Wikipedia

Northwich

Northwichis a market andport townandcivil parishin the unitary authority ofCheshire West and Chesterin the ceremonial county ofCheshire,England.It lies in the heart of theCheshire Plain,at the confluence of the riversWeaverandDane.The town is about 18 miles (29 km) east ofChester,15 miles (24 km) south ofWarrington,and 19 miles (31 km) south ofManchester.

Northwich
Witton Street
Hayhurst Swingbridge
High Street
Northwich is located in Cheshire
Northwich
Northwich
Location withinCheshire
Population22,726 (2021)[1]
OS grid referenceSJ651733
Civil parish
  • Northwich
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Villages and suburbs of the town
List
Post townNORTHWICH
Postcode districtCW8, CW9
Dialling code01606
PoliceCheshire
FireCheshire
AmbulanceNorth West
UK Parliament
Websitenorthwichtowncouncil.gov.uk
List of places
UK
England
Cheshire
53°15′32″N2°31′05″W/ 53.259°N 2.518°W/53.259; -2.518

The population of the civil parish was 20,924 in 2021[2]and the wider built-up area (which also covers parts of several other civil parishes) was 50,531.[3]

The area around Northwich has been exploited for itssalt panssinceRoman times,when the settlement was known asCondate.The town had been severely affected by salt mining, andsubsidencehas historically been a significant problem. Mine stabilisation work was completed in 2007.[4]

History

edit
Main article:History of Northwich

Early history

edit

DuringRoman times,Northwich was known as Condate, thought to be aLatinisationof aBrittonicnamemeaning "Confluence". There areseveral other sites of the same name,mostly inFrance;in Northwich's case, it lies at the junction of the riversDaneandWeaver.[5]

Northwich can be identified through two contemporary Roman documents. The first of these is theAntonine Itinerary,a 3rd-century road map split into 14 sections. Two of these sections, or Itinerary, mention Condate: Route II ( "the route from theWallto the port ofRutupiae") and Route X (" the route fromGlannoventatoMediolanum").[6]The second document is the 7th-centuryRavenna Cosmography.This document refers to Condate between the entries forSalinae(nowMiddlewich,Cheshire) andRatae(nowLeicester,Leicestershire), at the time the capital of theCorieltauvitribe.[6]

The Romans' interest in the Northwich area is thought to be due to the strategic river crossing and the location of thesalt brines.[5]Salt was very important in Roman society;[7]the Roman wordsalarium,linked employment, salt and soldiers, but the exact link is unclear. It is also theorised that this is the basis for the modern wordsalary.Another theory is that the wordsoldieritself comes from the Latinsal dare(to give salt).SeeHistory of saltfor further details.There is archaeological evidence of a Romanauxiliary fortwithin the area of Northwich now known as "Castle" dated to AD 70.[5]This and other northwestern forts were built as the Romans moved north from their stronghold in Chester.[5]

The association with salt continues in theetymologyof Northwich. The "wich" (or wych) suffix applies to other towns in the area: Middlewich,NantwichandLeftwich.This is considered to have been derived from theNorse,wic,for bay, and is associated with the more traditional method of obtaining salt by evaporating sea water. Therefore, a place for making salt became a wych-house; Northwich was the most northern of the-wich townsin Cheshire.[8]

Medieval to early modern

edit

The existence of Northwich in the early medieval period is shown by its record in theDomesday Bookof 1086:[9]

In the same Mildestuic hundred there was a third wich called Norwich [Northwich] and it was at farm for £8.

There were the same laws and customs there as there were in the other wiches and the king and the earl similarly divided the renders.
... All the other customs in these wiches are the same.

This was waste when (Earl) Hugh received it; it is now worth 35s.

— Henry Ellis,A General Introduction to Domesday Book

Themanorof Northwich belonged to theEarls of Chesteruntil 1237 when the family line died out. Subsequently, Northwich became a royal manor and was given to a noble family to collect tolls in exchange for a set rent.[10]

TheCheshire archerswere a body of élite soldiers noted for their skills with the longbow, who fought in many engagements in Britain and France in the Middle Ages. Battles at which there were sizeable numbers of Cheshire archers includeAgincourtandCrécy;many of these archers hailed from the Northwich Hundred.Richard IIemployed a bodyguard of these yeoman archers who came from theMacclesfield Hundredand the forest districts of Cheshire.

That salt production continued throughout the centuries and can be seen throughJohn Leland's description of the town in 1540:[11]

Northwich is a pratie market town but fowle,

and by the Salters houses be great stakes of smaul cloven wood,

to seethe the salt water that thei make white salt of.

— cited in Fred H. Crossley,Cheshire

Between 1642 and 1643, during theEnglish Civil War,Northwich was fortified and garrisoned bySir William Breretonfor theParliamentarians.[5]

The salt beds beneath Northwich were re-discovered in the 1670s by employees of the local Smith-Barry family.[12]The Smith-Barrys were looking for coal, but instead discoveredrock salt,in the grounds of the family home,Marbury Hall(since demolished) to the north of Northwich.

