Great Harwood
| Great Harwood | |
 Town Hall with clock tower |
|
  Great Harwood |
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| Population | 11,217 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SD737318 |
| District | Hyndburn |
| Shire county | Lancashire |
| Region | North West |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BLACKBURN |
| Postcode district | BB6 |
| Dialling code | 01254 |
| Police | Lancashire |
| Fire | Lancashire |
| Ambulance | North West |
| EU Parliament | North West England |
| UK Parliament | Hyndburn |
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Coordinates: 53°46′55″N 2°23′54″W / 53.7820°N 2.3984°W
Great Harwood is a township in the Hyndburn district of Lancashire, England, 4.5 miles (7.2 km) north-east of Blackburn. Great Harwood is the major conurbation of the 'Three Towns'; the three towns being Great Harwood, Clayton Le Moors, and Rishton.
History
Great Harwood is a town with an industrial heritage. The Mercer Hall Leisure Centre in Queen Street, and the town clock, pay tribute to John Mercer (1791–1866), the 'father' of Great Harwood, who revolutionised the cotton dyeing process with his invention of mercerisation.[1] An agricultural society is also maintained.
The town was once on the railway line from Blackburn to Burnley via Padiham – The North Lancs or Great Harwood Loop[2] of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. The last passenger train ran in November 1957 and goods traffic in 1964. The Martholme Viaduct on the line remains about one mile north east.
The town football team, Great Harwood Town, closed in July 2006. Great Harwood Cricket Club, is a member of the Ribblesdale Cricket League, winning the senior division in 2008, and has seven teams, ranging from under 9s through to senior level.
Great Harwood used to have a lively and bustling market around the town clock in the main square. It was very popular, and drew people from across the county every week. It had declined in the last 15 years, and almost disappeared, but is now steadily increasing, and with several stalls every Friday with fruit, vegetables, fish, meat, clothes and pet supplies.
More recently, there has been a very popular farmers market held each first Sunday of every month. Stalls include rare selections of organic meat, traditional Malkin pie, fish and shell fish stall, luxury body care stalls, European stalls, locally brewed beer stalls, art and crafts and jewelry stalls.
Great Harwood has three supermarkets: Aldi, which opened in November 2010, Tesco, which opened in December 2011, and Morrisons (previously Co-Op, which originally opened in 2001), which also opened in 2010. There are two petrol stations, run by Texaco, as well as Morrisons. An retained fire station is also located in the town, having opened in 1972.
Great Harwood is also home to Great Harwood Agricultural Show, an annual show held every year on Bank Holiday Monday. The show is now in its 150th year, with the next show to be held on 29 May 2017.[3]
In July 2016, Domino's Pizza announced plans to open in Great Harwood, as well as Accrington.[4]
Notable people
- Thomas Birtwistle (1833–1912), trade unionist and factory inspector, born at Great Harwood.
- Matthew Derbyshire, professional footballer with Blackburn FC, Olympiacos, Nottingham Forest FC and Rotherham FC
- David Dunn, footballer, was born and brought up in Great Harwood. He initially played for Blackburn Rovers, but moved to Birmingham City in August 2003. In January 2007, he moved back to Blackburn Rovers.
- Leslie Duxbury (1926–2005), Coronation Street scriptwriter, was a resident.
- Nicholas Freeston (1907–1978), award-winning Lancashire poet, who worked at Birtwistle and Fielding's, Delph Road Mill, Great Harwood.
- Michael Gibson, television presenter-director, was brought up in Great Harwood.
- Mortimer Grimshaw (1824/5–1869), strike leader and political activist
- Ethel Carnie Holdsworth (1886–1962), writer, also published as Ethel Carnie and Ethel Holdsworth - lived in Great Harwood until her marriage in 1915 and some of her poems and novels were written in the town.
- Netherwood Hughes (1900–2009), World War I veteran, was born in Lord Street.
- Mick Jackson, writer, best known for his 1997 novel The Underground Man, was born in the town in 1960.
- John Mercer, scientist who developed a process for treating cotton, was born in the town in 1791.
- Brett Ormerod, footballer, Great Harwood born and bred. Grew up on Duke Street.
See also
References
- ↑ Oxford Dictionary of National Biography - subscription based, accessed 15 June 2011
- ↑ Suggitt, Gordon (2003). Lost Railways of Lancashire. Newbury, Berkshire: Countryside Books. pp. 80–82. ISBN 978-1-85306-801-0. OCLC 52565677.
- ↑ "Great Harwood Show". Great Harwood Show. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
- ↑ MacPherson, Jon (18 July 2016). "Two new Domino's takeaways set to create 45 jobs". Accrington Observer. Retrieved 21 July 2016.