Helmshore
Encyclopedia
Helmshore is a village in the Rossendale Valley
, Lancashire
, England
. It is situated south of Haslingden
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
.
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
on its way to Whalley
. This also connected with Watling Street
at Affetside
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
improvements of the nineteenth century.
, cotton
and linen
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
cottages.
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
military Zeppelin
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
to Bury
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Originally Higher Mill, Helmshore Mills Textile Museum is a water-powered fulling mill and a 19th century condenser cotton spinning mill, with working machinery. Built by the Turners in 1789, and rescued from dereliction by Derek Pilkington and Chris Aspin in the 1960s, it is now managed by Lancashire County Council
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
water frame
, and a Hargreaves
Spinning Jenny
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
, Lancashire
, England
. It is situated south of Haslingden
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
.
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
on its way to Whalley
. This also connected with Watling Street
at Affetside
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
improvements of the nineteenth century.
, cotton
and linen
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
cottages.
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
military Zeppelin
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
to Bury
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Originally Higher Mill, Helmshore Mills Textile Museum is a water-powered fulling mill and a 19th century condenser cotton spinning mill, with working machinery. Built by the Turners in 1789, and rescued from dereliction by Derek Pilkington and Chris Aspin in the 1960s, it is now managed by Lancashire County Council
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
water frame
, and a Hargreaves
Spinning Jenny
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
, Lancashire
, England
. It is situated south of Haslingden
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
.
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
on its way to Whalley
. This also connected with Watling Street
at Affetside
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
improvements of the nineteenth century.
, cotton
and linen
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
cottages.
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
military Zeppelin
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
to Bury
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Originally Higher Mill, Helmshore Mills Textile Museum is a water-powered fulling mill and a 19th century condenser cotton spinning mill, with working machinery. Built by the Turners in 1789, and rescued from dereliction by Derek Pilkington and Chris Aspin in the 1960s, it is now managed by Lancashire County Council
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
water frame
, and a Hargreaves
Spinning Jenny
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
Rossendale Valley
The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, in Lancashire. The area is within the Borough of Rossendale...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England
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...
. It is situated south of Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Early history
The area around Helmshore is moorland. Post-Ice AgeIce age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
The Park
The village is dominated by the spectacular flat-topped Musbury TorMusbury Tor
Musbury Tor is a flat topped hill in Helmshore, Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It separates Alden Valley to its south and Musbury Valley to the north. It is a very popular walking spot and the views from the top are magnificent. It is on farmland and is mainly sheep pasture. It is one of the...
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
Alden Valley
The Alden Valley is a small valley in the east Pennines, west of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire. In 1840 it was home to about 20 farms; largely cattle rearing, although most inhabitants were also involved with the production of textiles...
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
The Pilgrims route
One of the main early tracks that passed through Helmshore was a route from the south (by the Pilgrim's Cross which was in existence in AD 1176) on Holcombe Moor, and then goes through HaslingdenHaslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
on its way to Whalley
Whalley
Whalley is a large village in the Ribble Valley on the banks of the River Calder in Lancashire, England. It is overlooked by Whalley Nab, a large picturesque wooded hill over the river from the village....
. This also connected with Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
at Affetside
Affetside
Affetside is an upland village located in the West Pennine Moors area, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, bordering Bolton in North West England. Historically, it was part of Lancashire. It is also in the Local Council Ward of Tottington, and is situated in the Bury North...
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre or Horse + Bamboo Theatre is a British theatre company founded in 1978 by Bob Frith. The company works with a commitment to strong narratives but using visual, physical, and music-based forms rather than text. In particular it uses distinctive full-head masks...
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
improvements of the nineteenth century.
The Industrial Revolution
Helmshore owes its development to a damp climate that was ideally suited to the development of the woolWool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
, 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....
and linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
Back-to-back houses
Usually of low quality and high density, they were built for working class people and because three of the four walls of the house were shared with other buildings and therefore contained no doors or windows, back-to-back houses were notoriously ill-lit and poorly ventilated and sanitation was of...
cottages.
