Anglezarke

infobox UK place|
latitude= 53.649
longitude= -2.574
official_name= Anglezarke
population= 23 (2001 Census)
os_grid_reference= SD621171
civil_parish= Anglezarke
shire_district= Chorley
shire_county = Lancashire
region= North West England
country = England
post_town= CHORLEY
postcode_area= PR
postcode_district = PR6
dial_code= 01257
constituency_westminster= Chorley Anglezarke is a civil parish of the Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England. It is dominated by a series of reservoirs that supply water primarily to Wigan, and a large expanse of moorland with much evidence of Bronze Age settlements.

It lies in the West Pennine Moors in Lancashire, sandwiched between the moors of Withnell and Rivington, and is close to the towns of Chorley and Darwen.

Anglezarke is well known as a popular rock climbing destination for local climbers and is included in the guidebook 'Lancashire Rock' published by the British Mountaineering Council.

History

Toponymy

The name Anglezarke is derived from two Norse-Gaelic elements. In the first part comes from the name "Anlaf", a form of the popular Scandinavian personal name of "Olav". In the second part comes from the Old Norse word "erg" or the Gaelic word "àiridh" (dialectal "arke" or "argh") both meaning a 'hill pasture or shieling'. [ [http://www.ceantar.org/Dicts/MB2/mb01.html MacBain's Dictionary - Section 1] , (see: àiridh). URL accessed 28 November 2007.] The two elements together mean 'Anlaf's hill pasture' - i.e. 'the hill pasture belonging to Anlaf'. The earliest spelling of the name was in 1202 when it was recorded as 'Andelevesarewe'. By 1225 this had become 'Anlauesargh', in 1351 'Anlasargh', and by 1559 'Anlazarghe'. [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=53051 British History Online - Anglezarke] . URL accessed 28 November 2007.]

Early History

Human activity around Anglezarke can be traced back to pre-historic man. Dotted across Anglezarke Moor are two pre-historic sites which are still clearly visible - Pikestones and Round Loaf, a landmark clearly visible from the route across Great Hill from White Coppice.

Mining

Most of Anglezarke's history, however, revolves around mineral mining. As early as 1690, lead was discovered in Stronstrey Bank, near White Coppice. The landowner, Sir Richard Standish formed a partnership with two farmers and a mining engineer, John Knowle. After several failures, a good quantity of lead was mined, but following her husband's death, Sir Standish's wife claimed all the profits. After losing the resultant court case she flooded the mines by diverting a stream. Despite this, the mines were expanded in the 1790s and not only lead was extracted, but also copper and galena.

A substance known as witherite (barium carbonate) was also discovered as early as 1700, and although there were some ill-fated attempts to use it for medicinal purposes its main use is as a coloured glaze for porcelain. [Book : Robert Philips Greg, William G. (William Garrow) Lettsom. "Manual of the Mineralogy of Great Britain & Ireland", J. Van Voorst. No ISBN p47-48 [http://books.google.com/books?vid=LCCNgs05000480&id=n-MJAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA47&lpg=PA48 Read it] ]

Shortly after the discovery at White Coppice was the effective formation of the vast Leicester Mill Quarries. The quarries were merely named after Leicester Mill, which was in the locale. The Leicester family - sometimes referred to as Lester or Lister) operated a corn mill, evidence of which is visible with abandoned millstones at the base of Anglezarke Reservoir, and exposed relics in the moorland west of Grain Pole Hill.

Demand for stone increased hugely with the building of the reservoir system in the area. The construction of Yarrow Reservoir was described in Wm. Fergusson Irvine's book "A Short History Of The Township Of Rivington" :

Cquote|A suitable site for the embankment having been selected, a trench was excavated on the centre line of the intended work and carried down to the solid rock right across the valley. This was filled with clay deposited in layers of 9 inches, and carefully puddled so as to produce a watertight material. This clay wall, having reached the natural surface of the ground, was continued through the embankment, which was also build in thin layers thoroughly rammed and consolidated on both sides of the clay centre. Before commencing the erection of the embankment all peat and unsound material were stripped from the site. The inner or water slopes of the embankment have been built to an angle of 3 to 1, and outer slopes to an angle of 2 to 1.

The impermeability of the dam depends upon the wall of puddled clay in the heart of the dam tied into the solid rock at the bottom and sides of the valley. The clay wall has been carried up to a batter on each side of 1 inch to every foot vertical, the thickness at the top being 6 feet. The inner slopes of the bank are protected by 15-inch pitching, consisting of the millstone grit of the neighbourhood, laid on a bed of broken stone. The outer slopes have been soiled and grassed over.|Wm. Fergusson Irvine: "A Short History Of The Township of Rivington"

Lead production finally ended around 1830 but the remains of mining activity can still be seen at Lead Mines Clough.

