Church is a large village in

Hyndburn Hyndburn is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Accrington, the largest town, and the borough also covers the outlying ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, England, situated west of

Accrington Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...

. The village had a population of 5,186 at the 2011 census, an increase from 3,990 according to the 2001 census.

History and geography

Church was once a

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

in the ancient parish of Whalley, covering an area along the eastern side of Hyndburn Brook. Tinker Brook, up to Foxhill Bank, formed the boundary with Oswaldtwistle in the south and Bottom Syke from Dunkenhalgh, the boundary with Clayton-le-Moors to the north. This became a

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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in 1866. The parish church is the medieval Church of St James. The tower dates to the late medieval era, and was damaged by a fire in 1983. The nave was constructed in 1805. As planned, the route of the

Leeds and Liverpool Canal The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of , crossing the Pennines, and including 91 locks on the main line. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal has several small branc ...

was to continue up the valley of the River Hyndburn to serve Accrington. However, when it was extended from Enfield at the start of the 19th century, the route was altered as the Peel family's textile print works at Church was one of the largest factories in the world and used the river's water during the printing process. Building the embankment for the canal to cross the Hyndburn would have interrupted the water supply. Instead, the canal was built downstream, re-joining the original line at a right angle junction. Most of the land for the deviation had to be purchased from the Petre family of Dunkenhalgh. Although they supported the canal's construction, they requested that the towpath was made on the opposite side of the canal from the house, hoping this would prevent poachers from gaining easy access to their estate. Church is the halfway point on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The main road running through the village is the A679. The local travel links are located less than a mile from the village centre to Church and Oswaldtwistle railway station and to

Blackpool Airport Blackpool Airport is an airport on the Fylde coast of Lancashire, England, in the Borough of Fylde, just outside the Borough of Blackpool. It was formerly known as Squires Gate Airport and Blackpool International Airport. Ownership of the air ...

Governance

Prior to 1894 Church had a civil parish, and between 1894 and 1974 the area was administered by an Urban District. It has since become an unparished part of the borough of

Economy and amenities

Church is a large village with a wealth of amenities, including a supermarket, bakery, bookmaker, sports centre, a fire station and a car sales garage. Another car sales garage was closed down and demolished in 2015, making way for a restaurant. A small library was also once located in the village, but closed in 2006.

Education

Church is home to St. Nicholas C.E. Primary School.

People

* Edward Ormerod or Ormrod (1834–1894) was born in the village of Church. He was the inventor in 1867 of the patent Ormerod Butterfly Clip, which has been responsible for saving the lives of generations of coal miners. * Magdalen Nabb

References

Notes Citations

External links

The Leeds Liverpool Canal in Church
www.towpathtreks.co.uk {{authority control Villages in Lancashire Unparished areas in Lancashire Former civil parishes in Lancashire Geography of Hyndburn