History of Oldham facts for kids
The history of Oldham is a story of amazing change! It went from being a small, quiet village in the Pennines mountains to a huge mill town and a world leader in making textiles. Oldham's past includes making hats, coal mining, building structures, making machines, and especially spinning cotton. It was once known as the "cotton spinning capital of the world."
Oldham has been called the "most amazing" mill town in Lancashire. It grew the fastest from very small beginnings to become a global leader in cotton spinning.
Since the mid-1900s, Oldham's textile industry has mostly disappeared. The town has also seen new cultures and religions join its community. When the textile factories closed, Oldham faced tough times. One writer said that "when the fall finally came, it was the town that crashed the hardest."
Contents
Oldham's Early Days
The very first signs of people living in what is now Oldham go back a long, long time – about 7,000 to 10,000 years ago! Scientists found ancient flint arrowheads and tools in areas like Werneth. Later, there's proof of Roman and Celtic people, with an old Roman road and Bronze Age items found around the town. Even though Anglo-Saxons were in the area centuries before, Oldham as a named place probably started in 865. That's when Danish invaders set up a settlement they called Aldehulme.
Oldham isn't mentioned in the famous Domesday Book, which was a big survey of England in 1086. During the Middle Ages (from its start in the 800s until the Industrial Revolution), Oldham was likely just a few small settlements scattered across the moorland. These places were connected by dirt paths that went between Manchester and York. However, Oldham does appear in old legal papers from this time. These papers show it was land owned by smaller ruling families and barons. In the 1200s, Oldham was a manor owned by a family called Oldham, who lived at Werneth Hall. This family might have included Hugh Oldham, who was a very important person for education in England.
The Industrial Revolution and Cotton
A huge part of Oldham's history is about making textiles during the Industrial Revolution. People say that "if ever the Industrial Revolution placed a town firmly and squarely on the map of the world, that town is Oldham." The soil in Oldham wasn't good for growing crops. So, for many years before factories arrived, the land was used for raising sheep. These sheep provided wool for people to weave cloth at home. In the 1600s, many people in Oldham made cloth and linen in their homes. But it wasn't until the late 1700s that Oldham changed from a town where people worked at home to a huge industrial city filled with textile factories.
Oldham's weather, ground, and landscape made things difficult for people. It's about 700 feet (213 meters) above sea level, with no big rivers or obvious natural resources. This meant Oldham wasn't as good a place for early investors as other towns. So, Oldham didn't play a part in the very first stages of the Industrial Revolution. However, it later became a clear choice for factories because it was conveniently located between the workers of Manchester and southwest Yorkshire. Cotton spinning and milling came to Oldham when its first mill, Lees Hall, was built around 1778. This was the start of a fast process that changed the town and its people. Within a year, 11 more mills were built. By 1818, there were 19 mills. The first steam engine in Oldham started working in 1794. Oldham's small population grew a lot as workers moved in from nearby villages. The population went from just over 12,000 in 1801 to 137,000 in 1901! This fast growth meant Oldham, which didn't have much history before, was basically born as a factory town.
Oldham became the world's main center for cotton spinning in the second half of the 1800s. In 1851, more than 30% of Oldham's people worked in textiles, compared to only 5% across Great Britain. Oldham became more important than big cities like Manchester and Bolton because of a huge mill-building boom in the 1860s and 1870s. During this time, Oldham became the most productive cotton-spinning town in the world. By 1911, Oldham had 16.4 million spindles (machines that spin cotton). To compare, the whole United Kingdom had 58 million, and the world had 143.5 million! In 1928, Elk Mill was built – it was the UK's largest textile factory – and Oldham reached its peak in manufacturing. At its busiest, there were over 360 mills, working day and night.