1860 rail crash
There was a major railway accident in Helmshore in September 1860. There were eleven lives lost and around 100 people injured. The accident happened on the line between Snig HoleSnighole
Snighole is a local beauty spot situated in the valley of the River Ogden in the Lancashire village of Helmshore, near Haslingden in the Rossendale Valley...
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
Helmshore railway station
Helmshore railway station served the village of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire between 1848 and 1966.-Construction and location:Helmshore station was built by the East Lancashire Railway 1844-1859 and opened on 17 August 1848...
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Belle Vue Zoo
Belle Vue Zoological Gardens was a large zoo, amusement park, exhibition hall complex and speedway stadium in Belle Vue , Manchester, England, opened in 1836...
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is situated on the course of the River Irwell, in the West Pennine Moors. Historically within Lancashire, it is located north-northwest of Bury, and north-northwest of Manchester...
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
First world War
On 25 September 1916 a 179m-long GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
military Zeppelin
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
Recent
The railway that ran through Helmshore was closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching rationalisation planBeeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall is a town at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, in Lancashire, England. It is the seat for the Borough of Rossendale, in which it is located. The town lies 18 miles north of Manchester, 22 miles east of the county town of Preston and 45 miles south east of Lancaster...
to Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Helmshore Mills Textile Museum
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...
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
Richard Arkwright
Sir Richard Arkwright , was an Englishman who, although the patents were eventually overturned, is often credited for inventing the spinning frame — later renamed the water frame following the transition to water power. He also patented a carding engine that could convert raw cotton into yarn...
water frame
Water frame
The water frame is the name given to the spinning frame, when water power is used to drive it. Both are credited to Richard Arkwright who patented the technology in 1768. It was based on an invention by Thomas Highs and the patent was later overturned...
, and a Hargreaves
James Hargreaves
James Hargreaves was a weaver, carpenter and an inventor in Lancashire, England. He is credited with inventing the spinning Jenny in 1764....
Spinning Jenny
Spinning jenny
The spinning jenny is a multi-spool spinning frame. It was invented c. 1764 by James Hargreaves in Stanhill, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire in England. The device reduced the amount of work needed to produce yarn, with a worker able to work eight or more spools at once. This grew to 120 as technology...
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
The Tor Mile Race
Every year, an athletics race takes place in Helmshore - The Musbury Tor Mile. The race is thought to have started in the early years of the last century, and may have an even older ancestry. Originally the runners ran to, and around, Big Nor, a large stone at the tip of Musbury Tor, and back, but it was stopped after the farmer withdrew permission to use his land. The route was altered to make all parties happy, and it now actually measures nearer two miles than one - a mile up and a mile back down. Since 2004 the race has been taking place again and is part of the fell running tradition of the area.Further reading
Helmshore is a village in the Rossendale ValleyRossendale Valley
The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, in Lancashire. The area is within the Borough of Rossendale...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England
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...
. It is situated south of Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Early history
The area around Helmshore is moorland. Post-Ice AgeIce age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
The Park
The village is dominated by the spectacular flat-topped Musbury TorMusbury Tor
Musbury Tor is a flat topped hill in Helmshore, Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It separates Alden Valley to its south and Musbury Valley to the north. It is a very popular walking spot and the views from the top are magnificent. It is on farmland and is mainly sheep pasture. It is one of the...
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
Alden Valley
The Alden Valley is a small valley in the east Pennines, west of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire. In 1840 it was home to about 20 farms; largely cattle rearing, although most inhabitants were also involved with the production of textiles...
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
The Pilgrims route
One of the main early tracks that passed through Helmshore was a route from the south (by the Pilgrim's Cross which was in existence in AD 1176) on Holcombe Moor, and then goes through HaslingdenHaslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
on its way to Whalley
Whalley
Whalley is a large village in the Ribble Valley on the banks of the River Calder in Lancashire, England. It is overlooked by Whalley Nab, a large picturesque wooded hill over the river from the village....
