Rishton is a town in the

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 and covers the outlying towns of Clayton-le-Moors, Great Ha ...

district 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 Lancash ...

, England, about west of

Clayton-le-Moors Clayton-le-Moors is an industrial town in the borough of Hyndburn in the county of Lancashire, England. located two miles north of Accrington. The town has a population of 8,522 according to the 2011 census. To the west lies Rishton, to the ...

and north east of

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

. It was an

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...

from about 1894 to 1974. The population at the census of 2011 was 6,625.

History

Its name means “village (or farmstead) where rushes grow”. In late 1776, a

handloom A loom is a device used to weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the warp threads under tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of the loom and its mechanics may vary, but t ...

weavers shop in Rishton, belonging to Thomas Duxbury may have been the first place that the cotton cloth

calico Calico (; in British usage since 1505) is a heavy plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may also contain unseparated husk parts. The fabric is far coarser than muslin, but less coarse and thick than ...

was woven for sale in Great Britain. Rishton Colliery on the

Burnley Coalfield The Burnley Coalfield is the most northerly portion of the Lancashire Coalfield. Surrounding Burnley, Nelson, Blackburn and Accrington, it is separated from the larger southern part by an area of Millstone Grit that forms the Rossendale anticli ...

was begun by P.W. Pickup Ltd in late November 1884 and mining continued until 1941. A tramroad from the pit connected to a coaling wharf on the canal. The

National Coal Board The National Coal Board (NCB) was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the United Kingdom's collieries on "ve ...

used it as a pumping station from 1955 until 1970.

Governance

The two tiers of local government are

Hyndburn Borough Council Hyndburn is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. Its council is based in Accrington and covers the outlying towns of Clayton-le-Moors, Great Harwood, Oswaldtwistle and Rishton. The borough was created in 19 ...

non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of Districts of England, local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''shi ...

with

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

status) and Lancashire County Council. Prior to the creation of Hyndburn district in 1974, Rishton had been an

, with its own council. It is not within 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 below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

. Rishton currently has five elected representatives on the local authorities, all of whom are Labour: two County Councillors (Miles Parkinson and Jenny Molineux) and three Borough Councillors (Michael Miller, Jeff Scales, Kate Walsh). Rishton is represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

as part of the

constituency.

Geography

Rishton is situated in an area of low moorland north east of

and north west of Accrington. Its elevation above sea level varies from in the east, where Norden Brook flows into the

River Hyndburn The River Hyndburn is a minor river in Lancashire, England. Beginning as Woodnook Water on the slopes of Goodshaw Hill, it passes through Stone Fold, Rising Bridge and Baxenden where it is augmented by streams from Thirteen Stone Hill and conti ...

, to on Rishton Height, north west of the town.

Geology

Around 0.7 miles from the town is a former sandstone quarry, known locally as ''Star Delph Quarry''. Its use as a sandstone quarry ended in 1897. Part of the quarry contains rocks formed around 314 to 315 million years ago in the

Carboniferous period The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carbonifero ...

, These rocks contain an imprint from where the roots of a

Lepidodendron ''Lepidodendron'' is an extinct genus of primitive vascular plants belonging to the family Lepidodendraceae, part of a group of Lycopodiopsida known as scale trees or arborescent lycophytes, related to quillworts and lycopsids (club mosses). Th ...

, which are known as

Stigmaria ''Stigmaria'' is a form taxon for common fossils found in Carboniferous rocks. They represent the underground rooting structures of coal forest lycopsid trees such as '' Sigillaria'' and '' Lepidodendron''. These swamp forest trees grew to ...

. This quarry is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and so it is protected by law with those that damage the site facing fines. The exposed rock layers are Fletcher Bank Grit, this is a subgroup of the Millstone Grit.

