SALFORD HUNDRED 



BOLTON-LE-MOORS 



and John and George Shaw have made benefactions." 

 For Blackrod is the gift of John Popplewell, and 

 there are bread and calico doles. 100 For Turton are 

 the charities of Abigail and Humphrey Chetham, John 

 Popplewell, and Nathaniel Wilson ; 101 while there 

 are smaller sums for Entwisle 101 and Harwood. 103 

 A number of ancient endowments have been lost. 



GREAT BOLTON 



Bothelton, I2I2 ; Botelton, 1257 ; Boulton, 1288, 

 and common ; Bolton, 1307, and common. 



This township, 1 which contains the parish church 

 and about half the town of Bolton-le-Moors, has an 

 area of 82 5 J acres, 1 and is bounded on the north 

 and east by the River Croal, flowing east and south- 

 east to join the Irwell. The surface is comparatively 

 level, though rising towards the south-west, except for 

 the clough or steep-banked valley through which 

 the Croal flows. The population, including that of 

 Haulgh, in 1901 was 53,506. 



Formerly the south-western part of the township 

 was occupied by the moor, and the first habitations 

 sprang up along the course of the stream, the church 

 standing above it at the point where its course changed 

 from east to south. There were two noted wells, the 

 memory of which is preserved in Silverwell Street and 

 Spa Road.* From the church the road from Little 

 Bolton leads westward by Church Bank, Church Gate, 

 and Deansgate, from which the roads to Chorley and 

 Deane branched off. This main street is crossed, 

 about 200 yards from the church, by the road from 



Manchester leading north by Bradshaw Gate and 

 Bank Street into Little Bolton. At their crossing was 

 the old market-place, 4 with its cross. From Deans- 

 gate Bridge Street leads northward across the Croal, 

 and in 1874-7 another high level road across was 

 formed, further west, and called Marsden Street. The 

 new market-place, 1824, more recently called Town 

 Hall Square and Victoria Square, is to the south of 

 Deansgate. 4 Here stands the new Town Hall, and 

 close at hand are the markets and other municipal build- 

 ings. From the west end of Deansgate, Moor Lane 

 leads south, and branches out west and south-west as 

 Deane Road and Derby Street. To the west of Moor 

 Lane are the districts called Bullfield, Gilnow, and 

 Pocket. From the junction of Moor Lane and Derby 

 Street, Weston Street and Great Moor Street lead 

 north-east to Bradshaw Gate, and Crook Street and 

 Trinity Street 6 eastward across the railway station to 

 the bridge over the Croal, leading into Haulgh. To 

 the south of Crook Street were the Lecturer's Closes, 

 now chiefly occupied by a goods station. Rosehill 

 lies to the south-east of the town, by the river. 



Trinity Street Station of the Lancashire and York- 

 shire Railway Company has been mentioned ; it was 

 opened in 1871. From it runs south the line to 

 Manchester, with a branch to Bury through Rose- 

 hill ; to the north and west the lines to Preston and 

 Liverpool, with a branch turning north-west by the 

 church to Blackburn. The London and North West- 

 ern Company has a terminus in Great Moor Street ; 

 from this its lines run south to Worsley and Man- 

 chester, with a westward branch to Kenyon. 7 



99 The Shaw Charities are shared by 

 four townships Rivington, Anglezarke, 

 Heath Charnock, and Anderton ; the 

 available income is about 185. Rachael 

 Charnley's gift of 6s. %d. a year, formerly 

 distributed with Shaw's Charity, has been 

 lost since 1867, recent owners repudiating 

 any liability. 



Miss Alice Lowe of Blackpool left a 

 fund for the poor, now producing nearly 

 16 a year ; this is distributed in money, 

 coals, and clothing by the trustees. 



100 The Popplewell Charities for the 

 poor are now represented by,i,ioo for a 

 bread charity, and ,400 for a blanket 

 charity ; the recipients must be regular 

 attendants at church. 



A number of benefactions, chiefly of 

 the 1 7th and i8th centuries, made up a 

 sum of ,190 by 1803, which, with 20 

 given for cloth by Robert Aston in 1728, 

 and uo for bread and cloth by John 

 Ainscough in 1812, was in 1815 invested 

 in Government Stock, producing about 

 1 5 a year for the poor. An estate called 

 the Bent was also charged with 41. a year 

 by Edward Pilkington in 1644. Part of 

 the money was in 1828 distributed in six- 

 penny loaves, but most of it in doles of 

 flannel or linen given on St. Stephen's 

 Day. A new scheme was made in 1857, 

 and of the income 20*. dd. is distributed 

 in sixpenny loaves on St. Stephen's Day, 

 and the same amount on St. John's Day, 

 while over 7 is on the former festival 

 given in doles of calico. 