19th century

edit
Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse

During the 19th century it became uneconomical to mine for the salt. Instead hot water was pumped through the mines, which dissolved the salt.[12]The resultant brine was pumped out and the salt extracted from the brine. This technique weakened the mines and led to landsubsidenceas they collapsed. Subsidence affected the town and the surrounding landscape.[12]For example, collapses in 1880 formed Witton Flash as the River Weaver flowed into a huge hole caused by subsidence.[13]Subsidence also allegedly accounts for many oldtimber-framedhouses in the town centre, which were better able to withstand the movement of the ground. Some houses were built on a base of steel girders that could be jacked up to level the house with each change in the underlying ground. The town's historical link with the salt industry is celebrated in itsmuseum,which is today in the oldworkhouse.

In 1874,John BrunnerandLudwig MondfoundedBrunner Mondin Winnington and started manufacturingsoda ashusing theSolvayammonia-soda process.[14]This process used salt as a main raw material. The chemical industry used the subsided land for the disposal of waste from the manufacture ofsoda-ash.The waste was transported through a network of cranes and rails to the producelimebeds.This was a dangerous alkaline substance and caused the landscape to be abandoned as unusable.

Modern development

edit
Marbury Country Park

In 1975Marbury Country Parkwas the first area to be reclaimed from dereliction and has become a popular recreational area. In 1987 more land was reclaimed to form Furey Wood and over later years,Cheshire County Council's Land Regeneration Unit reclaimed what is now known as Anderton Nature Park, Witton Flash, Dairy House Meadows, Witton Mill Meadows, and Ashton's and Neumann's Flashes. The area now extends to approximately 800 acres (323 ha) of public space known asNorthwich Community Woodlands.[12]

In February 2004 a £28 million programme to stabilise the abandoned salt mines underneath Northwich was begun.[15]The work was funded by theEnglish Partnershipsthrough its Land Stabilisation Programme,[16]introduced to resolve issues associated with unstable mines around England.

The four mines identified for work were Baron's Quay, Witton Bank, Neumann's and Penny's Lane. These mines were chosen because their subsidence was causing problems for the town centre. The stabilisation plan involved removing millions of litres of brine from the four mines and replacing it with a mixture ofpulverised fuel ash(PFA),cementand salt. The project was completed in late 2007.[17]

The old Magistrates Court and Memorial Hall have been demolished and been replaced by Memorial Court, a £12.5 million cultural and leisure centre, which offers a pool, dance studios and a gym.

The £80 million Barons Quay Development, a retail and leisure complex, opened in 2016 and has seen the creation of more than 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of shopping space, together with a large supermarket with a petrol filling station, cinema, restaurants, cafés, new public spaces, and car parking. As of January 2023 roughly half of the retail space remains empty.[18]

A major fire occurred at the Northwich Outdoor Market on 3 January 2020. The Market's remains were quickly demolished and so far there are no plans to rebuild it.[19]

Governance

edit

At the time of theDomesday survey(1086) Northwich was in thehundredof Middlewich, but by the 14th century it had become part of theNorthwich hundred.This probably happened during the reorganisation of the Hundreds in the 12th century.[5]Northwich has been described as a borough from around 1288, though there is no surviving borough charter.[5]

Northwich originally constituted an area of only 13 acres (53,000 m2) at the confluence of the Rivers Weaver and Dane. The much larger township ofWitton cum Twambrookslay to the east,Leftwichto the south,Castle Northwichto the south-west, andWinningtonto the north-west.[20][21]

The manor of Northwich was granted to the Stanley family, laterEarls of Derbyin 1484, and stayed in the family's hands until the late 18th century. A local board was founded on 26 June 1863 after theLocal Government Act 1858and it purchased the manor from Arthur Heywood Esq. in 1871. In 1875, the local boards for Northwich and Witton cum Twambrooks were amalgamated, and the resultant district was further extended in 1880 to include the whole of Castle Northwich and parts ofHartford,Winnington and Leftwich. On 10 September 1894 these areas were united as thecivil parishof Northwich, served by Northwich Urban District Council.[20]

The town was further enlarged in 1936 by the addition of parts of Winnington,Lostock Gralam,Barnton,Leftwich andRudheath,and again in 1955 when parts ofDavenham,Hartford, Rudheath andWhatcroftwere added.[22]

TheLocal Government Act 1972replaced the Urban District Council of Northwich with a new district (later borough) council:Vale Royal.Vale Royal covered areas previously covered by Northwich UDC (Urban District Council), Northwich RDC (Rural District Council), Winsford UDC and parts of Runcorn RDC. Northwich Town Council now has the powers of aparish counciland is now made up of five main districts of Leftwich, Northwich, Castle, Winnington and Witton. In 2018 Northwich Town Council won 'Council of the Year' at the NALC Star Council Awards. The current Town Clerk of Northwich Town Council is Chris Shaw.

Vale Royal Borough Council was abolished on 1 April 2009, and Northwich now falls within the new unitary authority ofCheshire West and Chester.

