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Shaw and Crompton
Statistics
Population:	21,721 (2001 Census)
OS grid reference:	Maps for SD938090
Administration
Status:	Civil Parish, (1987)
District:	Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
County:	Greater Manchester
Region:	North West England
Country:	England
Other
Police:	Greater Manchester Police
Ceremonial County:	Greater Manchester
Historic County:	Lancashire
Admin. HQ:	Oldham
Post Office and Telephone
Post town:	OLDHAM
Postal District:	OL2
Dialing Code:	01706
Politics
Shaw and Crompton Parish Emblem Shaw and Crompton Parish Emblem
UK Pariamentary Constituency:	Oldham East and Saddleworth
Political Representation:	Labour
MP:	Phil Woolas

Shaw and Crompton is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is ten miles to the north-east of Manchester, and lies within the historic borders of Lancashire.

Shaw and Crompton contains two separate political wards, appropriately named "Shaw" and "Crompton", and a number of residential suburbs. The most well known suburbs are Rushcroft, Buckstones, Clough, Jubilee, Shaw Side and Wrens Nest. Lesser known suburb names include Cowlishaw, Low Crompton, Nook, Goats, Wood End and Shore Edge.

Shaw and Crompton rose to prominence as a major centre of 19th century cotton-spinning and textile manufacture.

Shaw and Crompton has three Anglican Ecclesiastic parishes (although other denominations exist in the area), named Shaw, High Crompton and East Crompton respectively.

According to census data, in 1921 Shaw and Crompton had a population of 14,750, in 1991 21,093, and most recently in 2001 21,721.

Geography and administration

Shaw and Crompton lies at the very edge of the historic Lancashire border, with Yorkshire and the Pennines close to the east. The larger towns of Rochdale and Oldham lie to the west and south respectively. Since the local government reforms of 1974, the district is situated in the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester, administered primarily by Oldham metropolitan borough council. Shaw and Crompton forms part of the Oldham East and Saddleworth constituency, which is represented in the House of Commons by Labour Member of Parliament Phil Woolas.

Since 1987, Shaw and Crompton has had parish council status with parochial responsibilities. The parish council elects fourteen Councillors including three local Councillors and acts as a consultee in planning processes which affect the area.

Shaw was originally a sub-district of Crompton, and in 1835 was noted as a chapelry in the township of Crompton, and the site to a small chapel. However due to the build up of the town, the two areas and names merged to form the present day name of "Shaw and Crompton". Currently, the area of Shaw and Crompton is commonly referred to as Shaw by local communities; this is in contrast to former times when the area was broadly known as Crompton. This contrast can be seen on the markings of many prominent historical structures, which only bear the name "Crompton".

History

Etymology

The name Shaw is Anglo-Saxon in origin, coming from the word "sceaga" meaning wood. The name Crompton is also Anglo-Saxon derived, and is from the words "crom"/"crumb" meaning crooked, and "ton", the Anglo-Saxon for hamlet or village.

Early history

The first evidence of man in the area comes from Iron Age artifacts discovered on Crompton Moor by local archeologists. After this, a Roman road was built through the area leading from a Roman fort in neighbouring Saddleworth. The path of the road still exists and crosses Buckstones Road on the way to Grains Bar.

After the Saxon invasions, the Saxons spread west across the country, forcing the original Celtic inhabitants out of their lands. In around 620 A.D. The Saxon King of Northumbria sent an army across the Pennines into Mercia. As they marched they founded a string of hamlets ending in '-ton'- Royton, Ashton, Clayton, etc. Crompton was one of these, and so dates back to the early seventh century.

Whilst in 1076, following the Norman Conquest, the area was given to Roger de Pictaventis (maternal nephew to William the Conqueror), the first known recorded use of the name for the township of Crompton was part of legal documentation from the early 13th century, when Gilbert de Notton was granted the estate from descendants of the Norman conquest.

Some decades after this, the De La Legh family (again, descendants of the Norman conquest forces), acquired the land as theirs and later, principal landowner Hugh De La Legh saw it fit to change his family name to "de Crompton" (of Crompton), the town which he and his family both owned and resided in.

