{{other uses, Botany Bay (disambiguation)
Botany Bay refers to an area on the outskirts of
Chorley
Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth ca ...
alongside 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 ...
. It was instrumental in transport for
North West England
North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...
and was home to several mills during the
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...
. The earliest proof of settlements in the Botany Bay area, formerly known as Knowley Moss, date back to 1734 as shown on the map of Chorley at this time. It was not until the late 18th century that Knowley began to develop further when the site was earmarked as the main port for the Chorley area.
Canal building
During the construction of the
Lancaster Canal
The Lancaster Canal is a canal in North West England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south Cumbria (Historic counties of England, historically in Westmorland). The section around the crossing of the River ...
, Botany Bay played host to the canal workers, and it is believed the name Botany Bay originated from around this time, due to the nature of the navvies occupying the area the locals saw it as an area to be avoided, much like the penal colony at
Botany Bay
Botany Bay (Dharawal language, Dharawal: ''Kamay'') is an open oceanic embayment, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, south of the Sydney central business district. Its source is the confluence of the Georges River at Taren Point a ...
Australia.Howell. C, A. "Grove Mill, Canal Mill & Botany Bay" (The History Press:2008) By 1816 The Leeds and Liverpool Canal had come to incorporate the Lancaster Canal and by this time Botany Bay had become an important loading and unloading area due to its warehouse system and proximity to the canal.
Transport
Due to the canal Botany Bay became a hub for transport, as early as 1830 services ran from Botany Bay wharf to
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
,
Wigan
Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...
and
Liverpool
Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
as well as others. This contributed greatly to Botany Bay's importance in both the cotton trade and increasing communication in the local area.
1869 saw the opening of the
Lancashire Union Railway
The Lancashire Union Railway ran between Blackburn and St Helens in Lancashire, England. It was built primarily to carry goods between Blackburn and Garston Dock on the River Mersey, and also to serve collieries in the Wigan area. Most of th ...
which ran through Botany Bay, this was facilitated by the construction of a viaduct across the canal which was used primarily to transport coal between Wigan and
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 River Ribble, Ribble Valley, east of Preston ...
. The track was completed entirely from steel rails and cost £530,000 to construct. The railway line was also used extensively during the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
to transport wounded soldiers to Liverpool and the viaduct remained in service until 1968 when it was demolished for the construction of the
M61 motorway
The M61 is a motorway in North West England between Manchester and Preston, Lancashire, Preston, linking the M60 motorway, M60 Manchester orbital motorway with the M6 motorway, M6 motorway.
It runs from the A580 near Wardley, Greater Manchester ...