A HISTORY OF LANCASHIRE 



' Grand Central Association ' into a new Methodist sect of the ' Associated 

 Methodists,' which subsequently grew into the United Methodist Free Church. 

 This was to prove the last great schism in the Wesleyan body. From 

 that day its internal history has been one of steady growth conjoined with a 

 slight, but only slight, relaxation of clerical predominance in circuit and 

 conference administration. In neither of these points of connexional history 

 has Lancashire played any specially distinctive or individual part. The 

 circuit growth and ramification or derivation of Wesleyan Methodism in the 

 country is as follows : — 



1765. — Manchester: Lancashire Circuit, 1765; Lancashire South Circuit, 1766- 

 1770 ; Stockport Circuit, formed 1786; Oldham Circuit, formed 1791-2; Irwcll Street 

 Circuit, formed 1 8 13. 



1766. — Liverpool: Lancashire North Circuit, 1766-70 ; Warrington Circuit, formed 

 1791 ; Prescot, now St. Helen's Circuit, formed 181 1. 



1776. — Colne, from Haworth : Todmorden Circuit, formed 1799; Barrowford 

 Circuit, formed 1865. 



1784. — Bolton. 



1787. — Blackburn, from Colne. 



1 79 1. — Oldham, from Manchester. 



1 79 1. — Warrington, from Liverpool : Northwich Circuit, 1 792-1 8 1 1. 



1792. — Lancaster, from Colne. 



1793. — Wigan, from Bolton : Preston Circuit, 1799-1800; Preston Circuit, 1802 ; 

 with Bolton, 1805 ; Leigh Circuit, 1806-n. 



1795. — Rochdale, from Oldham: Bacup Circuit, formed 1811; Hey wood Circuity 

 formed 1853. 



1799. — Preston: Chorley Circuit, formed 1858. 



'799- — Todmorden, from Colne : Hebden Bridge Circuit, formed 1862. 



1803. — Liverpool (Welsh). 



1804. — Bury, from Bolton. 



1805. — Leigh (Lanes.), from Bolton: Wigan, separated 1812 ; St. Helens, separated 

 1828 ; Cadishead Circuit, formed 1872. 



1805. — Manchester (Welsh). 



1807. — Ormskirk (North Meols Mission to 1809). 



1808. — New Mills, from Stockport : Ashton-under-Lyne Circuit, formed 181 1. 



1 8 10. — Burnley, from Colne. 



i8u. — Bacup, formed from Rochdale. 



181 1. — Garstang (Blackpool and Garstang Circuit, 1855-65). 



i8ii.— St. Helens and Prescot, from Liverpool : Prescot Circuit, i8ii-i6 ; Liver- 

 pool and Prescot, 1817 ; St. Helen's Circuit, 1828-30. 



i8ii-i2. — Ashton-under-Lyne, formed from New Mills. 



i8i2. — Clitheroe, from Skipton. 



1 81 3.— Manchester, Irwell Street, from Manchester : Salford Circuit to 1826 ; Gravel 

 Lane Circuit, formed i860 ; Regent Road Circuit, formed 1875. 



1814. — Haslingden, from Bury: Accrington Circuit, formed 1863. 



1819. — Chorley, from Preston: with Preston, 1820-57. 



1824-5.— Manchester (Grosvenor Street), from Manchester : Oxford Road Circuit 

 formed 1846 ; Longsight Circuit, formed 1879. 



^ '^^^75— Ma^^hester (Oldham Street): Grosvenor Street Circuit, formed 1824; 

 Great Bridgewater Street Circuit, formed 1827; Cheetham Hill Circuit, formed 1863; 

 Victoria Circuit, formed 1878 ; Oldham Road Circuit, formed 1882 



i826.-Liverpool (North) : Liverpool South Circuit, formed 1826 ; Waterloo Circuit, 

 lormed 1059. 



1826-7. — Liverpool (South) : from Liverpool. 



1827 -Manchester (Great Bridgewater Street) from Oldham Street: Altrincham 

 Circuit, reformed 1838 ; City Road Circuit, formed 1872 



formed^tfej:"^*"'^'"'" ^^''^°'^ ^°''^^' ^'°'^ Grosvenor Street : Radnor Street Circuit, 

 1853-4. — Hey wood, from Rochdale. 



1857.— Bolton (Bridge Street) : Bolton Wesley Circuit, formed 1857 



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