Tottington, Greater Manchester

infobox UK place
country = England
map_type= Lancashire
latitude= 53.6132
longitude= -2.3393
official_name= Tottington
population= 9,389Fact|date=April 2007
metropolitan_borough= Bury
metropolitan_county= Lancashire
region= North West England
constituency_westminster= Bury North
post_town= BOLTON
postcode_district = BL8
postcode_area= BL
dial_code= 01204
os_grid_reference= SD775130
static_

static_image_caption=
london_distance=

Tottington is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Lancashire, England.

Historically a part of Lancashire, Tottington's early history is marked by its status as an important Medieval fee, a type of Royal Manor which encompassed several townships. This Royal Manor of Tottington stretched from Musbury and Cowpe with Lench in the north to Affetside in the west and Walshaw and Chadderton in the south and southeast. During this time, the individual township Tottington was an agricultural settlement, with open farmland and hunting ground where deer and wild boar were once hunted.

History

The name derives from the old English for "Tota's people's village".Fact|date=February 2007

Tottington was originally part of the larger "Royal Manor of Tottington" which stretched from Musbury and Cowpe with Lench in the north to Affetside in the west and Walshaw in the south.

Tottington, (the ROYAL MANOR of) extends from Tottington-lower-end to the N. of Eatonfield chapel a distance of 9 miles
Tottington, a large township in the parish of Bury, distinguished by the higher and lower end, and together composing the "Royal Manor of Tottington," the higher end of which is to the E. of Edgeworth, and to the W. of Shuttleworth; and the lower end, to the N. of Elton, and the W. of Walmesley

The town has expanded significantly since the 1990s, with a number of new housing developments replacing former industries and commercial uses.

Governance

From 1894 to 1974, most of Tottington formed the Tottington Urban District (though some parts fell into the Ramsbottom Urban District), in the administrative county of Lancashire.cite web |url=http://www.gmcro.co.uk/guides/gazette/gazframe.htm |title=A select gazetteer of local government areas, Greater Manchester County |author=Anon |publisher=Greater Manchester County Records Office |accessdate=2007-04-04]

Since 1974, as part of the provisions of the Local Government Act 1972, Tottington has formed part of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, within Greater Manchester.

Geography

Tottington's physical geography is characterised by its position alongside the West Pennine Moors and the entrance to the Rossendale Valley. Directly north-west, Affetside Moor rises to a height of more than 900ft above sea level and a little further north Top of Quarlton and Holcombe Moor dominate the skyline. From elevated parts of the town Scout Moor, Harden Moor and Knowl Hill are visible to the east. The villages of Affetside, Greenmount and Hawkshaw are north of the town, with Walshaw to the south west.

Landmarks

* The Cenotaph next to the library
* Whitehead Gardens which was built on the site of houses struck by a bomb on Christmas Eve 1944
* The disused railway line to Holcombe Brook ( [http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/features/walk/02.shtml pictures] ) that once carried one of the first DC electrified railway lines in the world
* Tottington Dungeon, at the junction of Market Street, Turton Road & Harwood Road

References

External links

* [http://www.lancashirebarlow.com/Files/Pages/PLACES.HTM History of Manor of Tottington]
* [http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/LAN/Gazetteer/TU.htm Joseph Aston's 1808 Gazetteer] (on Genuki)