Demography

The 2001 census recorded a population of 7,350, in 2,973 households. 97% of the population were in the

White British White British is an ethnicity classification used for the native white population identifying as English, Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Northern Irish, or British in the United Kingdom Census. In the 2011 census, the White British population ...

ethnic group. The 2011 census recorded a population of 6,625 - a decrease of 9.8% from ten years earlier. 96% of the population were in the

ethnic group. 74.8% of residents identified only as English, while 11.2% identified only as British, and 10.9% identified as British and English. A majority of residents identified as Christian (76.6%), with 16.4% identifying as irreligious, as well as small minorities of

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

(0.8%) and Buddhists (0.6%) existing in the town.

Transport

The main road through Rishton is the A678 Blackburn to Burnley Road; there is also the B6535 (formerly A6064), which connects the town to

Great Harwood Great Harwood is a town in the Hyndburn district of Lancashire, England, located north east of Blackburn and adjacent to the Ribble Valley. Great Harwood is the major conurbation of the 'Three Towns'; the three towns being Great Harwood, Clayton- ...

. The Blackburn Southern Bypass section of the

M65 motorway The M65 is a motorway in Lancashire, England. It runs from just south of Preston through the major junction of the M6 and M61 motorways, east past Darwen, Blackburn, Accrington, Burnley, Brierfield, Nelson and ends at Colne. History The ...

opened in December 1997, bypassing the A678. In the 19th century, 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 a major transport route in the area. The section of the canal through Rishton was completed in 1810. Rishton Reservoir, which provides water to the canal, was built in 1828. The

East Lancashire Railway East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway line in North West England which runs between Heywood, Greater Manchester and Rawtenstall in Lancashire. There are intermediate stations at Bury Bolton Street, , Summerseat and Ramsbottom, with ...

, which was opened in 1848, crossed the reservoir on a viaduct until 1858; it is now on an

embankment Embankment may refer to: Geology and geography * A levee, an artificial bank raised above the immediately surrounding land to redirect or prevent flooding by a river, lake or sea * Embankment (earthworks), a raised bank to carry a road, railwa ...

. Rishton railway station, south west of the town centre, is on the

East Lancashire line The East Lancashire line is a railway line in the Lancashire region of England, which runs between Preston and Colne, through Blackburn, Accrington, Burnley (Barracks and Central) and Nelson. The line formerly ran onto Skipton but this closed i ...

. As of 2018, the route is operated by Northern, and consists of one train per hour between Blackpool South and

Colne Colne () is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England. Located northeast of Nelson, north-east of Burnley, east of Preston and west of Leeds. The town should not be confused with the unrelated Colne Val ...

. Bus services are more frequent, and include the Hyndburn Circular routes and Route 152, both operated by

Blackburn Bus Company The Blackburn Bus Company operates both local and regional bus services in Greater Manchester and Lancashire, England. It is a subsidiary of Transdev Blazefield, which operates bus services across Greater Manchester, Lancashire, North Yorkshire ...

Sport

Cricket

Rishton has over the years been famous for its

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

team, based at Rishton Cricket Club. Notable professionals who have played for the club include

Viv Richards Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards (born 7 March 1952) is an Antiguan retired cricketer who represented the West Indies cricket team between 1974 and 1991. Batting generally at number three in a dominant West Indies side, Richards is widely ...

in 1987. Other former professionals include former England coach

Duncan Fletcher Duncan Andrew Gwynne Fletcher (born 27 September 1948) is a Zimbabwean cricket coach and former cricketer, who has coached the England and Indian national teams. He was England coach between 1999 and 2007, and is credited with the resurgence ...

Michael Holding Michael Anthony Holding (born 16 February 1954) is a Jamaican former cricketer and commentator who played for the West Indies cricket team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest pace bowlers in cricket history, he was nicknamed "Whispering Dea ...

(former

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

international), Aussie fast bowler

Jason Gillespie Jason Neil Gillespie (born 19 April 1975) is an Australian cricket coach and former cricketer who played all three formats of the game. A right-arm fast bowler, he was also a competent lower-order batsman whose unbeaten 201 in his last Test matc ...