. This also connected with Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
at Affetside
Affetside
Affetside is an upland village located in the West Pennine Moors area, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, bordering Bolton in North West England. Historically, it was part of Lancashire. It is also in the Local Council Ward of Tottington, and is situated in the Bury North...
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre or Horse + Bamboo Theatre is a British theatre company founded in 1978 by Bob Frith. The company works with a commitment to strong narratives but using visual, physical, and music-based forms rather than text. In particular it uses distinctive full-head masks...
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
improvements of the nineteenth century.
The Industrial Revolution
Helmshore owes its development to a damp climate that was ideally suited to the development of the woolWool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
, 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....
and linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
Back-to-back houses
Usually of low quality and high density, they were built for working class people and because three of the four walls of the house were shared with other buildings and therefore contained no doors or windows, back-to-back houses were notoriously ill-lit and poorly ventilated and sanitation was of...
cottages.
1860 rail crash
There was a major railway accident in Helmshore in September 1860. There were eleven lives lost and around 100 people injured. The accident happened on the line between Snig HoleSnighole
Snighole is a local beauty spot situated in the valley of the River Ogden in the Lancashire village of Helmshore, near Haslingden in the Rossendale Valley...
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
Helmshore railway station
Helmshore railway station served the village of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire between 1848 and 1966.-Construction and location:Helmshore station was built by the East Lancashire Railway 1844-1859 and opened on 17 August 1848...
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Belle Vue Zoo
Belle Vue Zoological Gardens was a large zoo, amusement park, exhibition hall complex and speedway stadium in Belle Vue , Manchester, England, opened in 1836...
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is situated on the course of the River Irwell, in the West Pennine Moors. Historically within Lancashire, it is located north-northwest of Bury, and north-northwest of Manchester...
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
First world War
On 25 September 1916 a 179m-long GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
military Zeppelin
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
Recent
The railway that ran through Helmshore was closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching rationalisation planBeeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall is a town at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, in Lancashire, England. It is the seat for the Borough of Rossendale, in which it is located. The town lies 18 miles north of Manchester, 22 miles east of the county town of Preston and 45 miles south east of Lancaster...
to Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Helmshore Mills Textile Museum
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...
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
Richard Arkwright
Sir Richard Arkwright , was an Englishman who, although the patents were eventually overturned, is often credited for inventing the spinning frame — later renamed the water frame following the transition to water power. He also patented a carding engine that could convert raw cotton into yarn...
water frame
Water frame
The water frame is the name given to the spinning frame, when water power is used to drive it. Both are credited to Richard Arkwright who patented the technology in 1768. It was based on an invention by Thomas Highs and the patent was later overturned...
, and a Hargreaves
James Hargreaves
James Hargreaves was a weaver, carpenter and an inventor in Lancashire, England. He is credited with inventing the spinning Jenny in 1764....
Spinning Jenny
Spinning jenny
The spinning jenny is a multi-spool spinning frame. It was invented c. 1764 by James Hargreaves in Stanhill, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire in England. The device reduced the amount of work needed to produce yarn, with a worker able to work eight or more spools at once. This grew to 120 as technology...
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
The Tor Mile Race
Every year, an athletics race takes place in Helmshore - The Musbury Tor Mile. The race is thought to have started in the early years of the last century, and may have an even older ancestry. Originally the runners ran to, and around, Big Nor, a large stone at the tip of Musbury Tor, and back, but it was stopped after the farmer withdrew permission to use his land. The route was altered to make all parties happy, and it now actually measures nearer two miles than one - a mile up and a mile back down. Since 2004 the race has been taking place again and is part of the fell running tradition of the area.Further reading
Helmshore is a village in the Rossendale ValleyRossendale Valley
The Rossendale Valley is part of the Forest of Rossendale, an upland area of North West England, in Lancashire. The area is within the Borough of Rossendale...