Between 1885 and 1983 Northwich gave its name to aparliamentary constituency.Northwich was also split between the Tatton and Eddisbury constituencies until the formation ofWeaver Valefor the 1997 general election. The seat is currently held byMike Amesbury(Labour).[23]

The town coat of arms features theLatinmotto"Sal est Vita"meaning"Salt is Life",which can be seen on the town's crest of arms.[24]The town is twinned withDolein France.[25]

Geography

edit
Northwich Town Council in the former Vale Royal borough

Northwich is situated in the Cheshire Plain at coordinates h53°15′20″N2°31′20″W/ 53.25556°N 2.52222°W/53.25556; -2.52222(53.255, −2.522). The town is between 15 and 35 metres (49 and 115 ft) above mean sea level.[5]Northwich is surrounded by the followingcivil parishes,starting due north and proceeding in a clockwise direction:Anderton with Marbury,Marston,Wincham,Lostock Gralam,Rudheath,Davenham,Hartford,Weaverham,Barnton.

Two rivers meet in the town centre, theWeaverand theDane.The town is surrounded by undulatingpasture.Subsidence and the collapse of underground saltworks has createdflashes[26]and there are also localmeres– for example, to the north isBudworth Mereand to the north-east isPick Mere.[5]

Climate data for Winnington, Cheshire elevation: 20 m (66 ft), 1959–1976
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 6.9
(44.4) 		7.4
(45.3) 		9.6
(49.3) 		12.5
(54.5) 		16.2
(61.2) 		19.7
(67.5) 		20.3
(68.5) 		20.3
(68.5) 		17.9
(64.2) 		14.6
(58.3) 		9.8
(49.6) 		7.7
(45.9) 		13.6
(56.4)
Daily mean °C (°F) 4.4
(39.9) 		4.6
(40.3) 		6.2
(43.2) 		8.8
(47.8) 		12.1
(53.8) 		15.2
(59.4) 		16.2
(61.2) 		16.2
(61.2) 		14.0
(57.2) 		11.1
(52.0) 		6.8
(44.2) 		5.0
(41.0) 		10.0
(50.1)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 1.9
(35.4) 		1.9
(35.4) 		2.8
(37.0) 		5.0
(41.0) 		8.0
(46.4) 		10.7
(51.3) 		12.2
(54.0) 		12.1
(53.8) 		10.0
(50.0) 		7.7
(45.9) 		3.8
(38.8) 		2.3
(36.1) 		6.5
(43.8)
Averageprecipitationmm (inches) 65.6
(2.58) 		44.2
(1.74) 		45.2
(1.78) 		57.2
(2.25) 		66.4
(2.61) 		55.0
(2.17) 		73.4
(2.89) 		75.7
(2.98) 		71.0
(2.80) 		63.9
(2.52) 		78.4
(3.09) 		68.5
(2.70) 		764.5
(30.11)
Source: CEDA[27]


Demographics

edit

The population of Northwich in 1664 has been estimated as 560.[5]The population of Northwich over the last 200 years has been:

Population of Northwich since 1801[28]
Year 1801 1811 1821 1831 1841 1851 1861 1871 1881 1891 1901 1911 1921 1931 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991 2001 2011
Population 1,338 1,382 1,490 1,481 1,368 1,377 1,190 1,244 12,256 14,914 17,611 18,151 18,381 18,732 17,489 19,592 18,136 17,098 18,316 19,259 19,924
Sources:[5][29][30][31]
Northwich population

The 2011 Census shows the population of Northwich civil parish to be 19,924. This was composed of 9,878 (49.6%) males and 10,046 (50.4%) females. There were 8,808 households.[29]This makes the average household size 2.62, an increase on 2001.

The adjacent civil parishes ofAnderton with Marbury,Barnton,Davenham,Hartford,Kingsmead,Lostock Gralam,Rudheath,WeaverhamandWinchamare in part built up, giving a total population of 53,391 in 2011 considered to use the facilities of Northwich town centre.[32]

The population of Northwich is estimated at around 63,000 in 2021, The town forms part of the Cheshire West and Chester (Northwich and Winsford Locality) which has an estimated 2021 population of 107,000. Northwich and its urban area make up 63,000, Winsford makes up around 34,100 and the remaining 10,000 are the surrounding rural areas of the locality[33]

Economics

edit
The former ICI Winnington Works seen from theAnderton Boat Liftin 1992

Northwich has been described as having amarketsince at least 1535, when it was described as a market town by Leland,[5]but there is no surviving charter. The town still has a market today, which is earmarked for refurbishment as part of the Northwich Vision plans.[34]

The town's economy was dominated by the salt industry. However, a list of tolls for goods crossing over Northwich bridge in 1353 shows goods coming into the town, including a wide range of carcasses, fleeces, hides and skins, cloth, fish, alcoholic drinks, dairy products, building materials, household goods, metals and glass, and millstones. This indicates a much wider economic base to medieval Northwich than just the salt trade.[5]Documentary evidence also exists for amillfrom 1332 onwards and there is evidence for more than one mill from 1343.[5]

Allied to the extraction of salt was a bulk chemical industry, which became concentrated at the threeICIsites at Winnington, Wallerscote and Lostock. The first industrially practical method for producingpolythenewas accidentally discovered at theWinnington Laboratoryin 1933.[35]

BakersFrank Roberts & Sonshave been associated with the town since 1887 and continues to be based near the town atRudheathon theA556.Two of Frank Roberts & Sons's three main business divisions, Roberts Bakery and The Little Treats Co, are based in Northwich and Aldred's The Bakers, is in Ilkeston, Derbyshire.[36]

There are many contemporary major employers in nearbyRudheathandHartford.

