Bradshaw is a village of the

unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unpa ...

of South Turton in the

Metropolitan Borough of Bolton '')'' , image_skyline =Bolton Town Hall.jpg , imagesize = 250px , image_caption = Bolton Town Hall, the seat of Bolton Council , image_blank_emblem = Coat of arms of Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council.png , blank_emblem_type = Coat of Arms of ...

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...

, England. It gives its name to the larger Bradshaw

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to ...

, which includes Harwood.

Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

a part of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...

, Bradshaw lies on the southern edge of the

West Pennine Moors The West Pennine Moors is an area of the Pennines covering approximately of moorland and reservoirs in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The West Pennine Moors are separated from the mai ...

History

Toponymy

The

toponymy Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' ( proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

of Bradshaw is derived from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th ...

adjective ''Brad'' from which our modern word ''broad'' is evolved, and the Old English word ''sceaga'' – anglicised to ''shaw'' – a

copse Coppicing is a traditional method of woodland management which exploits the capacity of many species of trees to put out new shoots from their stump or roots if cut down. In a coppiced wood, which is called a copse, young tree stems are repeate ...

. The two elements together mean a ''broad copse''. In early deeds and documents of the 13th Century the name is spelt Bradeshaye and later Bradshaigh.

The Manor of Bradshaw

Henry Bradshaw held land in the area in 1235, and the Bradshaws were an important Lancashire family in the late 1500s and early 1600s, especially during the movement against the King before the Civil War. John Bradshaw died in 1542 holding the Manor of Bradshaw. In 1694 the

Lordship of the Manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seign ...

of Bradshaw was sold by another John Bradshaw to Henry Bradshaw of Marple Hall. The estate later descended to the Isherwood family.

Governance

Lying within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire from the 12th century until 1974, Bradshaw was a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, ...

and

chapelry A chapelry was a subdivision of an ecclesiastical parish in England and parts of Lowland Scotland up to the mid 19th century. Status It had a similar status to a township but was so named as it had a chapel of ease (chapel) which was the commu ...

of the

ancient parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...

Bolton-le-Moors Bolton le Moors (also known as Bolton le Moors St Peter) was a large civil parish and ecclesiastical parish in hundred of Salford in the historic county of Lancashire, England. It was administered from St Peter's Church, Bolton in the township ...

in the

Salford Hundred The Salford Hundred (also known as Salfordshire) was one of the subdivisions of the historic county of Lancashire, in Northern England (see: Hundred (county division). Its name alludes to its judicial centre being the township of Salford (th ...

. In 1837, Bradshaw joined with other townships and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

es in the area to form the Bolton Poor Law Union and took joint responsibility for the administration and funding of the

Poor Law In English and British history, poor relief refers to government and ecclesiastical action to relieve poverty. Over the centuries, various authorities have needed to decide whose poverty deserves relief and also who should bear the cost of he ...

and building a

workhouse In Britain, a workhouse () was an institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. (In Scotland, they were usually known as poorhouses.) The earliest known use of the term ''workhouse' ...

. In 1866, Bradshaw was given the status of a

in its own right. In 1894, Bradshaw became part of the

Bolton Rural District Bolton Rural District was a short-lived rural district in the administrative county of Lancashire. It was created by the Local Government Act 1894 and comprised an area surrounding, but not including, the County Borough of Bolton. The district ...

which took responsibility over matters such as planning, council housing, and playgrounds and cemeteries. The Rural District was dissolved in 1898 and its civil parishes were incorporated into various local authorities. As a result, Bradshaw became part of the

Turton Urban District Turton Urban District was, from 1873 to 1974, a local government district centred on the historical area of Turton in the administrative county of Lancashire, England. History Background Turton was a township and chapelry of the civil and e ...

. Under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

, Turton Urban District was abolished on 1 April 1974 and was divided between two local authorities. The northern part,

North Turton North Turton is a civil parish of the unitary authority of Blackburn with Darwen in Lancashire, England. According to the United Kingdom Census 2001 the civil parish has a population of 3,736, increasing to 3,867 at the 2011 Census. North Tu ...

, became part of the Borough of Blackburn (which changed to

Blackburn with Darwen Blackburn with Darwen is a borough and unitary authority area in Lancashire, North West England. It consists of the industrial town of Blackburn and the market town of Darwen including other villages around the two towns. Formation It was f ...

in 1997) in Lancashire, and the southern part, South Turton (including Bradshaw), became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton in Greater Manchester.

Landmarks

War Memorial, St Maxentius Church, Bradshaw - geograph

Bradshaw War Memorial is located within the grounds of St Maxentius' Churchyard. It commemorates the residents of Bradshaw who were killed in the First and

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

s. The inscription on one of the panels of the memorial reads: ''To The Glory Of God And In Memory Of The Men Of Bradshaw Who Died For Their Country In The Great War 1914–1918.'' On the base there is a further inscription for the Second World War: ''Also In Loving Remembrance Of The Men Of This Parish Who Gave Their Lives In The War Of 1939–1945.'' Other panels and the base has the names of all those killed in the two world wars. The churchyard also contains seven

war graves War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, six from the First World War and one from the Second World War.

Education

Bradshaw has two schools: St Maxentius C.of E. Primary School, New Heys Way, and

Canon Slade School ) , established = ''ante'' 1855 , closed = , type = Academy , trust = The Bishop Fraser Trust , religious_affiliation = Church of England , president = , head_label = Headteacher , head = Mrs ...

, Bradshaw Brow.

Religious sites

Bradshaw is famous for its "tower without a church and a church without a tower". This refers to St. Maxentius's Church in Bradshaw. This church was originally one of the earliest

chapels of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ease is deliberately bu ...

for Bolton Parish Church. The 16th-century tower is all that is left of the original chapel of ease. The present 1872 church building is near, but separate from the tower.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links

Virtual Drive around BradshawGENUKI - Bradshaw
Geography of the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton West Pennine Moors Areas of Greater Manchester Former civil parishes in Greater Manchester