading Scots army under King James IV and an English army commanded by the Earl of Surrey...
in 1513. Next to this were two symbols of the cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
industry: a spindle from Samuel Crompton
Samuel Crompton
Samuel Crompton was an English inventor and pioneer of the spinning industry.- Early life :Samuel Crompton was born at 10 Firwood Fold, Bolton, Lancashire to George and Betty Crompton . Samuel had two younger sisters...
's spinning mule and a weaver's shuttle. In the lower section of the shield was a gold escutcheon
Escutcheon
In heraldry, an escutcheon is a shield which forms the main or focal element in an achievement of arms. The word is used in two related senses....
bearing the red rose of Lancaster
Red Rose of Lancaster
The Red Rose of Lancaster is the county flower of Lancashire.The exact species or cultivar which the red rose relates to is uncertain, but it is thought to be Rosa gallica officinalis....
, denoting that the town was in Lancashire.
The elephant and castle crest of the unofficial arms was retained. The elephant was believed to have been derived from the arms of the City of Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, and the green and red colouring of the trappings was taken from the city's arms. The presence of the elephant was explained by the fact that Bolton anciently lay within the Diocese of Mercia, the see of which was at Coventry. The gold mitre in the crest referred to the diocese. The elephant stood on a representation of a "rocky moor": a depiction of the town's old name of Bolton-le-Moors.
In 1958 the corporation received a further grant of supporters
Supporters
In heraldry, supporters are figures usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. These figures may be real or imaginary animals, human figures, and in rare cases plants or inanimate objects...
and heraldic badge
Heraldic badge
A heraldic badge is an emblem or personal device worn as a badge to indicate allegiance to or the property of an individual or family. Medieval forms are usually called a livery badge, and also a cognizance...
. The additions to the arms were blazoned as follows:
Supporters: On either side a lion sable gorged with a wreath argent and sable each supporting a staff Or flying therefrom a banner that on the dexter vair Or and gules that on the sinister argent on a bend azure three stags' heads caboshed Or; Badge or Device: Upon an oval gules encompassed by a garland of six roses also gules barbed seeded and leaved proper an arrow point upwards enfiled by a crown palisado Or.
The black lions came from the arms of Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
, in recognition of the fact that Flemish immigrants founded Bolton's textile industry. They supported flags bearing the arms of the two families who held the Earldom of Derby
Earl of Derby
Earl of Derby is a title in the Peerage of England. The title was first adopted by Robert de Ferrers, 1st Earl of Derby under a creation of 1139. It continued with the Ferrers family until the 6th Earl forfeited his property toward the end of the reign of Henry III and died in 1279...
and principal manors
Manorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Bolton: the Ferrers and Stanley families.
The motto
Motto
A motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
adopted was Supera Moras or "Overcome Delays". It was a pun on the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
name of the town: "Bolton-super-Moras".
Bolton Corporation Transport
In 1880 Bolton Corporation began the construction of a network of horse tramways in conjunction with the councils of the neighbouring urban districtUrban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
s of Astley Bridge, Farnworth and Kearsley. The services were leased to a private operator, and by 1898 had reached 31 miles in length. In 1897 the corporation gained powers to operate the tramways themselves, and began the process of electrification. The corporation officially took over operation on January 1, 1900, with horse traction ending on the following day. Later the same year the tram lines were extended to 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...
. In 1902 the sections in Farnworth and Kearsley were taken over by Farnworth Urban District Council, who passed operation to South Lancashire Transport in 1906. In 1909 Bolton and SLT began a joint-running arrangement with corporation trams reaching Atherton
Atherton, Greater Manchester
Atherton is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England, historically a part of Lancashire. It is east of Wigan, north-northeast of Leigh, and northwest of Manchester...
and Leigh
Leigh, Greater Manchester
Leigh is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Wigan, and west of Manchester. Leigh is situated on low lying land to the north west of Chat Moss....
as well as Farnworth and Kearsley. The tramways continued to be extended until 1924, and from 1927 Bolton provided some of the trams for South Lancashire's routes.
Bolton first experimented with omnibuses
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
in 1904 - 1907, with steam and petrol-electric vehicles. Motor bus operation began in 1923. Express services followed in 1927, run jointly with operators such as Manchester and salford corporations, the Stalybridge Hyde Mossley and Dukinfield Transport Board and Lancashire United Transport
Lancashire United Transport
Lancashire United Transport was a tram, bus and trolleybus operator based at Howe Bridge in Atherton, 10 miles north west of Manchester...
. The first tramway replacement by buses was in 1933, and the last Bolton tram ran on March 29, 1947. Bolton Corporation continued as a bus-only operation until it was acquired by the SELNEC PTE
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...
on November 1, 1969. One Bolton Corporation Transport bus, a 1956 Leyland PD2, is preserved at the Museum of Transport Manchester.