Until the Industrial Revolution, Crompton was a small township made up of scattered woods, farmsteads, moorland, and swamp for a small community of local families and until 1894 was within the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham.

The manufacture of wool in the area can be traced back as far as 1474, however, as technologies and demands developed, the manufacture of cotton in Crompton became more important than wool, and by 1792 the woollen industry had died out, replaced by the notion of the cotton mill.

Crompton family

The Crompton family have a well documented history. Crompton first appears as a family name when the De La Legh family (settlers from the Norman conquest) changed their name to indicate the Anglo-Saxon township they had obtained and settled in during the 13th century. In turn the Crompton family name can be traced back to the time of Magna Carta to the Assize Roll for 1245.

The family were prosperous landowners of the area, and collectively had private ownership of the majority of Shaw and Crompton's land from their initial medieval acquisition, right through to the early 20th century.

The Crompton family also owned a large manor by the name of Crompton Hall, on the site of Crompton Fold (more commonly known now as Buckstones). Crompton Hall first appears in historical records as early as 1442 and was owned by Thomas de Crompton and his family.

The original 'medieval' Crompton Hall was demolished c.1848. A second and apparently 'magnificent' Crompton Hall, set in its own prominent forested grounds, was erected by the family, but following the dissipation and eventual death of the last remaining family members, the site was sold off and the manor was demolished in 1950 to make way for an exclusive development of bungalows (now the site of controversy over proposed plans to erect luxury three-storey apartments).

Some of the original forested grounds of Crompton Hall can still be found in the Buckstones area today, and is a small but popular public woods. The legacy of the Cromptons is also still apparent today in the area with Crompton House Church of England High School still bearing the Crompton family name (rather than the address it occupies).

Industrial Revolution and cotton

Shaw and Crompton owes much of its history to the British industrial revolution, particularly with 19th century cotton spinning, which provided the area with rapid expansion, prosperity and economic growth - so much so, that by 1913, Shaw and Crompton had one-sixth of the spindles of the wider Oldham district, and according to the national press, had more millionaires per capita than any other town in the world.

The damp climate of Shaw and Crompton provided ideal conditions with which cotton spinning could be performed without the cotton drying and breaking. Newly established 19th century technologies and mechanisation optimised cotton-spinning for mass production for the global market. In combination with Oldham, the area was responsible for 13% of the world's cotton production.

The global demand for cotton goods from the Oldham area allowed expansion both industrially and residentially. In 1801 the township had a population of 3,482, but by 1911, Shaw and Crompton had a considerable population of 14,750. The number of cotton mills in the small township peaked at a staggering thirty six mills in 1920. However, events following the First World War and new competition from abroad led to a severe depression in the British cotton industry and thus production in the area declined to an eventual halt. The final cotton to be spun in Shaw and Crompton was in 1989 in Lilac and Park mills.

Mills

History has documented no less than forty eight separate mill buildings gracing the Shaw and Crompton skyline over the last few centuries. Currently, only six of them still exist and four of them have survived for over a century; the oldest being the Duke Mill remaining firm on its foundation stone since 1883. Below is a table outlining all of the documented mills seen in Shaw and Crompton since the mid-18th century.

Two cottage mills are also known to have existed, named Holebottom and Millcroft. Little is known about them except that Holebottom was built in the mid 17th Century but wasn't demolished until around 300 years later.

Landmarks

Despite its comparative small size with nearby towns, Shaw and Crompton boasts some important local landmarks, including a magnificent War memorial.

Crompton War Memorials

First and Second World Wars

The main Crompton War Memorial, located on High Street, consists of a Scottish granite plinth surmounted by a large bronze statue flanked by two Rolls of Honour containing the 346 names of those from Shaw and Crompton who fought and died in World War I. Panels listing the Roll of Honour from World War II were added and unveiled on November 12, 1950 by Councillor H. M. Turner.

Commissioned by the Crompton War Memorial Committee, the statue was conceptualised in 1919 by Richard Reginald Goulden, and unveiled on April 29, 1923 by General Sir Ian Hamilton. The original cost for the memorial alone was GBP4,000, but the total cost, including site and layout, was about GBP6,067.

