| Dunnockshaw | |
|---|---|
 Sunset at Clowbridge Reservoir | |
  Dunnockshaw Shown within Burnley Borough Show map of the Borough of Burnley | |
| Area | 1.02 sq mi (2.6 km2) [1] |
| Population | 185 (2011)[1] |
| • Density | 181/sq mi (70/km2) |
| OS grid reference | SD821280 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BURNLEY |
| Postcode district | BB11 |
| Dialling code | 01282 |
| Police | Lancashire |
| Fire | Lancashire |
| Ambulance | North West |
| UK Parliament | |
| |
Dunnockshaw orDunnockshaw and Clowbridge is acivil parish in the borough ofBurnley, inLancashire, England. The parish is situated betweenBurnley andRawtenstall. According to theUnited Kingdom Census 2011, the parish had a population of 185.[1]
It contains the hamlets of Clowbridge and Dunnockshaw, both located on theA682 road.Clowbridge Reservoir is situated in the east of parish on the boundary with Rossendale. The reservoir, operated byUnited Utilities, is used as a location forwater sports. It was built in 1866 resulting in the de-population of the village ofGambleside.
The parish adjoins the Burnley parishes ofHapton andHabergham Eaves and the Gambleside andLoveclough areas of theBorough of Rossendale.
The name Dunnockshaw probably comes from the words "dunnock", a small bird known locally as a hedge sparrow, and "shaw" (Old Englishsceaga), a small woodland or thicket.[2]
Dunnockshaw was one of the booths in theForest of Rossendale. By the 17th century it was the property of theTowneleys of Hurstwood, probably by inheritance from the Ormerod family.[3] The road that is now the A682 was built by the Burnley and Edenfield Turnpike Trust following a 1795act of Parliament, to improve transport toManchester.[4]
The three-storey Oak Mill was erected as acombined spinning and weaving mill in 1840 for a colliery owner and quarry master named Peter Pickup. Subsequently, extended, a fire in 1907 gutted much of the building and the interior was reconstructed. It has not been used by the textile industry since at least the early 1970s, whenglass fibre products began being produced here.[5]
Burnt Hills Colliery was owned by the Executors of John Hargreaves, operating from the 1840s until official closure in 1920. It worked the Upper and Lower Mountain mines[a] and in 1842 employed 20 men and boys. A surface tramroad connected to Porters Gate Colliery on the north side of the hill by about 1863. In 1880 the tramroad was extended from Porters Gate to connect to the system atHapton Valley Colliery, creating an almost 4.8-kilometre (3 mi) long route that reached theLeeds and Liverpool Canal at Gannow inBurnley. In 1892 it had two 44-metre (48 yd) shafts with a single-cylinder winding engine along with an underground engine which drove a 3.2-kilometre (2 mi) long haulage system that raised the coal through a surface drift. It is uncertain when production stopped, as after 1910 any output was recorded with Hapton Valley. The coal staithe next to Cotton Row and tramroad continued to operate for some time after 1920.[6]
Permission to construct the reservoir at Clowbridge—historically known as the Hapton Reservoir—on theLimy Water, was contained in the 1853 that act created the Haslingden and Rawtenstall Waterworks Company.[7][8] 18 months after starting construction under the supervision ofThomas Hawksley, work was suspended as the company expended all its capital. After a three-year hiatus work recommenced under the direction of Joseph Jackson, and although nearing completion in 1863, a series of landslips meant work was not completed until August 1865. The total cost was at least £46,547 (the equivalent of £5.62 million as of 2023[b]).[9] Later taken-over by theBury Corporation, in 1898 it was recorded to cover an area of 88 acres (36 ha) and have a capacity of 350 million imperial gallons (1.6 million cubic metres; 1.6 billion litres). Some of its water supply is pumped from an old mineshaft belonging to the Gambleside Colliery. At the end of the 19th century a total population of 110 lived in 22 houses within the "gathering ground" of the reservoir, with Cronkshaw Hill farmhouse located very close to the shoreline. Concerns over pollution lead to increased restrictions on farming in the area.[10]
DuringWorld War II aStarfish site bombing decoy was constructed on Hameldon hill near Heights Farm, part of a network designed to protectAccrington.[11] Its site is protected as aScheduled monument.[12]
Dunnockshaw was once atownship in the ancient parish of Whalley. This became acivil parish in 1866, forming part of theBurnley Rural District from 1894. At that time the Clowbridge area, previously part of Hapton,[c] transferred to Dunnockshaw but a detached area on Hameldon called Dunnockshaw Close moved to Hapton in 1935.[14] Since 1974 Dunnockshaw has formed part of theBorough of Burnley. Another change which took effect at the start of 1983, transferred part ofHabergham Eaves lying west of Limey Lane into this civil parish.[15]
Along with Habergham Eaves and a small part of Burnley, the parish forms the Coalclough with Deerplayward of the borough council.[16]The ward elects three councillors, currentlyGordon Birtwistle and Howard Baker of theLiberal Democrats, and Bill Brindle (Labour).[17] The parish is represented onLancashire County Council as part of the Padiham & Burnley Westdivision, represented since2017 by Alan Hosker (Conservative).[18]
The Member of Parliament forBurnley, the constituency into which the parish falls, isOliver Ryan of theLabour Party, who was first elected in2024.
According to theUnited Kingdom Census 2011, the parish has a population of 185, a decrease from 212 in the 2001 census. This represents a decline of14.6% over ten years. The parish has an area of 264 hectares (1.02 sq mi; 2.64 km2), giving a population density of 0.70 inhabitants per hectare (180/sq mi; 70/km2).[1][19]
In 2011 the average (mean) age of residents was 42.9 years, with a roughly even distribution between males and females. The racial composition was 98.9% White (all White British) with just two people of mixed ethnic groups. 67% reported their religion as Christian. 71.9% of adults between the ages of 16 and 74 were classed as economically active and in work.[1]
| Year | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1951 | 1961 | 2001 | 2011 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 518 | 517 | 489 | 429 | 331 | 309 | 212 | 185 | |||||||||||||
| [14][19][1] | |||||||||||||||||||||
Notes
Citations
Geography of theBorough of Burnley | |||||||
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