Online Encyclopedia

Grange. Of the rivers the Mersey (q.v.), separating the county from Cheshire, is the principal, and receives from Lancashire the Irwell, Sankey and other small streams. The Ribble, which rises in the mountains of the See also:

West See also:

RIDING

Riding of Yorkshire, forms for a few See also:

MILES, NELSON APPLETON (1839— )

miles the boundary with that county, and then flows S.W. to See also:

Preston, receiving the Hodder from the N. and the See also:

Calder and See also:

DARWEN

Darwen from the S. Lancashire has a See also:

SHARE (O. Eng. scearu, chiefly in compounds, e.g. land-scearu, a share of land, from sceran to cut; cf. " shear" )

share in two of the See also:

ENGLISH

English districts most famous for their scenery, but does not include the finest See also:

PART

part of either. Furness, entirely hilly except for a narrow coastal See also:

TRACT (from Lat. tractare, to treat of a matter, through Provencal tractat and Ital. trattato)

tract, extends N. to include the See also:

SOUTHERN

southern part of the See also:

Lake District (q.v.); it contains Coniston Lake and See also:

BORDERS, THE

borders Winder-See also:

mere, which are drained respectively by the Leven and Crake, with some smaller lakes and such mountains as the Old See also:

Man and Wetherlam. Another elevated district, forming part of a mountainous See also:

CHAIN (through the O. Fr. citable, chcene, &c., from Lat. catena)

chain stretching from the Scottish border, covered by the name of Pennine uplands in its broader application, runs along the whole eastern boundary of the See also:

main portion of the county, and to the See also:

south of the Ribble occupies more than See also:

HALF

half the area, stretching west nearly to See also:

Liverpool.

The moorlands in the southern district are generally See also:

BLEAK, or BLICK (Alburnus lucidus)

bleak and covered with heather. Towards the north the scenery is frequently beautiful, the See also:

green rounded elevated ridges being separated by pleasant cultivated valleys variegated by See also:

woods and watered by rivers. None of the summits of the range within Lancashire attains an See also:

ELEVATION

elevation of 2000 ft., the highest being See also:

BLACKSTONE, SIR WILLIAM (1723-1780)

Blackstone Edge (1323 ft.), Pendle See also:

Hill (1831 ft.) and Boulsworth Hill (1700 ft.). Along the sea-coast from the Mersey to Lancaster there is a continuous See also:

PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain formerly occupied by See also:

PEAT (possibly connected with Med. Lat. petia, pecia, piece, ultimately of Celtic origin; cf. O. Celt. pet, O. Ir. pit, Welsh peth, portion)

peat mosses, many of which have been reclaimed. The largest is Chat See also:

MOSS

Moss between Liverpool and See also:

Manchester. In some instances these mosses have exhibited the phenomenon of a moving See also:

BOG (from Ir. and Gael. bogach, bog, soft)

bog. A large district in the north belonging to the duchy of Lancaster was at one See also:

time occupied by forests, but these have wholly disappeared, though their existence is recalled in nomenclature, as in the See also:

FOREST

Forest of Rossendale, near the Yorkshire boundary somewhat south of the centre. See also:

GEOLOGY (from Gr. yp7, the earth, and Abyor, science)

Geology.—The greater part of Lancashire, the central and eastern portions, is occupied by Carboniferous rocks; a broad See also:

belt of Triassic strata fringes the west and south; while most of the detached See also:

NORTHERN

northern portion is made up of See also:

SILURIAN

Silurian and Ordovician formations. The Carboniferous See also:

SYSTEM

system includes the great See also:

COAL

coal-See also:

field in which are gathered all the principal manufacturing towns, See also:

COLNE

Colne, See also:

BURNLEY

Burnley, See also:

Blackburn, See also:

Chorley, See also:

WIGAN

Wigan, See also:

Bolton, Preston, See also:

Oldham, See also:

ROCHDALE

Rochdale and Manchester. In the centre of the coal-field is an elevated See also:

MOOR

moor-See also:

LAND

land tract formed of the grits and shales of the Millstone Grit See also:

SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series. Part of the small coal-field of Ingleton also lies within the county. Between these two coal basins there is a moderately hilly district in which grits and See also:

black shales predominate, with a broad tract of See also:

LIMESTONE

limestone and shales which are well exposed in the quarries at See also:

CLITHEROE

Clitheroe and at Longridge, Chipping, See also:

WHALLEY, EDWARD (c. 1615-c. 1675)

Whalley and Downham.