Oldham suffered greatly during the Lancashire Cotton Famine from 1861 to 1865. This happened when cotton supplies from the United States were cut off. Because Oldham relied completely on the textile industry, the cotton famine caused many people to lose their jobs. By 1863, a committee was formed. With help from the government, land was bought to hire local cotton workers to build Alexandra Park. This park opened on August 28, 1865. People said Oldham relied too much on textiles. As cheaper foreign yarns were imported in the 1900s, Oldham's economy went into a decline. However, Oldham was still the biggest center for cotton spinning until 1964. Even with efforts to make production better, the last cotton was spun in Oldham at Elk Mill in 1998.
Engineering and Machines
Because of its successful textile industry, Oldham also developed big structural and mechanical engineering businesses in the 1700s and 1800s. Making spinning and weaving machines in Oldham became very important in the late 1800s, making it a leading center for engineering. The Platt Brothers started in a nearby village called Dobcross but moved to Oldham. They were pioneers in cotton-spinning machines, creating new products that allowed cotton yarn to be made in huge amounts. Platt Brothers became the biggest textile machine makers in the world, employing over 15,000 people in the 1890s. This was twice as many as their closest competitors! They invested a lot in the local area and, at one point, supported 42% of the population. Their main factory was the New Hartford Works in Werneth, a massive group of buildings with its own internal railways, overlooking Manchester. The main building is still there today. Platts won important awards from all over the world and were very involved in local politics and pride in Oldham.
Abraham Henthorn Stott, born in nearby Shaw and Crompton in 1822, became a very important structural engineer. He started his own engineering business in Oldham in 1847. His firm became the most important mill architect company in Lancashire. His son, Philip Sydney Stott, later known as Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet, was the most famous of the Stott mill architects. He started his own company in 1883 and designed over a hundred mills in several countries. His factories, which were even better than his father's fireproof mills, helped increase the number of spindles in Oldham by 40% between 1887 and 1914.
Even though engineering related to textiles declined when the textile industry did, other engineering companies existed. One notable company was Ferranti, which made electrical and later electronic equipment, starting in 1896. Today, parts of their original factory in Hollinwood are still used by other companies, like Siemens.
Coal Mining in Oldham
Along with the Industrial Revolution, Oldham also developed a large coal mining industry. This was mainly to support the local cotton factories and the people living in the town. However, there's proof of small-scale coal mining in the area as early as the 1500s. The Oldham Coalfield stretched from Royton in the north to Bardsley in the south. It also included the towns of Middleton and Chadderton to the west. The Oldham Coalfield had over 150 coal mines during its recorded history.
Some old records suggest there was commercial coal mining in Oldham by 1738. But other sources say the big growth in coal mining started around 1770, when two workers from Wales, John Evans and William Jones, arrived. They saw that the demand for coal (for power and steam) would grow. So, they got the rights to mine coal in Oldham. By 1771, there were 14 coal miners. The mines were mostly southwest of the town, around Hollinwood and Werneth. They provided enough coal to help Oldham grow very quickly as a center of the cotton boom. At its peak in the mid-1800s, over 2,000 men worked in Oldham's coal mines. However, there wasn't as much coal in the town as people thought, and production started to go down even before the local spinning industry declined. Today, the only things left of the mines are old, unused shafts and boreholes.
Oldham's Social Story
Oldham's social history is full of important events, including civil disturbances related to politics. There were also events linked to the Luddite movement (people who destroyed machines), the Suffragette movement (women fighting for the right to vote), and other Labour movements from the working class. Many "friendly societies" (groups that helped members in need) were also present.
It's said that the people of Oldham became very interested in politics in the early 1800s. Movements that were seen as rebellious found support in the town. Oldham often had riots over food and jobs, especially when food was scarce or when new cotton-spinning machinery caused people to lose work. On April 20, 1812, a "large crowd of riotous individuals" forced local shops to sell food cheaply. On the same day, thousands of Luddites, many from Oldham, attacked a cotton mill in nearby Middleton. John Lees, a cotton worker, was one of the people hurt at the Peterloo Massacre in 1819, a famous protest where many were injured.
