Buckley

infobox UK place
country = Wales
official_name= Buckley
latitude= 53.17265
longitude= -3.08608
population = 18,268
unitary_wales= Flintshire
lieutenancy_wales=
constituency_westminster= Alyn and Deeside
post_town= BUCKLEY
postcode_district = CH7
postcode_area= CH
dial_code= 01244
os_grid_reference= TQ335505
welsh_name= Bwcle

Buckley ( _cy. Bwcle) is a town in Flintshire, northeast Wales. It is the second largest town in Flintshire in terms of population, and is 2 miles (3.2 km) from Mold, the county town. It is located on the A549 road, with the larger A55 road passing nearby, and is in the Alyn and Deeside parliamentary constituency.

It is contiguous with the nearby villages of Ewloe, Alltami (which are both under the jurisdiction of Buckley town council) and Mynydd Isa.

Notable nearby landmarks include Ewloe Castle.

History

Toponymy

The name Buckley comes from the Anglo-Saxon "bok lee", meaning meadow, or field.Fact|date=February 2007 Another theory is that the name Buckley comes from the Welsh Bwlchclai which translates into clay hill .fact|date=September 2008

Early history

Buckley was an Anglo-Saxon location, with some of its houses recorded in the Domesday Book of the 11th century. However, the first documented evidence of its existence dates from 1294, when it was described as the pasturage of the Manor of Ewloe.

Mining and pottery

The town became an industrial heartland for pottery and coal between the 17th and 19th centuries. However, it only grew into any kind of prominence during the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century, when coal and clay were extensively mined there, and the name Buckley became synonymous with the production of various fire-clay and pottery products.

Buckley was a popular location for mining, as there were many faults in local rock formations that allowed seams of coal to be mined directly from the surface. Its heavy, clay soil also allowed for excellent pottery and bricks to be manufactured. Bricks from Buckley were transported all across the United Kingdom and as far as the United States, as Buckley became a brickworking centre. A great deal of people moved into the area, particularly from Ireland and Liverpool to find work in the mining and brick industries, giving the town a distinctive accent.

Many pottery and earthenware products manufactured were taken on the backs of donkeys to either Chester market or exported via the River Dee, as early as the reign of Elizabeth I. The last pottery kiln was fired in 1946. However, a local cement works is still in operation.

Buckley Panto

In 1932, a tradition started in Buckley of running an annual pantomime. Dennis Griffiths produced a version of Dick Whittington in 1933, and ran the pantomime for 27 years, famously using the programme to invite any and all complaints to arrive written "on the back of a 10 shilling note (non-returnable)".

World War 2

In the Second World War, a plane, most likely on its way to Liverpool was shot down and crash landed in a nearby district, with the plane's engine crashing into the Trap. The pilot survived, was captured and taken to Hawarden Prisoner of War camp.

Governance

Urban district status was conferred on the town in 1898; at this time, the area comprised two parishes, Buckley (1874) and Bistre (1844). Prior to then, it was divided between the parishes of Mold and Hawarden.

Geography

Buckley is situated in North East Wales and is therefore in the lee of the Snowdonian mountain range to the West. This means that Buckley is in a 'rain shadow' area and average annual precipitation levels in the area are about 750 mm–850 mm, significantly lower than areas to the West of the Snowdonian mountain range. Despite this, Buckley still receives a fair amount of rainfall in comparison to the east side of Great Britain.

Dialect

Although very few locals speak with a 'Buckley' accent nowadays, due to people moving in and out of the area, and with the proliferation of television and radio, a few of the town's older citizens still speak in a form of the strongly accented dialect, full of colloquialisms, and often unintelligible to outsiders. The last remaining pure 'Buckley' speaker was noted linguist Dennis Griffiths, a Buckley resident, who died in 1972, and whose books are the main repository and record of the dialect. A few examples (mainly phonetic) are noted below:

*Wunst every blue moon "- rarely occurring"
*Thou fries me to death "- the limit of boredom"
*A lick and a promise "- a quick wash"
*Fasen the fost un fost "- fasten the first one first"
*The daddy on um aw - "the best of the lot"
*Husht thee naise - "be quiet"
*I conna meke thee out - "I can't understand you"
*Chunner - "Complain"

Present day

kiln under construction.