Based on the 2001 Census, Northwich had 13,928 people aged between 16 and 74. Of these, 8,908 (64.0%) people were categorised as economically active; 4,268 (30.6%) were economically inactive; 455 (3.3%) were unemployed.[37]

Culture and community

edit

The town hosts a number of large annual events including a music festival, a river festival and a Pina Colada festival.

Over theAugust Bank Holidayweekend, Northwich Festival is held at Moss Farm Sports Complex, featuring four days of music and sport.

Since 2021, an annual Piña Colada Festival has taken place in recognition ofRupert Holmeswho was born in the town and wrote "Escape (The Piña Colada Song)",released in 1979. The festival grew in 2022, with live music, fairground rides and old school street games among other attractions. Local bars, restaurants and cafés offered piña coladas alongside other tropical themed drinks and snacks.[38]

Northwich Memorial Hallwas opened in 1960 but closed for redevelopment in 2013, to be replaced by the Memorial Court Facility, opened in 2015. It hosted a range of activities,[39]including pantomimes, music events and the Purple Cactus Comedy Club.[40]

TheHarlequin Theatreproduces six plays each year, and it is also the home of Northwich Folk Club (which has run continuously since 1977).[41]

The Regal cinema closed in 2007 and was demolished. A cinema in the Barons Quay development opened in 2016.[42]Northwich Plazaalso offered a wide range of music gigs and other cultural events.

Local newspaper, theNorthwich Guardian,is published byNewsquest.Radio Northwichis a popular and community focussed radio station broadcasting out of Barons Quay.

Northwich musicians includeSteve Hewitt,drummer withPlacebo,[citation needed]which provided a song for the soundtrack to the filmCruel Intentions,andTim Burgessfromthe Charlatans,a band once managed by Steve Harrison from the town's much missed Omega Music record store.

Local horror author Stuart Neild's first novel,A Haunted Man,was set in the salt mines that run underneath Northwich, combining fact with supernatural fiction. Neild's novels featuring Northwich and otherNorth Westlocations. AHollywoodfilm and television series was in development.[43]

Media

edit

Local news and television programmes are provided byBBC North WestandITV Granada.Television signals are received from theWinter HillTV transmitter.[44]The town is served by bothBBC Radio MerseysideandBBC Radio Stoke.Other radio stations includeCapital North West & Wales,Heart North West,Smooth North West,Greatest Hits Radio Staffordshire & Cheshire,Silk Radio,[45]and Radio Northwich, a community based local station.[46]The local newspaper is theNorthwich Guardianwhich publishes on Wednesdays.[47]

Sport

edit

Northwich is the home of threenon-league footballteams:Witton Albion,Northwich Victoriaand1874 Northwich.In May 2018 theCheshire FAannounced plans for a £70m development near Northwich, modelled onSt George's Park National Football Centre.[48]The facility would include two FIFA-standard pitches with a 1000-seat stadium,3G pitches,six grass pitches, full medical facilities and a hotel/spa.[49]

The town has two rugby union sidesNorthwich RUFCandWinnington Park.

The area also boasts several amateur cricket clubs, including Winnington Park CC, Davenham CC, Weaverham CC, Northwich CC and Hartford CC. Northwich also has a successful competitive swim team – Northwich Swimming Club, first formed in the late 19th century.

Northwich Rowing Club was formed in 1875 in Northwich and continues to row on the River Weaver, producing Olympic and international rowers such asMatt Langridge.The club has its own boat and clubhouse located by The Crescent and holds three events every year, the Autumn Head in November, the Spring Head in April and the Regatta in May. In 2015 the club was the first rowing club from the north of England to win the Junior CoxedQuad Scullsat theHead of the River Fourson the tideway in London. Club crews have also competed in theHenley Royal Regatta,with a crew seeded in 2015 for the first time in the club's history. The club also has a large junior section taking rowers on from age 12.[50]

The Northwich Festival, held at Moss Farm Sports Complex each August includes the UK Strongman-North Competition.[51]

