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Bolton

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There is more than one Bolton in Lancashire. This is the main one, nowadays just referred to as Bolton, and was also known as Bolton-le-Moors.

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BOLTON-LE-MOORS, a parish in the districts of Bolton, Wigan, and Chorley, Lancashire. It centres in the Post Town of Bolton; and contains the townships of Great Bolton, Little Bolton, Sharples, Quarlton, Edgeworth, Entwistle, Longworth, Turton, Bradshaw, Haulgh, Tonge, Breightmet, Harwood, Lostock, Darcy-Lever, Blackrod, Anglezarke, and Rivington, and the chapelry of Little Lever. Acres, 30,062. Real property, £332,547; of which £29,356 are in mines, and £1,969 in quarries. Pop. in 1841, 73,905; in 1861, 97,215. Houses, 18,385. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Manchester. Value, £350.* Patron, the Bishop of Manchester. The vicarages of Holy Trinity, St. George, Christ Church, and St. John, and the p. curacies of All Saints, Emmanuel, St. Mark, and St. Paul, within the borough of Bolton, are separate benefices. Value of Holy Trinity, St. George, Christ Church, and St. John, each £300; of Emmanuel, £300;* of St. Mark, £160; of St. Paul, £150; of All Saints, £128. Patron of H. T., the Bishop of Manchester; of St. G. and E., the Vicar of Bolton; and of St. J., alternately the Crown and the Bishop; of A. S., T. Tipping, Esq.; of St. M. and St. P., Trustees. The vicarages of Astley-Bridge, Belmont, Blackrod, Bradshaw, Little Lever, and Lever Bridge, and the p. curacies of Harwood, Rivington, Tonge, Turton, and Walmsley also are separate benefices. See the articles on these places and Bolton.

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

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Archives & Libraries

Local Studies,
Central Library,
Le Mans Crescent,
BOLTON BL1 ISE
Tel: 01204 332185 Fax: 01204 363224

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Census

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Churches

There are more than 30 churches identified in this place. Please click here for a complete list.
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Church Records

A considerable number of church records have been published by the Bolton branch of the Manchester & Lancashire FHS.

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Civil Registration

The Register Office covering the Bolton area is Bolton.

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Description & Travel

Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council provide a range of information about the town.

The Bolton website has a range of pictures and information about the town.

You can see pictures of Bolton which are provided by:

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Gazetteers

The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland - 1868

"BOLTON LE MOORS, a parish and market town, and municipal and parliamentary borough, in the hundred of Salford, in the county palatine of Lancaster, 10 miles to the N.W. of Manchester, and 200 miles from London. It is an important station on the London and North-Western, and the Lancashire and Yorkshire railways, and is connected by various lines with all the principal surrounding towns. The parish, which extends over 30,062 acres, is intersected by the small river Croal, a branch of the Irwell, and comprises the chapelries of Astley Bridge, Belmont, Blackrod, Bradshaw, Harwood, Little Lever, Lever Bridge, Rivington, Tonge, Turton, and Walmsley; the townships of Anglezarke, Breightmet, Darcy, Edge worth, Entwistle, Longworth, Lostock, Quarlton, and Sharples. The town consists of the two townships of Great Bolton and Little Bolton, separated by the Croal. The first fact of importance in the history of the growth of this important seat of manufacturing industry is the settlement of some Flemish emigrants here in the first half of the 14th century. The manufacture of woollen cloth, introduced by them, was the small beginning of the trading activity and prosperity of the town. Other refugees from the cruelty of continental despotism sought here in later time their bread, bringing with them the knowledge of various other branches of manufacture. Weavers from the Rhine introduced a mixed fabric of linen yarn and cotton. Cotton velvet goods were made here first about the year 1756; and mulleins, dimity, and quilting, somewhat later. Several of the most important inventions for the improvement of the cotton manufacture were made by residents in this town. To Richard Arkwright was owing the perfecting of the spinning-jenny and the water-frame, and to Samuel Crompton the invention of the "mule," a machine ingeniously combining the principles of the two former. The invention was made public in 1780, and gave an immense impetus to the trade.

"THE OAKS, a railway station on the western section of the Lancashire and Yorkshire line. It is the first station after leaving Bolton."

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Historical Geography

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History

The history of Bolton from Pigot's Lancashire directory, 1830.

Some more information about the history of Bolton.

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Maps

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View maps of Bolton and places within its boundaries.

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

You can see maps centred on OS grid reference SD714083 (Lat/Lon: 53.570822, -2.432828), Bolton which are provided by:

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Poor Houses, Poor Law

The Workhouse site has an interesting description of Bolton workhouse.

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Probate Records

For probate purposes prior to 1858, Bolton 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

Bolton and District Family History Society, is a branch of the Manchester & Lancashire FHS.

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.