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, England
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...
. It is situated south of Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, broadly between the A56 and the B6235, approximately 16 miles north of Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
.
Early history
The area around Helmshore is moorland. Post-Ice AgeIce age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
this would have been forested and bog oak can still be found on the flat peatland tops over 250 metres high. The forest declined in the Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period, and largely disappeared during the Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
, mainly as a result of climatic change although hastened by human activity. There is some evidence of human habitation in the area during the Neolithic period - stone implements found on Bull Hill and at Musbury valley, and the stones at Thirteen Stone Hill near Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
, and there are a relatively complex network of both local and long distance old tracks crossing the area.
The Park
The village is dominated by the spectacular flat-topped Musbury TorMusbury Tor
Musbury Tor is a flat topped hill in Helmshore, Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It separates Alden Valley to its south and Musbury Valley to the north. It is a very popular walking spot and the views from the top are magnificent. It is on farmland and is mainly sheep pasture. It is one of the...
, once the centre of the medieval hunting park, or Forest. Either side of the Tor are two valleys: Alden valley
Alden Valley
The Alden Valley is a small valley in the east Pennines, west of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire. In 1840 it was home to about 20 farms; largely cattle rearing, although most inhabitants were also involved with the production of textiles...
in the south-west and Musbury valley to the North-west. The 'whole land of Musbury' was granted to John de Lacy (before 1241) by Lewis de Bernavill. A licence for a 'free warren' was granted to the Earl of Lincoln in 1294. Work on fencing the Park was completed by 1304-5, with palings being erected. The park, with its 'herbage and agistments' was said to be worth 13s. 4d. in 1311. In 1329 and 1330 it is described as 'Queen Isabel's park of Musbury', and fines were being applied for trespass to, among others, the rector of Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
. Stretches of the ditch enclosure are clearly visible at Grane
Haslingden Grane
thumb|right|300px|Lower Ogden Reservoir from Musbury HeightsHaslingden Grane is a glaciated valley lying to the west of Haslingden and in the north east of the West Pennine Moors. It is easily accessible via the B6232/A6077 Grane Road which links to the M65 motorway and the A56...
and Alden valleys, and deer are still occasionally seen in the area. There are several current place names identifying the Park.
The Pilgrims route
One of the main early tracks that passed through Helmshore was a route from the south (by the Pilgrim's Cross which was in existence in AD 1176) on Holcombe Moor, and then goes through HaslingdenHaslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
on its way to Whalley
Whalley
Whalley is a large village in the Ribble Valley on the banks of the River Calder in Lancashire, England. It is overlooked by Whalley Nab, a large picturesque wooded hill over the river from the village....
. This also connected with Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
at Affetside
Affetside
Affetside is an upland village located in the West Pennine Moors area, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, bordering Bolton in North West England. Historically, it was part of Lancashire. It is also in the Local Council Ward of Tottington, and is situated in the Bury North...
, and a well-established way from Bolton to Rossendale.
In Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
times, Whalley church was an important Minster and the mother church of an enormous parish. Later, in the medieval period, several chapels-of-ease were attached to Whalley church for the 'ease' of the scattered population providing access to the Mass and the sacraments. After the move made by the Cistercian monks of Stanlow to Whalley at the end of the thirteenth century, traffic would have increased along this route.
To the south on the old pilgrim road is Robin Hood's Well, and above that is a cairn and memorial stone in memory of Ellen Strange, generally believed to be a young girl murdered by her lover - an event recorded in a Victorian ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
by John Fawcett Skelton but now known to be a murder of a wife by a husband in 1791 that has become replaced by a colourful, but fictional, story. The event was commemorated by Bob Frith and the Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre
Horse and Bamboo Theatre or Horse + Bamboo Theatre is a British theatre company founded in 1978 by Bob Frith. The company works with a commitment to strong narratives but using visual, physical, and music-based forms rather than text. In particular it uses distinctive full-head masks...
group in 1978. The memorial stone was carved by Liverpool artist Don McKinlay and depicts the murdered woman. These routes fell into disuse for anything other than foot traffic after the turnpike
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
improvements of the nineteenth century.