The inscription on the memorial reads:

The symbolic memorial depicts a group in which the central figure is a man defending the future generations, represented by young children, against foreign aggression.

The memorial is also a time capsual. Inside it is a lead casket containing, in addition to the usual coins and a copy of the local newspaper, three cops of spun cotton and a length of cloth manufactured within the local area.

South African War

A second, smaller war memorial is located in the park in-between Crompton Way and Westway close to the library. It's dedicated to soldiers who fought in the Second Boer War. It consists of a plaque built into a stone wall which is located in-between two large bushes.

Its inscription reads:

It then lists eight names, four of which were "killed in action", two that "died of wounds" and two that "died of disease".

The Big Lamp

"The Big Lamp" was originally a six-sided gas powered public street lamp, standing 6 metres (20 feet) high at the original cross-road junction of Manchester Road, Oldham Road, High Street and Church Road. The original version was pulled down 17 June, 1925 when electric lighting was introduced. Its absence was so evident that the adjacent public house, known as The Kings Arms, was itself renamed The Big Lamp. Eventually during the 1990s, after redevelopment of the junction to a large roundabout to accommodate the new Crompton Way bypass, a new scaled-down replica of the original Big Lamp was erected in the centre of the roundabout. The new Big Lamp is electrically powered and stands at a height of approximately 2 metres. Soon after the new lamp appeared, The Big Lamp public house reverted back to its original name. Today the 'Big Lamp' term is still in regular use, even the roundabout itself is referred to as "The Big Lamp Roundabout".

Gas was used to power the majority of Shaw and Crompton's street lamps until the mid 1950s.

Present day

Although Shaw and Crompton has now lost all of its cotton manufacturing, the town still bears the marks, at least architecturally, of the legacy of its industrial past. A large percentage of the properties in the area are Victorian terraces, built as dwellings for the masses of cotton mill workers of the times. Furthermore the skyline is still marked by six surviving large red brick mills. These are the two Lily Mills, Newby Mill, Duke Mill, Lilac Mill and Briar Mill.

Shaw and Crompton has become a popular residential area, supported by its convenient position between Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Lancashire and Yorkshire. This, coupled with the town's good public transport and motorway links, and a supply of large, disused mill properties have made Shaw and Crompton a base for a number distribution companies.

Shaw and Crompton is home to Littlewoods Shop Direct Group's Shaw National Distribution Centre, which is a major employer of the local and wider communities. The company occupies three former cotton mills and state-of-the-art purpose-built storage and sortation facilities on a twenty acre complex within the town. The site, as of 2007, is set to become the retail company's only packing and distribution centre for non-bulk items, employing nearly one thousand staff; strengthening Littlewoods Shop Direct's position as the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham's largest private employer.

In addition to Littlewoods Shop Direct, children's toy distributors Toy Options, and bakers Warburtons also have distribution centres within the town.

Warburtons has had one of its eleven major bakeries in Shaw and Crompton since 1965. The "Pennine" bakery produces around 500,000 loaves a week and distributes them to major multiples and independent retailers throughout Greater Manchester, Cheshire and Derbyshire. Located on Glebe Street, it employs around 200 staff and produces a wide range of Warburtons bread products.

Until recently, Shaw and Crompton was also the home to Osram, the international lightbulb manufacturer, which occupied Duke Mill, and was a significant employer in the area. Production has now moved away from the United Kingdom, however.

Education

Almost every suburb of Shaw and Crompton is supported by a school of some kind, including some with religious denominations. All of the schools in the area perform either on or above the national average for test results.

Religion

Shaw and Crompton boasts many churches of a selection of typical denominations, primarily Church of England. The buildings vary from 19th Century to late 20th Century, although the architects of most of the 19th century churches typically adopted an Early English Period style making them look even older than they already are. The following is a list of churches in Shaw and Crompton and their locations.

Most of the above churches participate in Shaw's annual Whit' Walks event, when congregations, choirs and brass bands parade through the streets from their respective churches to a car park opposite Shaw Market for one massive inter-church service.

Communal facilities

Shaw and Crompton has many public parks, sporting establishments, communal playing fields and public houses, additionally it has a modern library building with a large book, video and audio collection and internet facilities.