The town also has a long-standing cycling club, Weaver Valley CC. Established in 1962, its members included ex-pro and ITV commentatorPaul Sherwenand domestic rider Alan Kemp. The club competes in road racing, time trials, track racing and off-road. The club promotes three road races, a series of circuit races in June atOulton Park,theCat and Fiddlehill climb, and cyclo-cross in September.[52]Since 1980, the club has promoted the Cheshire Classic women's cycling road race, held every April. Part ofBritish Cycling's National Road Race Series, it is the longest running race on the women's national calendar. Previous winners include Dame Sarah Storey, Lucy Garner, Lizzie Armitstead, Nicole Cooke and Mandy Jones.[53]

The first known swimming baths in Northwich was the Verdin Baths, situated on Verdin Park, presented byRobert Verdinin commemoration of the Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. It consisted of a 60-by-20-foot (18.3 m × 6.1 m) cast-iron plunge bath and five slipper baths. Northwich Public Baths was built in 1913 following subsidence at Verdin Park pool. It its doors on 23 January 1991[54]to be replaced with Moss Farm leisure complex, which in turn was replaced by Memorial Court entertainment and leisure venue in 2015.[55]

Landmarks and religious sites

edit
St Helen Witton Church, Northwich

The parish church is known asSt. Helen's Witton.It is aGrade IListed Building. The church initially developed as achapel of easeassociated with the parish ofGreat Budworthto serve the local community, known as the Chapel of Witton. There is no known date for the creation of this chapel, but it is thought to have existed in the 13th century. None of this building exists in the current church. There is no documentary evidence to indicate the dates of the older parts of the current building. However, stones in the fabric of the porch carry inscriptions attributed to "Ricardus Alkoke Capellanus". This name matches documents concerning land in Northwich andLostock Gralamdated 1468, but this cannot be used to date the church accurately.[56]

It was not until 7 August 1900 that the parish of Witton (otherwise Northwich) was formed from parts ofGreat Budworth,Davenhamand other surrounding parishes.

The presentSt Wilfrid's (Roman Catholic)church was built in 1866. The currentNorthwich Methodist Chapelwas opened in 1990, but there has been a Methodist presence in the town at least since 1774, whenJohn Wesleylaid the foundation stone of the first chapel in the London Road area.

The Northwich Union Workhouse opened in 1837 following thePoor LawAmendment of 1834 that standardised the system of poor relief throughout Britain. The building is now theWeaver Hall Museum.

Town Bridge

TheDock Road Edwardian Pumping Stationis aGrade IIListed Building originally built by Northwich Urban District Council in 1913. For over 60 years it was used for pumping sewage from parts of Northwich to the Wallerscote Treatment Works. Before it was built, untreated sewage was discharged directly into the River Weaver, causing widespread pollution.

Twoswing bridges,Hayhurst Bridge built in 1898, and Town Bridge built in 1899, cross the Weaver at Northwich. The bridges were the first two electrically powered swing bridges in Great Britain[57]and were built on floatingpontoonsto counteract the mine subsidence. They were designed by ColonelJohn Saner.

The Floatel Northwich was moored on the Weaver near the confluence of the two rivers, but was closed when the owners,The Real Hotel Company plc,went into administration in January 2009.[58]It has since been removed. It was the UK's only floating hotel.

Transport

edit
Anderton Boat Lift

The key historical mode of transport is water. By 1732 the River Weaver was improved from Frodsham Bridge to Winsford Bridge and eventually allowed vessels up to 160 tonnes (160,000 kg) to travel up to Northwich Bridge.[5]TheTrent and Mersey Canal,opened in 1775, passed to the north of Northwich because of objections from the trustees of the Weaver Navigation. However, the canal passed salt deposits near the village ofMarston,and many of the later salt mines were based along its banks including theLion Salt Works.TheAnderton Boat Liftwas opened in 1875[59]to connect the canal and river systems. It was fully restored in 2002 and now houses a visitor centre.[59]

The road system around Northwich can be dated back to the Roman times. TheA556andA559follow the route of the Roman road that runs from Chester to York.[5]The A556 diverts away from the route of the Roman road following a new route to the south of the town acting as the town's bypass. The Chester to Manchester road became aTurnpikein 1769.[5]TheA530,known as King Street, also passes near to the town, and this follows the route of the Roman road that connected Warrington and Middlewich. The old route to Warrington and the north from Middlewich, however, was replaced by a new route through Knutsford, which became a turnpike in 1753.[5]Northwich is connected to the motorway network to the north of the town via the A559 onto theM56 motorway;and to the east of the town via the A556 at Junction 19 of theM6 motorway.

The railway came to the town in 1863 when theCheshire Midland Railwayconstructed its line fromKnutsford.TheWest Cheshire Railwaybuilt its line toHelsbyin 1869. Passenger trains from Northwich to Chester viaDelamerecommenced in 1875. The route through Northwich is now marketed as theMid-Cheshire line.[60]Northwich railway station,last rebuilt in 1897,[5]is on the line fromChestertoManchester Piccadilly.There are also stations within close vicinity atGreenbank,also on the Mid-Cheshire line, andHartford(on theWest Coast Main Line).