The Industrial Revolution
Helmshore owes its development to a damp climate that was ideally suited to the development of the woolWool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
, 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....
and linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
industries. During the early part of the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, from the 1790s on, small mills were built on the river valleys, such as Alden valley where there are still ruins, close to the farming areas - indeed most mill-owners were also farmers. But by the latter half of the nineteenth century these mills became redundant and industry expanded enormously as mill owners such as the Turner family built terraced dwellings to house the workforce necessary to run their cotton mills close to the roads and railways. During this period Helmshore gradually superseded Musbury as the main name for the community.
Helmshore became a mill workers' settlement, comprising an extensive area of woollen and cotton mills and associated workers' housing built along the valley of the River Ogden. The Turner family, whose tan pits and Hollin Bank mills were built as water-powered mills in the early nineteenth century, first established the settlement. The surviving mills later converted to cotton production. The area expanded with the opening of the railway in 1848, and includes the Station Hotel and St Thomas's Church (1851/2). The housing is mixed, with some two-up, two-down terraces, top-and-bottom houses and a few surviving back-to-back
Back-to-back houses
Usually of low quality and high density, they were built for working class people and because three of the four walls of the house were shared with other buildings and therefore contained no doors or windows, back-to-back houses were notoriously ill-lit and poorly ventilated and sanitation was of...
cottages.
1860 rail crash
There was a major railway accident in Helmshore in September 1860. There were eleven lives lost and around 100 people injured. The accident happened on the line between Snig HoleSnighole
Snighole is a local beauty spot situated in the valley of the River Ogden in the Lancashire village of Helmshore, near Haslingden in the Rossendale Valley...
and the Ogden Viaduct, both local beauty spots, 400 yards from Helmshore station
Helmshore railway station
Helmshore railway station served the village of Helmshore in Rossendale, Lancashire between 1848 and 1966.-Construction and location:Helmshore station was built by the East Lancashire Railway 1844-1859 and opened on 17 August 1848...
. About 3,000 people had gone from East Lancashire on three excursion trains to Salford
City of Salford
The City of Salford is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It is named after its largest settlement, Salford, but covers a far larger area which includes the towns of Eccles, Swinton-Pendlebury, Walkden and Irlam which apart from Irlam each have a population of over...
to visit the attractions at Belle Vue
Belle Vue Zoo
Belle Vue Zoological Gardens was a large zoo, amusement park, exhibition hall complex and speedway stadium in Belle Vue , Manchester, England, opened in 1836...
Gardens.
The second train with about 1,000 passengers and 31 carriages got to Helmshore Station where it stopped to let out some passengers. "When the guard released the brakes there was a jerk and 16 carriages broke away from the train and started sliding down the line between Helmshore and Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom
Ramsbottom is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It is situated on the course of the River Irwell, in the West Pennine Moors. Historically within Lancashire, it is located north-northwest of Bury, and north-northwest of Manchester...
. Mr Shaw, the superintendent, saw what had happened and unhooked the engine from the train in order to go down the other line to warn the third train, but unfortunately he was too late. The carriages had already run 400 yards down the line and collided with the oncoming train."
First world War
On 25 September 1916 a 179m-long GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
military Zeppelin
Zeppelin
A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century. It was based on designs he had outlined in 1874 and detailed in 1893. His plans were reviewed by committee in 1894 and patented in the United States on 14 March 1899...
airship flew over Helmshore on a bombing mission. It was probably following the railway, attempting to inflict damage on the transport system. One bomb dropped near Clod Lane, Haslingden
Haslingden
Haslingden is a small town in Rossendale, Lancashire, England. It is north of Manchester. The name means 'valley of the hazels', though the town is in fact set on a high and windy hill. In the early 20th century Haslingden had the status of a municipal borough, but following local government...