, former South African cricket captain

Allan Donald Allan Anthony Donald (born 20 October 1966) is a South African former cricketer who is also the current bowling coach of Bangladesh national cricket team. Often nicknamed 'White Lightning' due to his lightning quick bowling, he is considered ...

and Sri Lankan right-handed batsman and right arm offbreak bowler Kumar Dharmasena. See Rishton Cricket Club

Football

Rishton United FC provides junior and senior football for over 20 teams for both children and adults. The football club is currently developing its own ground known as the Primtetime Project located next to the canal behind Hyndburn Academy. This will see the club have its own grass pitches and in time, clubhouse and parking. The club has teams ranging from nippers (U7s) through to U16s and men's senior teams.

Golf

Rishton Golf Club is located off Petre Crescent, and is an eleven-hole course.

Sailing

Sailing has taken place on Rishton Reservoir since the start of the 20th century
East Lancashire Sailing Club
is based at the reservoir, and is a RYA Recognised Training Centre.

Culture

Leisure and tourism

The facilities at Cutwood Park, between Blackburn Road and the reservoir include a football pitch and a children's playground.

Churches

*Rishton Christian Fellowship, Commercial Street. *Rishton

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

Church, Commercial Street *Rishton

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 ...

Church, Albert Street *St Charles Borromeo RC Church, St Charles Road *St Peter and St Paul Church ( Anglican), Blackburn Road * Primitive Methodist Church, School Street *

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelic ...

, Mary Street

Education

There are three primary schools in Rishton: St. Peter and St. Paul's Church of England Primary School, St. Charles' Roman Catholic Primary School and Rishton Methodist Primary School. There is also one high school:

The Hyndburn Academy The Hyndburn Academy, previously known as Norden High School and Sports College, is the United Learning, united learning academy school situated in the town of Rishton, Lancashire, United Kingdom. The current headteacher is Nicola Palmer, who wa ...

Notable people

Martin Dobson Martin Dobson (born 14 February 1948; Rishton) popularly known as Dobbo is a former professional footballer and England international who played as a midfielder. He was the first player to be transferred for £300,000 when Everton bought him fro ...

–

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, Lancashire, Preston, at the confluence of the River C ...

and Everton F.C. footballer *

Ernest Marsden Sir Ernest Marsden (19 February 1889 – 15 December 1970) was an English-New Zealand physicist. He is recognised internationally for his contributions to science while working under Ernest Rutherford, which led to the discovery of new theories ...

– assistant to

Ernest Rutherford Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937) was a New Zealand physicist who came to be known as the father of nuclear physics. ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' considers him to be the greatest ...

Brett Ormerod Brett Ryan Ormerod (born 18 October 1976) is an English retired professional footballer. A forward, he made 340 appearances in the Football League, including 215 for Blackpool, for whom he is the only player to have scored in all of the top four ...

– Blackpool footballer *

Hardy Falconer Parsons Hardy Falconer Parsons VC (13 June 1897 – 21 August 1917) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. ...

– winner of the Victoria Cross, *

George Tomlinson George Tomlinson (21 March 1890 – 22 September 1952) was a British Labour Party politician. Biography George Tomlinson was born at 55 Fielding Street in Rishton, Lancashire, the son of John Tomlinson, a cotton weaver, and his wife Alice, n� ...

– Education Minister to Clement Attlee's Government and MP for the

Farnworth Farnworth is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, southeast of Bolton, 4.3 miles south-west of Bury (7 km), and northwest of Manchester. Historically in Lancashire, Farnworth lies on the River Ir ...

constituency in

Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...

* Christine Walkden – gardener *

Mark Felix Mark Felix (born 17 April 1966) is a Grenadian-English strongman competitor and regular entrant to the World's Strongest Man competition. He has competed at a record 17 World's Strongest Man contests, reaching the finals three times. He is the ...

– strongman

References

External links

* {{authority control Towns in Lancashire Unparished areas in Lancashire Geography of Hyndburn