Description
Chorley, a township, a municipal borough, a market, union, county court town, and a parish in Lancashire. The town stands on high ground near the river Yarrow, the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, and has a joint station on the L. & Y.R. and L. & N.W.R,, 9 miles SSE of Preston. It is a seat of cotton manufacture, and its environs abound in gentle eminences, and afford many charming views. The town was incorporated by royal charter in 1881, and is governed by a mayor, 8 aldermen, and 6 councillors from each of the four wards into which the town is divided. The gasworks belong to the corporation, and a good supply of water is obtained from the works of the corporation of Liverpool. There is a complete system of sewerage and house drainage, and two farms for utilisation of the sewage. The council act as burial board, and have control of the cemetery and mortuary. The town-hall, erected in 1879, is a handsome building in the Italian style. St Lawrence, or the parochial church, is an ancient building in the Perpendicular style, has a massive pinnacled tower of the time of Edward VI., contains many stained windows, and was enlarged by the addition of aisles in 1859-61. St George's Church isastructure of 1825, in pointed architecture, with pinnacled tower, built at a cost of nearly £15,000. St Peter's Church was built in 1850. St James Church was erected in 1878. There are also Baptist, Congregational, Primitive Methodist, Roman Catholic, Uni-tarian, United Free Methodist, and Wesleyan chapels, a grammar school, founded in 1611, almshouses, and other charities, a dispensary, a cottage hospital, a workhouse, and a head post office. There are numerous schools, three banks, and a savings bank, three clubhouses, a public hall, a theatre, and a co-operative hall, and two weekly papers are published. Weekly markets are held on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and fairs on 26 March, 5 May, 20 Aug., 4 Sept., and 21 Oct. There is a covered butter market. The town is a seat of petty sessions; it has also cotton factories, extensive bleaching, calico printing and dye works, brass and iron foundries, railway waggon works, &c., and it carries on much trade in connection with neighbouring mines and quarries.
The parish comprises 3614 acres; population, 23,087. Astley Hall and Gillibrand Hall are chief residences. The ecclesiastical parishes of St George, St James, and St Peter were constituted in 1835, 1879, and 1852 respectively. The mother parish, or St Lawrence, is a rectory, and St George, St James, and St Peter are vicarages in the diocese of Manchester; net value of St Lawrence, £553 with residence ; of the others, £294, £240, and £107. Patron of St Lawrence, the Bishop of Manchester; of the others, the Eector. There is also a workhouse.
Chorley Parliamentary Division of Northern Lancaster was formed under the Redistribution of Seats Act, 1885, and returns one member to the House of Commons. Population, 67,854. The division includes the following ; -Chorley or Leyland (Hundred of -Old Division) -Adlington, Anderton, Bispham, Bretherton, Brindle, Charnock Richard, Chorley, Coppull, Croston, Duxbury, Eccleston, Euxton, Heapey, Heath Charnock, Hesketh-with-Becousall, Heskin, Hoghton, Mawdesley, Parbold, Rufford, Spevington, Standish-with-Langtree, Tarleton, Ulnes Walton, Welsh Whittle, Wheelton, Whittle-le-Woods, Withnell, Worthington, Writhington ; Leyland (New Division -part of) -Leyland, Clayton-le-Woods, Cuerden.
Parish Church
