Werneth, Greater Manchester
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Werneth (; ) is an area of
Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...
,
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...
, England. The population at the 2011 census was 12,348. It is west-southwest of Oldham's commercial centre and one of its most ancient localities. It is contiguous with Westwood, Hollinwood, Hollins and
Chadderton Chadderton is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, on the River Irk and Rochdale Canal. It is located in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Oldham, south of Rochdale and north-east of Manchester. The ...
. Werneth includes Freehold between Werneth Park and Oldham's border with Chadderton at Block Lane. In 2017 more than three quarters (76.6%) of Werneth's population were members of an ethnic minority group, with the Pakistani population being largest (48.6%).


History


Etymology

The name ''Werneth'' is ancient and derives from a Brittonic personal name identical to the
Gaulish Gaulish is an extinct Celtic languages, Celtic language spoken in parts of Continental Europe before and during the period of the Roman Empire. In the narrow sense, Gaulish was the language of the Celts of Gaul (now France, Luxembourg, Belgium, ...
''Vernetum'', derived from ''*verno-'' meaning "
alder Alders are trees of the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus includes about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few species ex ...
" ( Welsh ''gwern''). The survival of place-names derived from
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...
personal names is rare in England outside
Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...
. The name is cognate with the place-names Le Vernet and Vernois in France.


Pre–Industrial Revolution

In the reign of Henry III, the manor of Oldham was held by Alwardus de Aldholme who held land in Werneth (Vernet) and lived at
Werneth Hall Werneth Hall is a Grade II* listed privately owned Jacobean manor house in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History In the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme held the manor of Oldham and land in Werneth (Vernet). In the 13th cen ...
. In the 13th century, Oldham was documented as a manor held from
The Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...
by a family surnamed
Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...
, whose seat was at
Werneth Hall Werneth Hall is a Grade II* listed privately owned Jacobean manor house in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History In the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme held the manor of Oldham and land in Werneth (Vernet). In the 13th cen ...
. Richard de Oldham was recorded as
lord of the manor Lord of the manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England and Norman England, referred to the landholder of a historical rural estate. The titles date to the English Feudalism, feudal (specifically English feudal barony, baronial) system. The ...
of Werneth/Oldham (1354). His daughter and heiress, Margery (d.1384), married John de Cudworth (d.1384), from whom descended the Cudworth family of
Werneth Hall Werneth Hall is a Grade II* listed privately owned Jacobean manor house in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History In the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme held the manor of Oldham and land in Werneth (Vernet). In the 13th cen ...
who were successive lords of the manor of Werneth/Oldham. A Member of this family was James I's Chaplain
Ralph Cudworth Ralph Cudworth (; 1617 – 26 June 1688) was an English Anglican clergyman, Christian Hebraist, classicist, theologian and philosopher, and a leading figure among the Cambridge Platonists who became 11th Regius Professor of Hebrew (Cambr ...
(father of the Cambridge Platonist philosopher
Ralph Cudworth Ralph Cudworth (; 1617 – 26 June 1688) was an English Anglican clergyman, Christian Hebraist, classicist, theologian and philosopher, and a leading figure among the Cambridge Platonists who became 11th Regius Professor of Hebrew (Cambr ...
). The Cudworths remained lords of the manor until their sale of the estate (1683) to Sir Ralph Assheton of Middleton. After several owners, the Werneth Hall estate and manor was purchased, for £30,000, by the Lees family of Oldham (1794). In the 1840s, the park of the Hall estate was separated from
Werneth Hall Werneth Hall is a Grade II* listed privately owned Jacobean manor house in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History In the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme held the manor of Oldham and land in Werneth (Vernet). In the 13th cen ...
to form what later became the public Werneth Park. The ancient manor of Werneth covered an extensive part of the township of Oldham including much of the current town centre. Surrounding areas such as Hollinwood and Hathershaw were historically described as lands lying in the southern part of Werneth. Joseph Jones (1782–1858) of Wallshaw Mill, was the first
alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...
elected for the Werneth Ward of Oldham Council. He was a
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
and was "elbowed" out in 1852 after which he retired to Severn Stoke in
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...
.


Industrial Revolution

Werneth was an
industrial district Industrial district (ID) is a place where workers and firms, specialised in a main industry and auxiliary industries, live and work. The concept was initially used by Alfred Marshall to describe some aspects of the industrial organisation of nat ...
and from the 19th century was the location of the Platt Brothers works. The engineering company made
cotton-spinning machinery Cotton-spinning machinery is machines which process (or spin) prepared cotton roving into workable yarn or thread. Such machinery can be dated back centuries. During the 18th and 19th centuries, as part of the Industrial Revolution cotton-spinnin ...
for the many mills in Oldham and south Lancashire. Platt Brothers business headquarters were close to Oldham Werneth railway station which has now closed. Prosperity in the area brought civic development and a significant part of Werneth became Oldham's "grand west end" with large mansions.. This part of Werneth is known as
Coppice Coppicing is the traditional method in woodland management of cutting down a tree to a tree stump, stump, which in many species encourages new Shoot (botany), shoots to grow from the stump or roots, thus ultimately regrowing the tree. A forest ...
.