Plane crash

On 16 November, 1943, a Wellington Bomber named Zulu 8799 crashed into Hurst Hill, just north of Winter Hill, killing all onboard. The aircraft was flying from Wymeswold in Leicestershire on a Bullseye exercise. The pilot of the plane was a Joseph B Timperon from Ardrossan in South Australia, Australia. Each year on Remembrance Sunday, a service is held at the Wellington Bomber Memorial at Lead Mines Clough, next to Limestone Brook. [Book : Kenneth Fields. "Secret Lancashire", Sigma Press. ISBN 1-85058-606-3 p133 [http://books.google.co.uk/books?vid=ISBN1850586063&id=enpHZBBfsCoC&pg=PA133&lpg=PA133&sig=yzaoDaoXavsgtaih70NWde3i1KQ Read it] ] [http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/historyben/display.var.913567.0.air_crash_on_winter_hill_kills_34_in_1958.php Air crash on Winter Hill kills 34 in 1958] . URL accessed 28 November 2007.]

Commonwealth Games

The area of Anglezarke and Rivington was the location of the 2002 Commonwealth Games Mountain Biking competition. [ [http://m2002.thecgf.com/venues/RIV/ The XVII Commonwealth Games - Rivington] . URL accessed 28 November 2007.]

Local Government

Until the early 19th century, Anglezarke was a township in the ancient parish of Bolton le Moors, itself part of the hundred of Salford in Lancashire. In 1837, Anglezarke joined with other townships (or civil parishes) in the area to form the Chorley Poor Law Union which took responsibility for the administration and funding of the Poor Law in that area. [ [http://www.workhouses.org.uk/index.html?Chorley/Chorley.shtml Chorley Poor Union and Workhouse] . URL accessed 28 November 2007.] In 1866, Anglezarke became a civil parish. It became part of the Chorley Rural Sanitary District from 1875 to 1894, and then part of the Chorley Rural District from 1894 to 1974. [ [http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10332011&c_id=10001043 Relationships / unit history of Anglezarke] . URL accessed 28 November 2007.] Since 1974, Anglezarke has been a civil parish of the Borough of Chorley.

Geography

Hill Summits

Notable peaks. [Book : Kenneth Fields. "Lancashire Country Walks (2) : Five Short Circular Walks From Anglezarke And White Coppice", Unmarked, available from Rivington Lower Barn p2]

Buildings and ruins

Echoing the declining population of the area, there are a large number of ruins in the area. [Book : Kenneth Fields. "Secret Lancashire", Sigma Press. ISBN 1-85058-606-3 p21 [http://books.google.co.uk/books?vid=ISBN1850586063&id=enpHZBBfsCoC&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&sig=C7lRyHu9bDMDA-NTA6Vw9ilLO44 Read it] ] Mainly farms, some of the properties were large, and extremely remote. Nowadays, they form familiar sites for local walkers and, more recently, geocachers. The following sites are all marked on the current Ordnance Survey range of maps.

Hempshaw's

Lower and Higher Hempshaw's are clearly visible from the Rivington to Belmont road. Little is known of their previous history, although the buildings were farm dwellings.

The ruins are located on the fledgling River Yarrow, approximately half a mile from source at "Will Narr". [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&ie=UTF8&om=0&z=17&ll=53.642272,-2.53531&spn=0.0018,0.004914&t=k Aerial view]

Jepson's Farm

Jepson's Farm and Jepson's Gate are common walking waypoints en-route to Pikestones. The Jepson name is recorded in Rivington in 1595 as tenants of Ward's Farm.

Manor House

Near to High Bullough Reservoir, the property was one of several given up by a GM Dixon in 1922. Also vacated were the Foggs Buildings (location unknown), and the landmark farm near Great Hill; Drinkwaters. Mr. Dixon wrote to the Lord Mayer Alderman and Citizens of the City of Liverpool, stating "I give notice to quit all lands I hold under Liverpool Corporation on February End, 1923..... owing to the high rates and the heavy slump in prices especially wool the chief thing on a hill farm."

Moses Cocker's

A working farm on the Rivington to Belmont road.

Old Rachel's

Considered a 'bogeywoman', many local people were afraid of Rachel and her family. The last occupant was the Evans family in the 1880s. [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&ie=UTF8&om=0&z=19&ll=53.639548,-2.541707&spn=0.00045,0.001228&t=k Aerial view]

Simms

Located on a private track and popular footpath, the property received fresh water from Green Withins Brook (a tributary of the Yarrow), and was occupied by the Chairman of Horwich Urban District Council in 1928-29.

Waterman's Cottage

A prominent house on the Heapey end of Anglezarke Reservoir.

Demography

Notes and References

ee also

*Anglezarke Reservoir

External links

* [http://www.chorley.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1201 Anglezarke] chorley.gov.uk
* [http://mario.lancashire.gov.uk/lccbasemap/?box=361195:415550:365623:419170&tools=yes&layeron=parish Anglezarke Civil Parish Map]
* [http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/5568 The Modern Antiquarian]
* [http://www.rockfax.com/databases/results_crag.html?id=107 Rockclimbing by Rockfax]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20040614175556/http://www.lancstowns.co.uk/anglezarke.htm Wayback: Lancashire]