A benefaction of ,100 by Edward 

 Holt in 1741, and two smaller ones, were 

 said to be lost in 1828, but at present ,5 

 a year has long been paid to the vicar of 

 Blackrod by the agent of the Leigh estate, 

 Hindley, and is customarily distributed in 

 bread on fifty Sundays in the year. It is 

 supposed this may be the Holt Charity ; 



the earliest recorded payment was in 

 1788. 



101 Abigail Chetham in 1690 left money 

 for the clothing of four poor boys ; it was 

 invested in the purchase of Haslam Hey 

 in Elton, and the rent, amounting in 

 1 828 to ,28, was then used in the clothing 

 and education of six boys ; the rent has 

 now fallen to ,8, and four boy are 

 clothed. Canon Raines (Noeitia, ii, 25) 

 says that Gervase Chetham, the nephew 

 of Abigail, was the real donor. 



Humphrey Chetham in 1748 gave cer- 

 tain lands in Turton called Goose Coat 

 Hill, &c., for the benefit of poor persons 

 not relieved from the rates. The income 

 was in 1828 distributed in doles of linen. 

 The estate was sold in 1864 for ,1,700, 

 and the capital given to the official trustees; 

 the income, now 49 izs. %d., is dis- 

 tributed in doles of calico, flannel, blankets, 

 and sheets. 



John Popplewell in 1820 gave money 

 for a bread charity ; shilling loaves were 

 to be distributed to the poor who regularly 

 attended church. The income is now 

 jio 161. 8</., and is spent on bread, but 

 attendance at church is not regarded. 



Nathaniel Wilson in 1877 left 200 

 for keeping the family grave at Walmsley 

 Church in good order, and then for the 

 poor of the chapelry. The vicar receives 

 the interest and distributes it in money 

 doles at his discretion. 



102 James Brandwood of Charnock 

 Richard in 1762 left ,100 for the poor 

 stock of Entwisle ; in 1828 the interest, 

 ,4 ioj., after being improperly used to 

 relieve the poor rate, was to be applied to 

 the purchase of linen for the poor. The 

 income is now only 2 13^.4^. a year, 

 and is expended each alternate year in 

 doles of flannel and calico. 



An unknown donor or donors left 9 to 



243 



the poor, which in 1828 was used like the 

 last charity. The capital remained intact 

 until 1888, when the trustee absconded. 



108 The Rev. Richard Goodwin in 1684 

 left ,5 a year to the poor, afterwards 

 altered to a sum of 50 for Bolton an! 

 ,50 for Harwood ; and the Rev. Sarruel 

 Brooks in 1698 left ,100. No trace of 

 the charities could be discovered later than 

 1732. From the foundation of Joshua 

 Lomax i is given to the poor of Harwood. 



1 Most of the details given in the fol- 

 lowing account of the modern town are 

 taken from Scholes and Pimblett, Hist, of 

 Bolton, 1892 ; and Clegg, Chronological 

 Hist, of Bolton, 1879. The township ceased 

 to exist in 1895, when the new township 

 of Bolton was created ; Loc. Govt. Bd. 

 order 33407. 



a The area, as increased by changes of 

 boundaries, was 1,096 acres in 1901, in- 

 cluding 30 of inland water. 



8 For the Spa in 1814 see Bolton Hist. 

 Gleanings, ii, 331. 



4 The market was held there till 1826, 

 when it was removed to the new market 

 square. The fish market was held there till 

 1855, when the market hall was opened. 



6 Old Hall Street runs from Deansgate 

 to Victoria Square. 



8 About this point was Sweet Green, 

 said to have been named from the preva- 

 lence of wild camomile. ' Parson Folds,' 

 the eccentric lecturer of the parish church, 

 lived there ; Pilling Well was in the same 

 district. 



7 A railway from Bolton to Leigh was 

 opened in 1828 ; those from Bolton to 

 Kenyon in 1831, to Manchester 1838, 

 to Preston 1843, to Blackburn 1848, to 

 Worsley and Manchester 1875. For the 

 earliest of these lines see Bolton Hist, 

 Gleanings, i, 51, 359 ; for the 1838 line, 

 ibid, ii, I. 



