Springhead, Greater Manchester

Springhead
Springhead
	Oldham Road, Springhead
	Springhead Location within Greater Manchester
OS grid reference	SD961045
Civil parish	Saddleworth ;
Metropolitan borough	Oldham ;
Metropolitan county	Greater Manchester ;
Region	North West ;
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	OLDHAM
Postcode district	OL4
Dialling code	0161
Police	Greater Manchester
Fire	Greater Manchester
Ambulance	North West
UK Parliament	Oldham East and Saddleworth ;
	List of places UK England Greater Manchester 53°32′13″N2°03′29″W / 53.537°N 2.058°W

Last updated November 30, 2024

Springhead is a suburban area in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England.^[1]

Description

Situated near the eastern edge of the Greater Manchester Urban Area, Springhead is contiguous with the village of Lees, and with the Austerlands, Scouthead and Grotton areas of Saddleworth. It was named after Springhead House, an historical dwelling which had a freshwater spring in its grounds.

It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire. The main hub is the Post Office. There is also a community centre. Springhead Infant and Nursery School and Knowsley Junior School serve the area. The football club (Springhead A.F.C.) play in the Manchester Football League, and the cricket club, Springhead CCC, in the Greater Manchester Cricket League.

In March 2022, a petition was submitted to the parish council to construct 158 homes on the former Springhead Quarry, now a protected site for conservation.^[2]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Springhead and the neighbouring village of Grasscroft had some of the highest infection rates in Greater Manchester.^[3]

History

In 1894 Springhead became a civil parish, being from the part of Saddleworth in Quickmere Middle Division Urban District, in 1895 it became part of Saddleworth Urban District, on 1 April 1937 the parish was abolished and merged with Saddleworth.^[4] In 1931 the parish had a population of 4834.^[5]

Transport

Springhead's bus services are operated by First Greater Manchester, M Travel (Manchester) and Stagecoach Manchester.

The Grotton and Springhead railway station - nicknamed the 'Delph Donkey' due to the previous route of the passenger service ending at Delph - once served the village. Passenger service was withdrawn in 1955, and the line closed in 1963. The track has been lifted since and replaced with a bridle path which follows alongside a large length of the original railway.

Culture

In the Higher Springhead area, there is a longstanding tradition of the mayor leading the town's brass band contest on Whit Friday, wearing a ceremonial clog iron suspended on a lavatory chain and adorned with barrel-shaped dog tags engraved with the names of previous mayors. The tradition dates back to the late 1940s in the village of Austerlands.^[6]

Notable people

Judith Barker (born 1943) — television actress
Herman Hilton (1894–1947) — rugby league footballer
Annie Kenney (1879–1953) — English working-class suffragette
Thomas Steele (1891–1978) — recipient of the Victoria Cross

Related Research Articles

Saddleworth is a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It comprises several villages and hamlets as well as suburbs of Oldham on the west side of the Pennine hills.

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 243,912 in 2022, making it the sixth-largest district by population in Greater Manchester. The borough spans 142 square kilometres (55 sq mi).

Greenfield is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) east of Oldham and 13 miles (21 km) north-east of Manchester. It is located in a broad rural area at the southern edge of the South Pennines; Dovestone Reservoir, Chew Reservoir and Greenfield Reservoir lie to the east of the village in the Peak District National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delph</span> Village in Saddleworth, Greater Manchester, England

Delph is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies amongst the Pennines on the River Tame below the village of Denshaw, 4.0 miles (6.4 km) east-north-east of Oldham and 1.8 miles (2.9 km) north-north-west of Uppermill.

Uppermill is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies on the River Tame in a valley amongst the South Pennines with the Peak District National Park directly to the east, 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Oldham and 11 miles (17.7 km) northeast of Manchester. Uppermill and the neighbouring village of Dobcross have a combined population of 7,500.

Lees is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, amongst the Pennines east of the River Medlock, 1.8 miles (2.9 km) east of Oldham, and 8.2 miles (13.2 km) northeast of Manchester.

Greenfield railway station in the village of Greenfield, Greater Manchester, England, is on the Huddersfield Line 12 miles (20 km) northeast of Manchester Victoria. It is the final station in Greater Manchester before the West Yorkshire boundary. It is operated by Northern Trains although only TransPennine Express trains call at this station.

The Delph Donkey was a line of the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) in northern England, which opened in 1849 to connect Oldham, Greenfield and Delph to the main Huddersfield to Manchester line.

Austerlands is a suburban area of Saddleworth, a civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It occupies a hillside amongst the Pennines, between the villages of Lees and Scouthead. It is traversed by the A62 road.

Scouthead is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It is traversed by the A62 road, and occupies a hillside amongst the Pennines.

Whit Friday, meaning "white Friday", is the name given to the first Friday after Pentecost or Whitsun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grotton</span> Human settlement in England

Grotton is a residential area in Saddleworth, a civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. Located along the A669 road, it forms a continuous urban area with Austerlands and Springhead, which in turn link to Lees and Oldham, all of which are to Grotton's west.

Grotton and Springhead railway station served the villages of Grotton and Springhead from 1856 until 1955.

Dobcross is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It is in a valley in the South Pennines, along the course of the River Tame and the Huddersfield Narrow Canal, 4.2 miles (6.8 km) east-northeast of Oldham and 13 miles (21 km) west-southwest of Huddersfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denshaw</span> Village in Saddleworth, Greater Manchester

Denshaw is a village in the civil parish of Saddleworth in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies by the source of the River Tame, high amongst the Pennines above the village of Delph, 4.6 miles (7.4 km) northeast of Oldham,3.3 miles (5.3 km) north-northwest of Uppermill and Shaw and Crompton. It has a population of around 500.

Saddleworth is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. It lies between the town of Oldham and the Pennine hills, and it is largely rural, with agricultural land and moorland. It also includes suburban areas to the east of Oldham. The principal settlements are Austerlands, Delph, Denshaw, Diggle, Dobcross, Grasscroft, Greenfield, Grotton, Lydgate, Springhead, and Uppermill. The parish contains 385 listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, five are listed at Grade II*, the middle grade, and the others are at Grade II, the lowest grade.

References

↑ "Springhead in Greater Manchester". www.landscapebritain.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
↑ "Fresh plans for controversial quarry site and protected green space". The Oldham Times. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
↑ "The Saddleworth villages with the highest Covid rate in Greater Manchester". The Oldham Times. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
↑ "Saddleworth Registration District". UKBMD. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
↑ "Population statistics Springhead CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 8 November 2024.
↑ "The odd Saddleworth tradition making its post-pandemic return". The Oldham Times. Retrieved 2 May 2022.