Today, Buckley has a population of around 18,500, and has numerous light industries. Those who cannot find work locally commute to Deeside, Cheshire, Wrexham and Merseyside.

The Castle Cement works at Padeswood is the only large scale industry remaining in the town. Its huge new 200 ft kiln is now the major landmark on the skyline, visible from many miles away. Despite many locals considering it an eyesore, it has reduced pollution produced by the cement works by up to 90%. [http://www.castlecement.co.uk/Padeswood/kiln_e.html]

Community facilities

Buckley has a large area of common land, known simply as 'The Common'. It has a large playground for children, as well as numerous duckponds. A funfair visits here during the Buckley Jubilee in the summer.

There is also a small lake, known as 'The Trap', which is stocked with trout. A German Messerschmitt bomber crashed into the Trap during World War II, shot down by anti-aircraft fire after going off course following a bombing run over Liverpool. The surviving crew members were captured by a Special Constable, Peter Griffiths. The land is primarily heavy clay soil.

Buckley has a shopping precinct, as well as one supermarket (run by Somerfield).

Jubilee

Buckley observes a regional celebration and march over 200 years old called the Buckley Jubilee, which is celebrated on the second Tuesday of July. Officially, however, the Jubilee is 149 years old (as of 2005); the 150th was celebrated 11 July 2006. The difference in dates stems from the 'official' date being set when the Buckley Temperance Society first sanctioned the march. The Jubilee is a ceremonial march that begins on "The Common", a large area of common ground owned by the people of the town used for leisure and recreational purposes. The term 'jubilee' was first used in 1871.On the Common starting at 3pm is a non-denominational Service led by the Minister of the Church/Chapel leading the Jubilee that year. In 2005, it was the Revd. Anthraparushra. The Sunday before the Jubilee, the leading church is presented with the Centenary Shield, which they hold for the year. A 15 minutes service takes place, with two hymns accompanied by the Royal Buckley Town Band. The march then leaves the common, and marches through the town, with representatives from the local Sunday Schools, Scout and Guide troops, and many of the local schools.

Royal Buckley Town Band

Buckley has a famous brass band, the Royal Buckley Town Band. The band is one of only two in the entire United Kingdom to have received sanction from a British monarch to use "Royal" in their name. They lead the Jubilee every year.

Education

Buckley has five primary schools - "Westwood Primary", "Mountain Lane C.P.", "Southdown C.P.", "Ewloe Green C.P.", and "Drury C.P."

Buckley has one secondary school, the "Elfed High School". During the Second World War, it was built as a military hospital, and adapted for school use shortly after, in the early 1950s. Now in extreme circumstances the roof can convert into a landing pad for light aircraft and helicopters. The school includes a sports centre, and a newly constructed swimming pool, for use of both the students and the public. Many students from Buckley also attend Argoed High School, located in nearby Bryn-y-Baal, or the Alun School, in Mold. All schools in Buckley are run by the Flintshire Local Education Authority.

Music / culture

Buckley has one nightclub, the Tivoli Nightclub (known locally as "The Tiv"), on Brunswick Road. Formerly both a cinema and a music hall, the Tivoli has seen many bands play there over the years, including Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin in the early 1970s, and many Britpop bands including Oasis (in August 1994), Ocean Colour Scene and the Super Furry Animals in the 1990s. It has been described as 'one of the finest quirky little venues of our time', and is featured in the DVD re-issue of Oasis' album, "Definitely Maybe". [http://xrrf.blogspot.com/2004/07/recapture-that-spark-opportunity-to.html] Between summer 1992 and spring 1993, Radiohead played there twice [http://www.greenplastic.com/gigography/index.php?year=1992] . Since a renovation and rebranding in 2000, few bands played live at the venue, with the club music policy having more emphasis on commercial dance and pop music, with a rock night on Fridays. Recently, bands such as Skindred, Hed PE and OPM have all played there. The venue attracts crowds from Chester and Wrexham, both around 10 miles away from Buckley.