The limestone again appears in the north at Bolton-le-Sands, See also:

Burton-in-See also:

KENDALL, HENRY CLARENCE (1841-1882)

Kendall, Grange, See also:

ULVERSTON

Ulverston and See also:

Dalton-in-Furness. Large pockets of See also:

rich See also:

IRON [symbol Fe, atomic weight 55.85 (0=16)]

iron ore are worked in the limestone in the Furness district. The belt of Trias includes the See also:

BUNTER

Bunter See also:

SANDSTONE

sandstone and See also:

CONGLOMERATE (from the Lat. conglomerare, to form into a ball, glomus, glomeris; so also the general term " conglomeration " for a miscellaneous collection of things, gathered together in a mass)

conglomerate, which ranges from See also:

Barrow-in-Furness, through Garstang, Preston, See also:

ORMSKIRK

Ormskirk, Liverpool, See also:

WARRINGTON

Warrington and See also:

SALFORD

Salford; and See also:

KEUPER

Keuper marls, which underlie the See also:

SURFACE

surface between the Bunter outcrop and the sea. On the coast there is a considerable development of blown See also:

sand between Blackpool and Lytham and between Southport and Sea-forth. North of See also:

Broughton-in-Furness, Ulverston and Cartmel are the Silurian rocks around Lakes See also:

WINDERMERE

Windermere and Coniston See also:

WATER

Water, including the Coniston grits and flags and the Brathay flags. These rocks are bounded by the Ordovician Coniston limestone, ranging north-See also:

east and south-west, and the volcanic series of Borrowdale. A See also:

GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good See also:

DEAL

deal of the solid geology is obscured in many places by glacial See also:

DRIFT (from "drive ")

drift, See also:

boulder See also:

clay and sands. The available coal See also:

SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

supply of Lancashire has been estimated at about five thousand millions of tons. In 1852 the amount raised was 8,225,000 tons; in 1899 it was 24,387,475 tons. In the See also:

PRODUCTION (Lat. productionem, from producere, to pro-duce)

production of coal Lancashire vies with Yorkshire, but each is about one-third below See also:

Durham. There are also raised in large quantities—fireclay, limestone, sandstone, See also:

SLATE (properly CLAY SLATE; in M. Eng. slat or sclat, from O. Fr. esclat, a small piece of wood used as a tile; esclater, to break into pieces, whence modern Fr. eclat, the root being seen also in Ger. schleissen, to split)

slate and See also:

salt, which is also obtained from brine. The red hematitic iron obtained in the Furness district is very valuable, but is liable to decrease.

The district also produces a See also:

FINE

fine See also:

BLUE (common in different forms to most European languages)

blue slate. Metals, excepting iron, are unimportant. See also:

CLIMATE

Climate and See also:

Agriculture.—The climate in the hilly districts is frequently See also:

COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold, but in the more sheltered parts lying to the south and west it is mild and genial. From its See also:

WESTERLY

westerly situation and the attraction of the hills there is a high rainfall in the hilly districts (e.g. at Bolton the See also:

AVERAGE

average is 58.71 in.), while the average for the other districts is about 35. The See also:

SOIL

soil after reclamation and drainage is fertile; but, as it is for the most part a strong clayey See also:

LOAM (O.E. lam; the word appears in Dut. leem and Ger. Lehm; the ultimate origin is the root lai-, meaning " to be sticky," which is seen in the cognate " lime," Lat. limus, mud, clay)

loam it requires a large amount of labour. In some districts it is more of a peaty nature, and in the Old Red Sandstone districts of the Mersey there is a tract of See also:

LIGHT

light sandy loam, easily worked, and well adapted for See also:

wheat and potatoes. In many districts the ground has been rendered unfit for agricultural operations by the rubbish from coal-pits. A low proportion (about seven-tenths) of the See also:

TOTAL

total area is under cultivation, and of this nearly three-fourths is in permanent pasture, cows being largely kept for the supply of See also:

MILK (0. Eng. meoluc; from a common Indo-European root, cf. Lat. mulgere, Gr. ?t dXyetv)

milk to the towns, while in the uplands many See also:

sheep are reared. In addition to the cultivated area, about 92,000 acres are under hill pasturage. A See also:

GRADUAL (Med. Lat. gradualis, of or belonging to steps or degrees; gradus, step)

gradual increase is noticeable in the acreage under oats, which occupy more than seven-tenths of the area under See also:

GRAIN (derived through the French from Lat. granum, seed, from an Aryan root meaning " to wear down," which also appears in the common Teutonic word " corn ")

grain crops, and in that under wheat, to the exclusion of the cultivation of See also:

BARLEY (Hordeum sativum)

barley. Of green crops the See also:

potato is the chief. See also:

INDUSTRIES

Industries and See also:

Trade.—South Lancashire is the principal seat of the See also:

cotton manufacture in the See also:

WORLD

world, the trade centring upon Manchester, Oldham and the neighbouring densely populated district.