Werneth Fire Station (1864–1987)

In 1864 at a cost of £932 Werneth's first fire engine house opened in John St. It was equipped with a nine-inch manual pump purchased from John Hall of Oldham. It was staffed by police doing auxiliary firefighter work with lamplighters or anyone available as pumpers for sixpence per hour plus liquid refreshments. In 1898 a new station opened on Manchester Rd which was built to plans by Messrs Winder and Taylor, architects of Oldham. It had "the latest improvements and conveniences of firemen’s dwellings which were a special feature at this period and every accommodation will provide for the mental and physical recreation of the men during their leisure hours." The firemen's dwellings on Frederick St remain standing. On 1 April 1948 the station become part of Oldham Fire Brigade and on 1 April 1974 became part of Greater Manchester Fire Service with a new call sign – C34. Werneth Fire station closed in 1981 and the building was demolished in 1987.


Governance

Lying within the historic county boundaries of
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 ...
since the early 12th century, Werneth was recorded in 1212 as one of five parts of the
thegn In later Anglo-Saxon England, a thegn or thane (Latin minister) was an aristocrat who ranked at the third level in lay society, below the king and ealdormen. He had to be a substantial landowner. Thanage refers to the tenure by which lands were ...
age estate of Kaskenmoor held on behalf of King John by Roger de Montbegon and William de Nevill. The other parts were Crompton, Glodwick, Oldham and
Sholver Sholver is an area of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. An elevated, residential area, it lies near the middle of the Oldham part of the valley of the River Beal, northeast of Oldham's commercial centre, nearly at the northeasternmost ex ...
. Werneth was part of the
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 ...
of Oldham, in the ancient ecclesiastical parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham, in the hundred of Salford. Werneth is also an electoral
ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
of the
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in England. It is named after its largest town, Oldham. The borough had a population of in , making it the sixth-largest district by population in Greater Manch ...
. The ward includes the neighbourhoods of Werneth Park, Freehold, Primose Bank, and parts of
Coppice Coppicing is the traditional method in woodland management of cutting down a tree to a tree stump, stump, which in many species encourages new Shoot (botany), shoots to grow from the stump or roots, thus ultimately regrowing the tree. A forest ...
and the Block Lane/ Old Lane area of Chadderton.


Geography and geology

Werneth covers about one hundred acres, and its geology consists of the coal measures of the Oldham Coalfield which were exploited by several early collieries and sandstone was quarried.


Transport

Oldham Werneth railway station on the
Oldham Loop Line The Oldham Loop Line was a suburban-line in Greater Manchester, England, used by trains that ran from Manchester Victoria to Rochdale via Oldham Mumps. Services on the line at the time of its closure were operated by Northern Rail. The line c ...
closed in 2009 when the line was converted to light rail for
Manchester Metrolink Manchester Metrolink is a tram/light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The network has List of Manchester Metrolink tram stops, 99 stops along of standard-gauge route, making it the Transport in the United Kingdom#Trams and light ra ...
and replaced by its
Oldham and Rochdale Line The Oldham and Rochdale Line (ORL) is a light rail/tram line on the Manchester Metrolink in Greater Manchester, running from North Manchester to Rochdale town centre via Oldham, reusing most of the trackbed of the former Oldham Loop Line, Oldham ...
in 2012. Westwood and Freehold tram stops provide direct tram links to Manchester and beyond and to Rochdale Railway Station and town centre. First Greater Manchester operates bus services 81 and 83 linking Werneth with
Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...
, and
Manchester city centre Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England, within the confines of Great Ancoats Street, A6042 Trinity Way, and A57(M) Mancunian Way, which collectively form an inner ring road. The City Centre ward had a ...
, via Moston and
Failsworth Failsworth is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, north-east of Manchester and south-west of Oldham. The M60 motorway, M60 ring-road motorway skirts it to the east. The population at the United Kingdom C ...
with some evening services on route 81 operated by extending to Derker. Stotts Tours (Oldham) operates bus service 396 providing links to Ashton-U-Lyne via Hathershaw and to Middleton via Chadderton town centre.


Sport

Werneth Cricket Club's facilities are at The Coppice, Chamber Road. The club was formed in 1864 and joined the Central Lancashire League in 1910. The first completed league match was won at Littleborough by two runs. Werneth became champions of the Central Lancashire League in 1939 in unprecedented circumstances. The club was awarded the title by the League committee, when a point ahead of Radcliffe in the league table, after the committee declared fixtures for the last Saturday of the season abandoned, following the declaration of war with Germany. This proved to be the one and only year the club won the League title. Notable players have included Geoff Pullar, who played for the club early in his career and went on to represent England in 28 test matches from 1959 to 1963, wicketkeeper Keith Andrew and former West Indies captain, Carl Hooper.


See also

*
Werneth Hall Werneth Hall is a Grade II* listed privately owned Jacobean manor house in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. History In the reign of Henry III, Alwardus de Aldholme held the manor of Oldham and land in Werneth (Vernet). In the 13th cen ...
* Werneth Park


References


Bibliography

* * *


External links


wernethischanging.co.uk
website about the urban renewal of Werneth. {{Portal bar , United Kingdom , Lancashire , Greater Manchester Areas of Oldham