Annie Kenney, born near Springhead, worked in Oldham's cotton mills. She was a very important person in the Suffragette movement. She is known for starting more active protests when she challenged Winston Churchill. Later, she was one of the first Suffragists to be put in prison, along with Emmeline Pankhurst. The Oldham Women's Suffrage Society was started in 1910. The Chartist movement (which pushed for workers' rights) and the Co-operative movement (where people worked together to own businesses) were also very popular in Oldham.
For three days in late May 2001, Oldham was the focus of news from all over the world. After some serious race-related conflicts and long-standing tensions between local white and South Asian communities, major race riots broke out in the town. These Oldham Riots were especially intense in the Glodwick area. They were the worst racially motivated riots in the United Kingdom in 15 years, even getting more media attention than the violence in Northern Ireland for a short time. At least 20 people were hurt, including 15 police officers, and 37 people were arrested. Similar riots happened in other towns in northern England in the following days and weeks. The 2001 riots led to government and independent investigations. These investigations all agreed on the need to improve community relations and start big rebuilding projects in the town.
Oldham's Local Government
Oldham has been part of the historic county of Lancashire since the early 1100s. In 1212, it was recorded as part of the Kaskenmoor estate, which was held for King John. Oldham later became a township within the old church parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham.
In 1826, a group was set up to improve Oldham's social and economic life. The town became a parliamentary borough in 1832, meaning it could elect its own representatives to Parliament. In 1849, Oldham officially became a municipal borough, giving it Borough status in the United Kingdom. In 1850, the Borough Council took over the powers of the improvement group.
When the county of Lancashire was created in 1888, Oldham became a County Borough of Oldham. This meant it was independent and not under the control of the Lancashire County Council. Since 1961, Oldham has been twinned with Kranj in Slovenia. In 1974, Oldham's independent status was removed, and it became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham within Greater Manchester.
Population Changes in Oldham
In medieval times, Oldham had only a small number of people. But when factories arrived, many workers from villages moved to Oldham. This caused the population to jump from under 2,000 in 1714 to 12,000 in 1801, and then to 137,000 in 1901! The population grew very fast in the 1800s. After reaching its highest point of 147,483 people in 1911, the population generally went down during the 1900s.
Compared to the average population of the United Kingdom, Oldham has a higher number of people with South Asian heritage, especially those from Pakistan and Bangladesh. Because Oldham was a big industrial center with lots of jobs, it attracted workers throughout its history. People came from other parts of England, Scotland, Ireland, and even Poland. In the 1950s and 1960s, to fill job openings and help local industries, people from the wider Commonwealth of Nations were encouraged to move to Oldham and other British towns. Many came from the Caribbean and the Indian subcontinent and settled across the Oldham area. Today, Oldham has large communities with heritage from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and parts of the Caribbean. In 2001, more than one in four residents said they were from a South Asian or British Asian ethnic group.
Oldham's Political History
Industrial workers in Oldham played a big part in the fight for the right to vote for everyone. After hearing Major John Cartwright talk about changing Parliament in 1816, Joseph Healey formed a political club in the town. After the Reform Act 1832 was passed, the people of the new Oldham parliamentary borough elected two Radical candidates, William Cobbett and John Fielden.
Winston Churchill started his political career in Oldham. He didn't win his first attempt in 1899, but Churchill was elected as the Member of Parliament for the Oldham parliamentary borough constituency in the 1900 general election. He represented the Conservative Party until the 1906 general election. After he became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 1940, Churchill was made an Honorary Freeman of the Borough of Oldham on April 2, 1941.
Since 1997, Oldham has been divided into two parliamentary constituencies: Oldham East and Saddleworth and Oldham West and Royton (which includes the town center). These areas are represented by Labour Members of Parliament.
Following the Oldham Riots in 2001, Oldham West and Royton became well-known during the 2001 general election. The leader of the far-right British National Party (BNP), Nick Griffin, ran as a candidate there. Even though it was a safe seat for Labour, Griffin received over 6,500 votes (16.4% of the total). This was seen by many as a reaction to the race riots that had happened in Oldham, Burnley, and Bradford a few months earlier.
See also
- History of Manchester
- History of Lancashire
- History of England
- Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution
- List of people from Oldham
