Our Area and Our School
Inception of Golborne
The name Golborne derives from the Old English golde and burna, and means “stream where marsh marigolds grow” and is commonly found around marshes, fens, ditches and woodlands. In the UK it is probably one of the most ancient British native plants and is the proud emblem of Golborne Community Primary.
Over the last 800+ year’s names for the area were spelt like Goldeburn, Goldburc, Goulbourne, Goseburn and Gowborne. Legend has it that a knight won fame by slaying a fearsome dragon and his reward was land and a manor believed to be Goulbourne. Golborne as we know it as today is a spelling which began in the 15th Century. Golborne was originally associated with the Manor of Newton which was held by the Legh family.
The town has a mention in the Domesday Book which was completed by the then King William the Conqueror, who invaded England in 1066. The book was completed in 1086. The book was a land survey so the King knew what land and resources he had in England. This would allow William to tax those who had much land and assets.
During the Civil War a battle in the south of Golborne called Red Gap was fought in 1648 where Oliver Cromwell defeated the Scottish although his army was outnumbered 10 to 1. The Scots came down to support Cromwell’s enemy Charles I.
Churches
Golborne boasted 10 churches at one time with many being born out of the Victorian Era. The Parish Church of Golborne is St Thomas Church, in the Deanery of Winwick, Diocese of Liverpool. The church was founded in 1829 with a clock tower that is still chiming each hour. There is also a graveyard surrounding the building. High St Congregational was founded in 1830, All Saints Roman Catholic was founded in 1863 but has since been rebuilt. It has a graveyard at the rear. Lowton Road Primitive Methodists was built in 1869 and closed in 2007. Edge Green Lane Primitive Methodists was founded before 1891 and how has a housing estate upon it and the Heath St Wesleyan Methodist was founded before 1892. The Charles St Baptist was founded in 1894 and the High St Welsh Wesleyan Methodists was founded before 1902 but is now closed. The High St Independent Methodists were founded before 1905 and has since closed. Another Primitive Methodists is on Cross St and is closed.
Schools
Golborne has three primary schools and a high school. St Thomas C of E Junior & Infant School was opened in 1870 and has a strong connection with the local church of St Thomas. Golborne All Saints Catholic School is on Hazel Grove, Golborne and was originally on Worsley Street. Golborne Community Primary is located on Talbot St whilst the high school is based on Lowton Road.
Golborne High School was established in 1954 and became officially a College of Visual Arts in 2007. In 2012 the school was supposed to merge with Lowton High School but was cancelled by the coalition government in 2010.
Work
Most of the early growth of Golborne came from the coal mining industry, its cotton mills such as Parkside and Brookside and also the gas works. Golborne will be remembered for two completely different reasons for its mining industry as Golborne Colliery was a successful venture for the National Coal Board, but it suffered a horrific explosion in 1979 which killed 10 miners with only one survivor. The Coal Board decided to close down the colliery in 1989. This led to a loss of employment for a large proportion of Golborne’s population and recently more jobs have been created with the building of Stone Cross Industrial Park and a business park which stands on the former colliery site.
On Sunday 19 March 2006, the Rector of Golborne the Rev Robert Williams officiated a service at the former entrance to the colliery. Ex-miners and their families attended and a stone at just over 6 feet was unveiled in memory of the men and women who worked and died at Golborne Colliery between 1880 and 1989.
Railways
Golborne used to have two railway stations which both became victims of Dr Beeching’s cuts to the railways which attacked the small towns and villages. Golbourne Gate was opened in 1839 on the south side of Church St and was renamed Golborne South in 1949 after nationalization of the railways. The station closed in 1961 to passengers and 1967 completely. It has since been demolished. Golborne Station was opened in 1900 on the west side of Wigan Road and was renamed Golborne North in 1949 after nationalization. It closed permanently in 1952 and has been demolished.
For many years there has been an ongoing campaign to reopen Golborne South which would enable people to get to Wigan and Warrington in around 10 minutes.
Important Figures
The Mitchell family were a highly regarded family who were paper manufacturers at Brookside Mill. However they had humble beginnings with Thomas Mitchell working as a power loom weaver and then grocer. His son William Mitchell became a manager of the paper hanging factory at Brookside Mill and then decided to enter the business of owning the mill along with the Arnott’s. He later became Justice of the Peace. Thomas died in 1899 and William in 1911. Notable residences for the Mitchell’s were Elm Cottage, Park Cottage, Brookfield House and Brook Villa which is on Park Road.
Peter Kane was born in Heywood in 1918 but grew up in Golborne when his family moved there before his first birthday. He was a flyweight boxer in the 1930’s and became world champion in 1938. Throughout his boxing career he continued work as a blacksmith in Lowton and lived in Pewfall. Peter Kane died in 1991. In his honour, the Peter Kane Square and Memorial Clock were completed in 2001.
Roger Hunt was born in Golborne 1938 and went on to be a brilliant footballer for club and country. In 1962 Liverpool won promotion where Roger scored 41 goals which included 5 hat-tricks! In 1965 he scored the first ever goal to appear on Match of the Day. England won the World Cup in 1966 where Hunt appeared in all 6 games and scored 3 times. He joined Bolton Wanderers in 1969.
Local Government Act 1972
1972 brought about the change of many ancient boundaries. The County Borough of Wigan nearby became a Metropolitan District under the umbrella of Greater Manchester as a new County and thus Golborne became part of the new Metropolitan district of Wigan. It is interesting that Golborne is classed as Warrington, Cheshire, with a Warrington postcode but a Wigan telephone area code. Golborne also falls within the Local Education Authority of Wigan.
The above Act enabled Golborne to develop as a satellite town for the nearby Warrington, Leigh, St. Helens and Wigan. Population growth occurred in the 1970’s and 1980’s and the Census of 2001 listed 20,007 inhabitants.
Conservation Areas
Golborne has two designated Conservation Areas, one in the town centre and one on Park Road. The idea is to retain the historical context of these areas and pay particular attention to any building changes which may affect the Conservation Area. Permission may be needed for street lamps, benches, paving, cladding, inserting windows, satellite dishes, solar panels or building walls. These historical environments are subject to strict policy by the local authority.
Our School
The old school was built in 1908 and situated around 100 yards from the current building. The school was in a poor state of repair and it was decided that a new and improved school needed to be built to cater for the children of the 21st Century in 2001. During excavation for the new school, air raid shelters were found which belonged to the old school and have been since filled in. Part of the school land is fenced off which is on a slope, allowing the water from the field to drain down towards the brook.
The school itself has over 300 pupils from nursery all the way down to Y6. It also has a children’s centre. Ofsted concluded that our school was “a good school where pupils are safe, happy and well cared for. A copy of this report is available on this website.
Conclusion
I hope that you found this really interesting and know lots more about Golborne than you did before.
There are pictures at the bottom of this page related to the information above and also a quiz to test your knowledge.
Thank you |
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