Dolphinholme is a historic village in

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 ...

North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...

History

In the 18th and 19th centuries the village played an important part in the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

. Thomas Hinde founded a mill in Lower Dolphinholme in 1795. This worsted mill prospered and in 1811 the lower village was amongst the first in the United Kingdom to have gas lighting. The Pollution was fed away from the village underground to the mill's chimney which was located in a nearby field.

Geography

The village, designated as a historic conservation area, is split into two parts – a higher village and a lower part, called Lower Dolphinholme, situated on the

River Wyre The River Wyre is a river in Lancashire, England, United Kingdom, which flows into the Irish Sea at Fleetwood. It is approximately 28 miles (45 km) in length. The river is a County Biological Heritage Site and has a sheltered e ...

. The river is the boundary between the Lancaster and Wyre districts. Dolphinholme sits on the edge of the

Forest of Bowland The Forest of Bowland, also known as the Bowland Fells and formerly the Chase of Bowland, is an area of gritstone fells, deep valleys and peat moorland, mostly in north-east Lancashire, England, with a small part in North Yorkshire (howe ...

and is less than five miles away from Lancaster.

Transport links

It is only 2½ miles from Junction 33 of the

M6 motorway The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 and the western end of the A14 at ...

. The nearest

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

is Lancaster. There are no public transport links apart from a public school bus which comes once a day and only during term time.

Community

The village has a school (Dolphinholme Church of England Primary School), a village hall, a parish church (St Mark's C of E), a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

chapel, a pub (the Fleece Inn), a recreational ground, a tennis court and a bowling green. A Post Office visits the village hall on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 10:00am to midday. Most of the historic lower village is still intact, the remains of the mill are in what is now a private garden but the chimney is still standing, in a nearby field. A warehouse, associated with the mill has been converted into housing although it has been (somewhat confusingly) named 'The Mill'. There is a village show that takes place on the second Saturday of September each year in the village hall. It features vegetables, flowers, cooking, photography and a children's section. A village breakfast takes place in the Chapel on the second Saturday or every month (except July and August) from 8:30am to 10:30am and is open to all without booking. The Chapel also hosts a coffee morning every Tuesday from 10:00am until midday which is also open to all without booking.

External links

References