Utilities
Water supply
In 1847 the corporation took over the privately-owned waterworks. The main concern of the water undertaking was to secure supplies of water for manufacturing industry, as the existing hard waterHard water
Hard water is water that has high mineral content . Hard water has high concentrations of Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions. Hard water is generally not harmful to one's health but can pose serious problems in industrial settings, where water hardness is monitored to avoid costly breakdowns in boilers, cooling...
was damaging boilers. In 1864 they also acquired the Turton and Entwistle Reservoir, contained by the Entwistle Dam for the supply of drinking water. In 1971 the Jumbles Reservoir
Jumbles Reservoir
The Jumbles Reservoir is a heavily modified, high alkalinity, shallow reservoir in North West England. It lies in Jumbles Country Park, in the valley of Bradshaw Brook, partly in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, and partly in Blackburn with Darwen, Lancashire...
in the Bradshaw Valley
Bradshaw Brook
Bradshaw Brook is a river draining parts of Lancashire and Greater Manchester in Northern England.Starting life as Cadshaw Brook draining a valley named Green Lowe Clough on Turton Moor, the brook feeds the Turton and Entwistle Reservoir and Wayoh Reservoir...
was opened. The County Borough Corporation supplied water to a number of neighbouring authorities including the municipal boroughs of Farnworth
Farnworth
Farnworth is within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is located southeast of Bolton, 6 miles south-west of Bury , and northwest of Manchester....
, 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...
and Swinton and Pendlebury
Swinton and Pendlebury
Swinton and Pendlebury was a local government district of the administrative county of Lancashire, England. It was created in 1894 as an urban district and enlarged in 1934, gaining the status of municipal borough.-Constituent civil parishes:...
, and the urban districts of Kearsley
Kearsley
Kearsley is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically within Lancashire, it lies about 7½ miles northwest of Manchester,5.5 miles south-west of Bury, and about 3¾ miles south of Bolton.It is bounded on the west by Walkden, the east by...
, Turton
Turton
-As a surname:See also Turton Baronets for Turton Baronetcies*John Turton , the doctor of King George III of Great Britain; treated that monarch during bouts of his madness*William Turton , British naturalist...
, Westhoughton
Westhoughton
Westhoughton is a town and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is southwest of Bolton, east of Wigan and northwest of Manchester....
and Worsley
Worsley
Worsley is a town in the metropolitan borough of the City of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies along the course of Worsley Brook, west of Manchester. The M60 motorway bisects the area....
Under the Water Act 1973
Water Act 1973
The Water Act 1973 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reorganised the water, sewage and river management industry in England and Wales...
the undertaking passed to the North West Water Authority
North West Water
North West Water was a water supply company serving north west England. It was originally the North West Water Authority, one of ten regional authorities created by the Water Act 1973. In 1989 it became North West Water plc, and was privatised...
.
Electricity
Electric lighting was introduced by the Corporation in 1894. The original power station, in Spa Road, was found to be inadequate, and a new facility and Back o' th' Bank Power Station came into service in 1914. Under the Electricity Act 1947 the electricity supply and generating industry was nationalised, and Bolton's Electricity Department was merged in North Western Electricity Board.Gas
In 1872 the Corporation acquired the Bolton Gas Light and Coke Company, which dated from 1818. Taken over were works at Gas Street/Moor Lane and Lum Street, with headquarters at Hotel Street. The Corporation reconstructed the works and built a new facility at Spa Road comprising offices, workshops and testing rooms. In 1949, under the terms of the Gas Act 1948, the undertaking passed to the North Western Gas Board.Neighbouring districts
| The former districts which had surrounded the County Borough of Bolton. | ||
|---|---|---|
| North-West: 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... Urban District |
North: Turton Urban District |
North-East: Tottington Tottington, Greater Manchester Tottington is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England.Historically a part of Lancashire, Tottington's early history is marked by its status as an important Medieval fee, a type of Royal Manor which encompassed several townships... Urban District |
| West: Blackrod Blackrod Blackrod is a settlement and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, in Greater Manchester, England. It is north-northeast of Wigan and west of Bolton and, according to the United Kingdom Census 2001, has a population of 5,300.... Urban District |
Bolton County Borough | East: 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... Urban District Little Lever Little Lever Little Lever is a large village within the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. Historically a part of Lancashire, it is southeast of Bolton, west of Radcliffe, and west-southwest of Bury.... Urban District |
| South-West: Westhoughton Westhoughton Westhoughton is a town and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. It is southwest of Bolton, east of Wigan and northwest of Manchester.... Urban District |
South: Tyldesley Urban District Tyldesley Urban District Tyldesley cum Shakerley Urban District and its successor Tyldesley Urban District was, from 1894 to 1974, a local government district in Lancashire, England.-History:... |
South-East: Farnworth Municipal Borough Municipal Borough of Farnworth The Municipal Borough of Farnworth was a local government district centred on the town of Farnworth in the administrative county of Lancashire, England.... |
External links
- Bolton CB/MB: Historical Boundaries, (A vision of Britain through time)