It employs upwards of 400,000 operatives. The worsted, woollen and See also:

SILK

silk manufactures, See also:

FLAX

flax, See also:

HEMP (in O. Eng. henep, cf. Dutch hennep, Ger. Hanf , cognate with Gr. Kavval3er, Lat. cannabis)

hemp and jute industries, though of less importance, employ considerable See also:

numbers. Non-textile factories employ about 385,000 hands. The manufacture of See also:

MACHINES

machines, appliances, conveyances, tools, &c., are very important, especially in supplying the needs of the immense See also:

WEAVING

weaving and See also:

SPINNING (from O. Eng. spinnen, to spin, cf. Ger. spinnen, &c., the Teut. root is seen, to draw out, cf. span, spider)

spinning industries. For the same purpose there is a large See also:

BRANCH (from the Fr. branche, late Lat. branca, an animal's paw)

branch of See also:

INDUSTRY (Lat. industria, from indu-, a form of the pre, position in, and either stare, to stand, or struere, to pile up)

industry in the manufacture of bobbins from the See also:

wood grown in the northern districts of the county. Of industries principally confined to certain definite centres there may be mentioned—the manufacture of iron and See also:

STEEL, FLORA ANNIE (1847– )

steel at Barrow-in-Furness, a See also:

TOWN

town of remarkably rapid growth since the See also:

MIDDLE

middle of the 19th See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century; the great See also:

glass See also:

WORKS

works at St Helens; the See also:

WATCH (in O. Eng. wcecce, a keeping guard or watching, from wacian, to guard, watch, wacan, to wake)

watch-making works at See also:

PRESCOT

Prescot and the See also:

leather works at Warrington. See also:

PRINTING (from Lat. imprimere, O. Fr. empreindre)

Printing, See also:

BLEACHING

bleaching and See also:

DYEING (0. Eng. dedgian, dealt ; Mid. Eng. deyen)

dyeing works, See also:

paper and chemical works, See also:

india-See also:

RUBBER, INDIARUBBER

rubber and See also:

TOBACCO

tobacco manufactures are among the chief of the other resources of this great See also:

INDUSTRIAL

industrial region. Besides the See also:

PORT

port of Liverpool, of world-wide importance, the principal ports are Manchester, brought into communication with the sea by the Manchester See also:

SHIP

Ship See also:

Canal opened in 1894, Barrow-in-Furness and Fleetwood, while Preston and Lancaster have docks and a considerable See also:

SHIPPING

shipping trade by the rivers Lune and Ribble respectively. The sea See also:

FISHERIES

fisheries, for which Fleetwood and Liverpool are the chief ports, are of considerable value. 1 g 1 5 B ) ?''',es Communications.—Apart from the Manchester Ship Canal, canal-See also:

TRAFFIC

traffic plays an important part in the industrial region. In 176o the Sankey canal, 10 m. See also:

long, the first canal opened in See also:

BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain (apart from very See also:

early works), was constructed to carry coal from St Helens to Liverpool. Shortly afterwards the See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

duke of See also:

Bridgewater projected the great canal from Manchester across the Irvell to See also:

Worsley, completed in 1761 and bearing the name of its originator.

The See also:

Leeds and Liverpool canal, begun in 1770, connects Liverpool and other important towns with Leeds by a circuitous route of 130 M. The other principal canals are the Rochdale, the Manchester (to See also:

HUDDERSFIELD

Huddersfield) and the Lancaster, connecting Preston and See also:

Kendal. A See also:

SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short canal connects Ulverston with Morecambe Bay. A network of See also:

RAIL

rail-ways covers the industrial region. The main See also:

LINE

line of the See also:

LONDON

London and North Western railway enters the county at Warrington, and runs north through Wigan, Preston, Lancaster and Carnforth. It also serves Liverpool and Manchester, providing the shortest route to each of these cities from London, and shares with the Lancashire and Yorkshire See also:

COMPANY

company See also:

JOINT (through Fr. from Lat. junctum, jungere, to join)

joint lines to Southport, to Blackpool and to Fleetwood, whence there is See also:

REGULAR

regular steamship communication with See also:

BELFAST

Belfast. The Lancashire and Yorkshire line serves practically all the important centres as far north as Preston and Fleetwood. Allthe northern See also:

TRUNK (Fr. tronc, Lat. truncus, cut off, maimed)

trunk lines from London have services to Manchester and Liverpool. The Cheshire Lines system, worked by a See also:

COMMITTEE (from commute, an Anglo-Fr. past participle of commettre, Lat. committere, to entrust; the modern Fr. equivalent comite is derived from the Eng.)

committee of the Great Northern, Great Central and Midland companies, links their systems with the South Lancashire district generally, and maintains lines between Liverpool and Manchester, both these cities with Southport, and numerous branches. Branches of the Midland railway from its main line in Yorkshire serve Lancaster, Morecambe, and See also:

HEYSHAM

Heysham and Carnforth, where connexion is made with the Furness railway to Ulverston, Barrow, Lake See also:

Side, Coniston, &c. See also:

POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

Population and See also:

ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

Administration.—The area of the See also:

ancient county is 1,203,365 acres. Its population in'i8or was 673,486; in 1891, 3,926,760; and in 1901, 4,406,409.

The area of the administrative county is 1,196,753 acres. The See also:

DISTRIBUTION (Lat. distribuere, to deal out)

distribution of the industrial population may be best appreciated by showing the See also:

PARLIAMENTARY

parliamentary divisions, parliamentary, county and municipal boroughs and See also:

urban districts as placed among the four divisions of the ancient county. In the See also:

case of urban districts 1 the name of the great town to which each is near or adjacent follows where necessary. The figures show population in 1901.

End of Article: LANCASHIRE

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