The town was also home to a community radio project which used to broadcast 'trial' or 'temporary radio' licences to Buckley, Broughton, Mold, Deeside and the surrounding areas. The station was known as 'South Flintshire Radio' and its offices were found above the swimming baths on Mold Road. The station was heard on eight separate occasions between November 1996 and July 2000 as part of a campaign to bring a local radio station to Flintshire, following the demise of Mold-based BBC Radio Clwyd. The project helped pave the way for a permanent local radio licence which was awarded to Chester FM (known as Dee 106.3) which broadcasts to Chester, Ellesmere Port, Deeside and Buckley.

Buckley has a sizable two-storey library, with the second level being dedicated solely to history and reference pieces, mainly on the local area. The second floor also doubles as the local museum.

port

Buckley has a football club in the Cymru Alliance, Buckley Town F.C..

Transport

;RoadBuckley is located on the A549 road, and is near the A55 expressway, which passes to the south of Ewloe.

;BusThere are a number of bus routes that pass through Buckley, mostly operated by Arriva, which now means on most Weekdays a bus to Chester or Mold is available every 10 minutes.

;Rail
Buckley railway station opened on 14 June 1860, with a line serving as a 5-mile line from Buckley to a junction with the London and North Western Railway Chester-Holyhead main line at Connah's Quay, in order to link collieries and brickworks in the Buckley area with a point of shipment on the River Dee.

The Wrexham, Mold and Connah's Quay Railway (WMCQR) was incorporated on 7 August 1862 to build a line from Wrexham to Buckley. The "Buckley Railway" was opened in 1864 as a freight-carrying line, and was worked by horses.

The WMCQR line - 12.5 miles (20 km) in length - opened as a single line with short branches from Buckley to a point near the Great Western Railway station at Wrexham; it also had a connection with the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) at Hope. The WMCQR took over the Buckley Railway from 30 June 1873.

Today, Buckley railway station is a minor stop on the Borderlands Line, which runs from Wrexham to Bidston on the Wirral. It is owned and operated by Arriva Trains Wales. Trains run every 60 minutes, Monday to Saturday daytimes, and infrequently at other times. Connections can be made at Shotton, Wrexham General or Bidston railway stations. There are two platforms, one for each direction the line runs in.

;AirThe nearest major airports are Liverpool John Lennon Airport and Manchester Airport, both around 45 minutes' drive away, although there are minor airfields in nearby Hawarden and Broughton.

Notable current or former residents

*Sylvia Heal, now a Labour Member of Parliament
*Ryan Shawcross, a professional footballer, who signed as a youth player with Manchester United in April 2006 [http://www.fawtrust.org.uk/index.php?opt=story&news_id=32&lang=eng]
*Cherry Dee, a professional glamour model and Page Three girl
*Danny Collins, professional footballer with Sunderland A.F.C.

References

*Dialect extracts are taken from Dennis Griffiths' book "Talk of My Town", Buckley Young People's Cultural Association, 1969. It can be borrowed from Buckley Library.
*"Out of This Clay" Dennis Griffiths 1960 Published by Gee and Son, Ltd., Denbigh
*"The Making of Buckley and District" by T.W. Pritchard, Bridge Books, 2006. ISBN 1-84494-031-4

External links

* [http://www.buckleysociety.org.uk/index.htm Buckley Society Homepage]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northeast/sites/buckley_town/index.shtml BBC North East Wales site.]
* [http://www.gtj.org.uk/en/item1/20428 Jubilee History]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northeast/sites/buckley_town/pages/jubilee.shtml BBC Jubilee Site]
* [http://www.gtj.org.uk/item.php?lang=en&id=29021&t=10 A collection of items relating to the pottery industry in Buckley]
* [http://www.tivolinightclub.co.uk/ Tivoli Nightclub]
* [http://www.upton.cx/index.php?currentNumber=1.9.2&currentIsExpanded=0 Information on the old railway line]