Library

Crompton Library, located on Farrow Street East, is home to over 36,000 items including books, CDs and DVDs that can be borrowed by anyone who lives in the Oldham Area. It also has communal internet facilities. The library was built in the early 1990s after the original 1907 building, which is still present on Beal Lane, became too small.

Public outdoor areas

There are two main parks in Shaw and Crompton

• Dunwood Park, is located just off Smallbrook Road, with its adjacent play area, Bowling Green and over a mile of wooded area to explore.
• High Crompton Park, is located on Rochdale Road close to St Mary's Church and is home to a Tennis court, Bowling Green, Children's play area and picturesque gardens.

Shaw and Crompton also has large areas of land reserved for sporting and other special events, these are located off George Street, Edward Road and Rushcroft Road respectively.

Shaw Market, located on Westway, is open to market retailers and customers every Thursday. At other times most of the market area becomes a public car park. The market area has also been occasionally used for fun fairs and other events.

Sporting establishments

• Crompton Swimming Pool, Farrow Street
• Crompton Cricket Club, Glebe Street
• Crompton and Royton Golf Club, High Barn St, Royton.

Food and drink

Public houses

Chip shops

For its small size Shaw and Crompton is home to an unusually large number of chip shops - at least nine. Chip shops are found on Beal Lane (2), Rochdale Road (2), Trent Road, in the town centre, near the Big Lamp and on Milnrow Road leading out of town.

Transport

Railway

Shaw and Crompton has had a Rail transport line and station since 1863, then it was used mostly for haulage. Today Shaw and Crompton railway station is frequented by passanger trains running between Rochdale and Manchester. After being initially rejected, plans to turn the line into part of the Manchester Metrolink were accepted by the government on 6 July, 2006. Work will commence in 2008. The conversion will likely result in the decommissioning of the conventional heavy rail service on this line.

Buses

Shaw and Crompton has had bus services since 1935. Major bus companies Stagecoach Group and First Group both hold routes that either go through major roads of Shaw and Crompton from Manchester or Rochdale or terminate in one of its suburbs (Rushcroft, Wrens Nest or Buckstones). There is also a 'Shaw Circular' route run by a small local company which serves the smaller roads of Shaw and Crompton. Bus routes in the area are co-ordinated by GMPTE.

Future developments

As well as the confirmed extension of the Manchester Metrolink service through the existing railway route , Shaw and Crompton is also the site of a number of proposed redevelopment schemes including plans to build a 35,000 sq ft ASDA supermarket on the current site of Dawn mill which is currently being demolished. The plans, which were put to a public vote in 2005, include 316 parking spaces, improved bus facilities on Eastway, pedestrian routes linked to Market Street, junction improvements to nearby streets and the relocation of a local tyre fitting company.

Shaw and Crompton town centre is currently the centre of controversy due to the successful application to convert a local venue into a lapdancing club, despite it's close proximity to a primary school, nursery and an Oldham Youth club. Although proposals caused concern amoungst local residents, no immediate residents complained nor the police nor the local council’s child protection unit provided any representations during the formal application period.. However, a legally watertight argument from the applicant, as well as assurances about security arrangements, were enough to secure licencing for the venue. The club has yet to officially open.

Trivia

• A quaint law existed from 1675 to 1814 which helped encourage Shaw and Crompton's wool production. It required that everyone was to be buried in woollen garments to ensure that trade was kept buoyant.

• Shaw and Crompton has featured on a number of British television programmes and films.
  • The film "The Parole Officer" features a scene filmed with main star Steve Coogan in a car driving along a road in Shaw, namely Grains Road. The scene is filmed near the junction of Grains Road and Buckstones Road at Dog Hill and the Shaw and Crompton skyline can be clearly seen in the background.
  • The BBC's "Common As Muck" featured a lot of scenes filmed in the local area. Many locations on Market Street, High Street, Rochdale Road and Westway were used including the Cricketers pub, Shaw Meat Centre (now Shaw Farm Produce) and Healds (now Tesco).
  • Bolton celebrity steeplejack Fred Dibnah visited the cotton mills of the area as part of the BBC documentary The Fred Dibnah Story. The film included Fred's very unique approach to the demolition of the Briar and Cape chimneys.
• Shaw and Crompton is the only area of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham to have a waterfall. The un-named waterfall (provisionally called Crompton Waterfall) cascades off Crompton Moor into the now unused Pingot Quarry. It is a source of the River Beal, a tributary to the Manchester Ship Canal and the River Irwell.
• Television and movie actress Anna Friel was a pupil at Crompton House Church of England High School.
• From 1919 through 1921 Shaw and Crompton was, per head, the wealthiest town in the world. It held more millionares per head than any other town in the world, and more Rolls Royces.