There are bus routes between Northwich and a number of local towns, and villages including Weaverham,Hartford,Crewe, Warrington, Kelsall and Chester.[61]

Family run coach company, Walker's Coaches, was based in Anderton, before being taken over by Holmeswood Coaches;[62]who still run the Northwich depot.

Education

edit
Sir John Deane's College

Northwich and its surroundings has a number of schools and colleges.Sir John Deane's Collegeis now asixth form college,but was originally formed as a grammar school in 1557.[63]The school was originally known as Witton Grammar School and was erected close toWitton Chapel.The school moved to its current location, to the south of the town, in 1907–08.[5]The Grange School, Northwichis an independent school. Primary education include:

  • The Grange Junior School
  • Witton Church Walk CofE Primary School
  • Victoria Road Primary School
  • Charles Darwin Community Primary School
  • Winnington Park Community Primary and Nursery School
  • St Wilfrid's Catholic Primary School
  • Hartford Manor Primary School
  • Hartford County Primary School
  • Kingsmead Primary School was shortlisted for the Prime Minister's Better Public Building award in 2005.[64]
  • Rosebank School is a school forautisticchildren aged 3–11 years.

During the 19th century many new schools were founded and by 1850 twelve "academies" were recorded in the area.[5]The town is now served byCounty High School Leftwich,a specialist media arts college, whileRudheath Senior Academy,[65]a specialist performing arts college andHartford High School[66]both admit pupils from Northwich. There are also several primary schools in the area.St. Nicholas Catholic High Schoolis also in the local vicinity, and performs well on national exam boards, coming second in the whole ofCheshire.

Mid Cheshire College had its main campus in nearbyHartford,offeringfurther educationcourses. The campus closed in 2018[67]after it merged with Warrington Collegiate a year earlier to formWarrington and Vale Royal College[68]

In November 2005, as part of the Northwich Vision, a refurbishment of the town's railway station included a Centre calledZonethat promotes lifelong learning by offering people the opportunity to access a range of online and taught courses.[69]

Notable people

edit
Industry
John Brunner, 1885
Creative arts
Jennifer Saunders, 2014
Tim Burgess, 2014
  • Alethea Lewis(1749 at Acton - 1827) an English novelist, she centred on profound Christianity and virtue.
  • Bob Crossley(1912 in Northwich – 2010) an abstract artist who worked in oil and acrylic and lived in Cornwall from 1959
  • Percy M. Young(1912 in Northwich – 2004) a British musicologist, editor, organist, composer, conductor and teacher
  • Peter Gammond(born 1925 in Northwich) a British music critic, writer, journalist, musician, poet, and artist.
  • Robert Westall(1929–1993) the children's author lived in the town and taught atSir John Deane's Grammar School.[71]
  • Sue Birtwistle(born 1945 in Northwich) a producer and writer of television drama[72]
  • Rupert Holmes(born 1947 in Northwich) composer, songwriter and author, now lives in New York
  • Malcolm Garrett(born 1956 in Northwich) a British graphic designer
  • Jennifer Saunders(born 1958) actress and comedian, attendedNorthwich Girls' Grammar School
  • Jim Tavaré(born 1963) an English stand-up comedian, actor, and musician. He attended art school in Northwich.
  • Moira Buffini(born 1965) an English dramatist, director, and actor.
  • Tim Burgess(born 1967) an English singer-songwriter and lead singer of the alternative rock bandThe Charlatans
  • Cathie Pilkington(born 1968) is a British sculptor, she attended the North Chester College of Art in Northwich
  • Steve Hewitt(born 1971 in Northwich) an English musician, singer-songwriter, record producer and former drummer for the bandPlacebo,1996–2007
  • Helsinki Seven(formed 2006) are an alternative rock band from Northwich,
  • Addictive(formed 2008) an English musical duo based in Northwich consists of Louise Bagan and Aisha Stuart
Politics
Diana Johnson, 2012
Sport
Charles James Hughes, 1907
Mark Roberts, 2009
Other
  • Eaton Hodgkinson(1789 in Anderton – 1861) an English engineer, a pioneer of the application of mathematics to problems of structural design.
  • William Allen Whitworth(1840–1905) was an English mathematician and a priest in the Church of England, schooled at the Sandicroft School in Northwich.[75]
  • Harold Drinkwater(1855-1925) physician and botanical artist, born and raised in Northwich
  • Geoffrey Cheshire(1886 in Northwich – 1978) an English barrister, scholar and influential writer on law
  • Arthur Dodd(1919 in Northwich – 2011) served in the British Army during WWII and was a Prisoner of War at Auschwitz
  • Mary-Ann Ochota(born 1981 in Northwich) a British broadcaster and anthropologist specialising in archaeology, social history and adventure factual television

Twin town

edit

Northwich istwinnedwith:

