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Westhoughton

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HOUGHTON (WEST), a village, a township, a chapelry, and a sub-district in Deane parish, Bolton district, Lancashire. The village stands near the Bolton and Wigan railway, 5 miles SW by W of Bolton; and has a station with telegraph on the railway, a post office under Bolton, a police station, and fairs on 27 Feb. and 12 Oct. The township comprises 4,460 acres. Real property, £16,679; of which £2,790 are in mines. Pop. in 1851, 4,547; in 1861, 5,156. Houses, 1,064. The land belongs chiefly to five. There are collieries, two silk factories, cotton mills, and a nail manufactory. The chapelry is less extensive than the township, and was constituted in 1860. Pop., 3,879. Houses, 806. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Manchester. Value, £170. Patron, the Vicar of Deane. The church was rebuilt in 1731; and re-rebuilt, at a cost of £5,500, in 1869-70. There are chapels for Independents, Quakers, and Methodists, and a national school. The sub-district is conterminate with the township.

John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72)

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Archives & Libraries

Local studies information is held at Bolton library.

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Civil Registration

The Register Office covering the Westhoughton area is Bolton.

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Description & Travel

You can see pictures of Westhoughton which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

"WESTHOUGHTON, a chapelry and township in the parish of Deane, county Lancaster, 4½ miles S.W. of Bolton-le-Moors, and 5 N.E. of Wigan. It is a station on the west section of the Lancashire and Yorkshire railway. It is situated in a populous manufacturing district. There are a silk factory, cotton mills, nail factory, and collieries. The population in 1861 was 5,156. The living is a perpetual curacy in the diocese of Manchester, value £150, in the patronage of the Vicar of Deane. The old chapel, dedicated to St. Mary, was built at the beginning of the 16th century, the district church of St. Bartholomew about 1700. The Primitive Methodists, Independents, and Society of Friends, have each a chapel. There is a mechanics' institute, established in 1856, and a school partially endowed. The local charities produce about £22 per annum, including the school endowment. Fairs are held on 27th February and 12th October for minerals, &c."

"WEST HOUGHTON, a chapelry in the parish of Deane, hundred of Salford, county Lancaster, 5 miles E. of Wigan. The village is very considerable, and many of the inhabitants are engaged in the manufactures of muslin and jaconet. The living is a perpetual curacy, value £160, in the patronage of the Vicar of Dean. The church is dedicated to St. Mary. The Wesleyans have a chapel.

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Historical Geography

In 1835 Westhoughton was a township in the parish of Deane.

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Maps

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View maps of Westhoughton and places within its boundaries.

View a map of the boundaries of this town/parish.

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SD651061 (Lat/Lon: 53.550813, -2.527923), Westhoughton which are provided by:

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Probate Records

For probate purposes prior to 1858, Westhoughton was in the Archdeaconry of Chester, in the Diocese of Chester. The original Lancashire wills for the Archdeaconry of Chester are held at the Lancashire Record Office.

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Societies

You can also see Family History Societies covering the nearby area, plotted on a map. This facility is being developed, and is awaiting societies to enter information about the places they cover.