Notable residents

Shaw and Crompton is the current home of Oldham-born actress Shobna Gulati, former Oldham Athletic A.F.C. player and manager Andy Ritchie, and is the home town of Dale Longworth and Kevin O'Toole, both founding members of dance act N-Trance. Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball also live locally, Ball himself owns farm property that overlooks the area.

References and notes

1. "Official British Place Name Archives - Crompton", Greater Manchester County Records Office - URL accessed June 13, 2006
2. Shaw Genuki - England and Ireland Genealogy - URL accessed June 10, 2006
3. Frances Stott (1996). The Changing Face of Crompton, Oldham Education & Leisure. ISBN 0-902809-38-5.
4. Physical evidence of the road, Oldham Education & Leisure (Unpublished documents held in Shaw and Crompton Library)
5. Frances Stott (1996). The Changing Face of Crompton, Oldham Education & Leisure. ISBN 0-902809-38-5.
6. Julian Hunt & Frances Stott (1988). Looking Back at Crompton, Oldham Education & Leisure. ISBN 0-902809-17-2
7. "A Brief History of Shaw and Royton", Shaw and Royton Area Plan, January 2004 - URL accessed June 21, 2006
8. "Crompton: From the Normans to the Tudors" - URL accessed June 16, 2006
9. Shaw, Oldham Advertiser, June 20, 2005 - URL accessed June 21, 2006
10. The History of Oldham, Visit Oldham - URL accessed June 22, 2006
11. Gurr & Hunt (1998). The Cotton Mills of Oldham, Oldham Education & Leisure. ISBN 0-902809-46-6
12. Crompton War Memorial Public Monument and Sculpture Association - URL accessed June 14, 2006
13. Frances Stott (1996). The Changing Face of Crompton, Oldham Education & Leisure. ISBN 0-902809-38-5
14. "Littlewoods sheds 1,200 staff" Guardian Unlimited, May 9, 2006 - URL accessed June 10, 2006
15. Warburtons Bakeries - North West - Pennine, Warburtons Virtual Press Office. URL accessed June 24, 2006
16. Oldham Libraries - Crompton Library Oldham Government Website, URL Accessed 10 August, 2006
17. 'Metrolink extension is announced' BBC News, 6 July, 2006. URL Accessed 6 July, 2006
18. 'Metrolink extension is announced' BBC News, 6 July, 2006. URL Accessed 6 July, 2006
19. Dialogue (February 2005) 'ASDA Shaw - Your views count'. Public leaflet produced by Dialogue
20. Parishioners Join the Fight Against Lap Dancing Club Dave Appleton, Oldham Advertiser, August 23, 2006. URL accessed September 28, 2006.
21. Lapdancing a Shaw Thing, Stuart Greer, Oldham Advertiser, August 9, 2006. URL accessed September 28, 2006.
22. "Heritage - The Oldham Boroughs - Crompton". Visit Oldham - URL accessed June 22, 2006

External links

• Crompton articles at Gen UKI
• Crompton: from the Normans to the Tudors A comprehensive historical reference site.
• Shaw and Crompton Community Pages "Putting unity into the Community"
• Shaw Cam Website featuring picture gallery, discussion boards, and live video feed of Shaw and Crompton
• Shaw Life Message board with picture galleries and articles contributed by local residents.
• SunsetOnTheDawn Website documenting the demolition of 105 year old Dawn Mill, including live video feed, and picture gallery.

• Towns in Greater Manchester
• Places in historic Lancashire
• Oldham
• Local government in Greater Manchester