See also

edit

Market Fire

References

edit
  1. ^"Northwich (Parish, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location".
  2. ^"2021 Census results: Overview Profile: Northwich Town Council"; downloaded from.gov.uk/find_out_more/datasets_and_statistics/statistics/census_2011/population_profiles Cheshire West and Chester: Population Profiles,16 May 2019
  3. ^UK Census(2011)."Local Area Report – Northwich Built-up area (E34004756)".Nomis.Office for National Statistics.Retrieved16 January2020.
  4. ^"Northwich Neighbourhood Plan 2017–2030: Referendum Version".Northwich Town Council/Cheshire West and Chester. March 2018. p. 14.Retrieved3 May2019.
  5. ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuShaw, Mike; Clark, Jo."Cheshire Historic Towns Survey: Northwich: Archaeological Assessment"(PDF).Cheshire County Council.Retrieved1 May2008.[dead link‍]
  6. ^ab"Condate".Roman-Britain.co.uk website.
  7. ^"History: Romans".The Salt Manufacturers Association.Archived fromthe originalon 20 September 2008.Retrieved3 September2008.
  8. ^Taylor, Isaac (1864).Words and Places, Or, Etymological Illustrations of History, Ethnology, and Geography.Macmillan. p.578.
  9. ^Ellis, Henry (1833).A General Introduction to Domesday Book.G. Eyre & A. Spottiswoode. p. 543.Retrieved2 September2008.
  10. ^"Cheshire Townships, Cities & Major Villages".Manchester UK website.Archived from the original on 12 June 2008.Retrieved2 September2008.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  11. ^Crossley, Fred H. (1949).Cheshire.
  12. ^abcd"History of the Northwich Woodlands".Northwich Community Woodlands website.Archived fromthe originalon 6 January 2009.Retrieved4 September2008.
  13. ^"Northwich Woodlands"(PDF).Cheshire County Council website.Retrieved4 September2008.[dead link‍]
  14. ^"History of Brunner Mond".Brunner Mond website.Retrieved2 September2008.
  15. ^"£28 million funding approved for Northwich salt mines".English Partnerships website.Archived fromthe originalon 9 June 2007.Retrieved5 December2006.
  16. ^"Land Stabilisation Programme".English Partnership website.Archived fromthe originalon 17 September 2008.Retrieved4 September2008.
  17. ^"Northwich's Salt Mines Have Been Stabilised".Northwich Vision website.Retrieved4 September2008.[permanent dead link‍]
  18. ^"Baron's Quay".Leasing agent's website.Retrieved19 January2023.
  19. ^"Crews tackle fire at Northwich Outdoor Market".BBC. 3 January 2020.Retrieved6 January2020.
  20. ^abKelly's Directory of Cheshire(1896), p.409
  21. ^Ordnance Survey(1875). Cheshire Sheet XXXIV (SW), 1st edition
  22. ^Vision of Britain. Northwich U.D..Retrieved on 24 December 2008
  23. ^"Labour gains Cheshire target seats".Bbc.co.uk.9 June 2017.Retrieved21 September2018.
  24. ^"Northwich Town Council".ChivalricHeraldry.co.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 9 April 2007.Retrieved2 September2008.Retrieved on 2 September 2008.
  25. ^Vale Royal Borough Council."Twinning – twin town information".ValeRoyal.gov.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 21 November 2008.Retrieved on 2 September 2008.
  26. ^"Flash"(2nd ed.).OED.1989.Retrieved12 February2012.'A pool, a marshy place': also later (1883),'Flash (Cheshire), a subsidence of the surface due to the working of rock salt and pumping of brine.'
  27. ^http://dap.ceda.ac.uk/badc/ukmo-midas-open/data/uk-daily-temperature-obs/dataset-version-201901/
  28. ^The totals shown are for Northwich township (1801–1871), Northwich Local Board (1881–1891), Northwich Urban District (1901–1971), and Northwich Civil Parish (1981–2001). There were changes to the boundaries of these areas in 1873, 1936 and 1955, which affected the subsequent census figures
  29. ^ab"Parish Headcounts: Northwich CP".National Statistics website.Archived fromthe originalon 28 August 2007.Retrieved5 December2006.
  30. ^"Cheshire Parishes: Northwich".GENUKI website.Retrieved31 August2008.
  31. ^"Key Figures for 2011 CensusKey Figures for 2011 Census".Archived fromthe originalon 2 April 2015.Retrieved12 June2014.
  32. ^"Northwich Neighbourhood Plan 2017–2030: Referendum Version".Northwich Town Council/Cheshire West and Chester. March 2018. pp. 16, 19.Retrieved3 May2019.
  33. ^"Locality dashboard".Cheshire West and Chester.Retrieved15 June2021.
  34. ^"Development Areas".Northwich Vision website.Archived fromthe originalon 21 November 2008.Retrieved2 September2008.
  35. ^"Winnington history in the making".This is Cheshire.Archived fromthe originalon 21 January 2010.Retrieved5 December2006.
  36. ^"Welcome to Frank Roberts & Sons Ltd".Frank-roberts.co.uk.12 February 2018.Retrieved21 September2018.