, where there was a gun cotton factory. Ewood Bridge station was destroyed by bombs and, after passing over Helmshore, the Zeppelin flew on to Holcombe where it did further damage.
Recent
The railway that ran through Helmshore was closed in 1966 as part of the Beeching rationalisation planBeeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, but relics of the old railway routes remain in and around the village. The Ravenshore viaduct has been vandalised but remains a considerable monument to the railway heritage. The Helmshore viaduct, close to the textile museum, is now a footpath. The railway preservation society that was founded to fight the Beeching cuts became the East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway
The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.-Overview:After formal closure by British Rail in 1982, the line was reopened on 25 July 1987. The initial service operated between Bury and Ramsbottom, via Summerseat. In 1991 the service was extended...
, which now operates the Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall
Rawtenstall is a town at the centre of the Rossendale Valley, in Lancashire, England. It is the seat for the Borough of Rossendale, in which it is located. The town lies 18 miles north of Manchester, 22 miles east of the county town of Preston and 45 miles south east of Lancaster...
to Bury
Bury
Bury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
line.
One of the world's first municipal bus services linked Helmshore to Haslingden in 1907.
Helmshore has had a second major expansion since the 1970s with the building of a large number of new estates, and infill, often for commuters to Manchester. However parts of the village—and the surrounding countryside—remain very attractive.
Helmshore Mills Textile Museum
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...
Museums Service and details the changes made in textile technology over the last three hundred years through the use of interactive displays. Mill ponds, weirs, sluice gates and an aqueduct are also part of the museum as well as a 19th century working waterwheel, fulling stocks and other machinery associated with the finishing of woollen cloth, an original Arkwright
Richard Arkwright
Sir Richard Arkwright , was an Englishman who, although the patents were eventually overturned, is often credited for inventing the spinning frame — later renamed the water frame following the transition to water power. He also patented a carding engine that could convert raw cotton into yarn...
water frame
Water frame
The water frame is the name given to the spinning frame, when water power is used to drive it. Both are credited to Richard Arkwright who patented the technology in 1768. It was based on an invention by Thomas Highs and the patent was later overturned...
, and a Hargreaves
James Hargreaves
James Hargreaves was a weaver, carpenter and an inventor in Lancashire, England. He is credited with inventing the spinning Jenny in 1764....
Spinning Jenny
Spinning jenny
The spinning jenny is a multi-spool spinning frame. It was invented c. 1764 by James Hargreaves in Stanhill, Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire in England. The device reduced the amount of work needed to produce yarn, with a worker able to work eight or more spools at once. This grew to 120 as technology...
. It also houses a museum and bookshop selling, among other things, books on local textile history.
In 1856 Joseph Porritt established Sunnybank Mill, an enormous mill which once housed the world's largest spinning mules. The other main Helmshore mill dynasty were the Whittakers, one of whose mills makes up part of the Textile Museum.
The Tor Mile Race
Every year, an athletics race takes place in Helmshore - The Musbury Tor Mile. The race is thought to have started in the early years of the last century, and may have an even older ancestry. Originally the runners ran to, and around, Big Nor, a large stone at the tip of Musbury Tor, and back, but it was stopped after the farmer withdrew permission to use his land. The route was altered to make all parties happy, and it now actually measures nearer two miles than one - a mile up and a mile back down. Since 2004 the race has been taking place again and is part of the fell running tradition of the area.Further reading
- Aspen, Chris, Derek Pilkington, and John Simpson. Helmshore. Helmshore: Helmshore Local History Society, 2000. ISBN 0906881072
- Baker, Sydney J. History of Methodism in Helmshore: A Souvenir of the Jubilee. [England: s.n, 1923.]
- Simpson, John "Musbury and Alden, 700 years of life and landscape".Helmshore Local History Society 2008; ISBN 978-0-906881-19-4
External links