  37. ^"Parish Profile – Work and Qualifications: Northwich CP".National Statistics website.Archived fromthe originalon 28 August 2007.Retrieved9 January2007.
  38. ^"Northwich Pina Colada Festival | The UK's Official Pina Colada Festival".Retrieved8 September2022.
  39. ^"Northwich Memorial Hall".Vale Royal Borough Council website.Archived fromthe originalon 11 May 2008.Retrieved28 August2008.
  40. ^Goodban, Dave (10 March 2009).Purple Cactus Comedy Club makes a welcome return to Northwich.The Mid Cheshire Chronicle.Retrieved4 May2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  41. ^"Home".Northwichfolk.co.uk.Retrieved21 September2018.
  42. ^Phil McCann (15 December 2016)."Barons Quay: Northwich cinema opens in £80m regeneration scheme".BBC.Retrieved16 December2016.
  43. ^"Once upon a time in the Midlands".BBC Website.Retrieved5 December2006.
  44. ^"Full Freeview on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter".UK Free TV. May 2004.Retrieved22 December2023.
  45. ^"Radio Stations".Cheshire West and Chester Council.Retrieved22 December2023.
  46. ^"Radio Northwich".Retrieved22 December2023.
  47. ^"Northwich, Winsford & Middlewich Guardian".British Papers.30 March 2014.Retrieved22 December2023.
  48. ^Stone, Simon (15 May 2018)."Cheshire FA: Everton Ladies may use proposed £70m hub".BBC Sport.
  49. ^"Vision 2020 - Building football for the future in Cheshire".Cheshire FA. 15 May 2018.
  50. ^"Northwich Rowing Club".Northwich Rowing Club.Retrieved27 December2016.
  51. ^"UK Strongman North".UK Strongman North website.Archived fromthe originalon 11 September 2009.Retrieved6 September2009.
  52. ^"Weaver Valley CC".Weaver Valley CC.Retrieved27 December2016.
  53. ^"Cheshire Classic".Cheshire Classic website.Archived fromthe originalon 21 January 2013.Retrieved5 January2013.
  54. ^"Verdin Baths, 1887-1911".Archive of Northwich Brine Baths.Archived fromthe originalon 26 August 2009.Retrieved27 December2016.
  55. ^"Cheshire Classic".Northwich Guardian.5 March 2015.Retrieved8 November2019.
  56. ^Harries, Michael & Lynch, Colin –An Illustrated History of Northwich Parish & Church,1981,ISBN0-9507648-0-9
  57. ^"Hayhurst Bridge Project Is First Step In Ambitious Vision".British Waterways.Archived fromthe originalon 12 August 2007.Retrieved1 April2008.
  58. ^"Floatel".Northwich Guardian. 28 January 2009.Retrieved13 June2009.
  59. ^ab"Anderton Boat Lift".Anderton Boat Lift website.Retrieved3 September2008.
  60. ^Griffiths, R.P. (1947).The Cheshire Lines Railway.Oakwood Press.
  61. ^"Cheshire County Council Bus Map"(PDF).Cheshire County Council.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 29 September 2007.
  62. ^"About".
  63. ^Carlisle, Nicholas (1818).A Concise Description of the Endowed Grammar Schools in England and Wales.London: Baldwin, Cradock and Joy. pp. 129–136.
  64. ^"Kingsmead primary school, Northwich, Cheshire".Better Public Building. Archived fromthe originalon 18 February 2009.Retrieved4 September2010.
  65. ^"Rudheath High School catchment area".Maps.cheshire.gov.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 6 April 2012.Retrieved10 February2009.
  66. ^"Hartford High School catchment area".Maps.cheshire.gov.uk.Archived fromthe originalon 6 April 2012.Retrieved10 February2009.
  67. ^"Challenge to plans to knock down £7.5m sports hall which opened just seven years ago".cheshire-live.co.uk.31 August 2019.
  68. ^"Warrington Collegiate and Mid Cheshire College have now merged to become Warrington & Vale Royal College".Warrington and Vale Royal College.2 August 2017.Retrieved6 March2018.
  69. ^"Get On Board With Lifelong Learning".Northwich Vision website.Retrieved2 September2008.[permanent dead link‍]
  70. ^Koss, Stephen E.(1970).Sir John Brunner: Radical Plutocrat 1842–1919.Cambridge University Press. pp.28–29.ISBN0-521-07906-3.
  71. ^"Robert Westall: From art tutor to world famous author".This is Cheshire.Retrieved14 March2008.
  72. ^"Talented trio awarded honorary doctorates".University of Chester.10 March 2008. Archived fromthe originalon 26 October 2008.Retrieved2 September2008.
  73. ^"John Greenway biography".The Guardian.London. Archived fromthe originalon 16 December 2004.Retrieved2 September2008.
  74. ^"Is there an Old Wittonian Society?".Archived fromthe originalon 30 March 2012.Retrieved18 August2011.
  75. ^Owen, D. J. (1912)."Whitworth, William Allen".Dictionary of National Biography(2nd supplement).Vol. 3. pp. 655–656.
edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related toNorthwich.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide forNorthwich.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Northwich&oldid=1256329954"