Congleton
Congleton is a market town and civil parish in the borough of Cheshire East, in Cheshire, England. The town is on the River Dane, south of Manchester and north of Stoke on Trent. At the 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a population of 30,005, while the parish had a population of 28,497.
Toponymy
The town's name is of unknown origin. The first recorded reference to it was in 1282, when it was spelt Congelton. The element Congle might relate to the old Norse kang meaning a bend, followed by the Old English element tun meaning settlement.History
The first settlements in the Congleton area were Neolithic. Stone Age and Bronze Age artefacts have been found in the town. Congleton was once thought to have been a Roman settlement, although there is no archaeological or documentary evidence to support this. Congleton became a market town after Vikings destroyed nearby Davenport.Godwin, Earl of Wessex held the town in the Saxon period. The town is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as Cogeltone: Bigot de Loges. William the Conqueror granted the whole of Cheshire to his nephew the Earl of Chester who constructed several fortifications including the town's castle in 1208. In the 13th century, Congleton belonged to the de Lacy family. Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln granted the Corporation of Congleton its first charter in 1272, enabling it to hold fairs and markets, elect a mayor and ale taster, have a merchant guild and behead known criminals.
In 1451, the River Dane flooded, destroying a number of buildings, the town's mill and a wooden bridge. The river was diverted, and the town was rebuilt on higher ground.
Congleton became known for bear-baiting and cockfighting in the 1620s, when they were popular sports. The town was unable to attract large crowds to its bear-baiting contests and lacked the money to pay for a new, more aggressive bear. A legend tells that Congleton spent the money they were going to spend on a Bible on a bear; this legend is only partly true as only part of the fund to buy a new Bible was used to buy a new bear. The legend earned Congleton the nickname Beartown. The chorus of 20th-century folk song "Congleton Bear", by folk artist John Tams, runs:
During the Civil War, former mayor and lawyer John Bradshaw became president of the court which sent Charles I to his execution in 1649. His signature as Attorney General was the first on the king's death warrant. A plaque on Bradshaw House in Lawton Street commemorates him. Almost opposite the town hall, the White Lion public house bears a blue plaque, placed by the Congleton Civic Society, which reads: "The White Lion, built 16–17th century. Said to have housed the attorney's office where John Bradshaw, regicide, served his articles."
King Edward I granted permission to build a mill. Congleton became an important centre of textile production, especially leather gloves and lace. Congleton had an early silk throwing mill, the Old Mill built by John Clayton and Nathaniel Pattison in 1753. More mills followed and cotton was also spun. The town's prosperity depended on tariffs imposed on imported silk. When tariffs were removed in the 1860s, the empty mills were converted to fustian cutting. A limited silk ribbon weaving industry survived into the 20th century, and woven labels were still produced in the 1990s. Many mills survive as industrial or residential units.
In 1881, in order to improve the water supply to the town, a pumping station was built on Forge Lane to draw water from the springs in Forge Wood and pump it up to a water tower at the top of the hill. The red and yellow brick water tower was designed by the engineer William Blackshaw. A second adjacent tower was constructed later.
Congleton Town Hall was designed in the Gothic style by Edward William Godwin. It was completed in 1866.
The current hospital in Congleton was opened by the Duke of York on 22 May 1924.
In 1920, the Marie Hall home for boys was established in West House, an 18th-century house on West Road, as a branch of the National Children’s Home. It became an approved school in 1935 and was renamed Danesford School. It was converted into a Community Home with Education in 1973, run jointly by NCH and Cheshire County Council. Danesford has since closed, and the Grade II listed buildings have been converted for residential use.
Congleton elected its first Lady Mayor in November 1945.
During the celebration marking 700 years of Congleton's Charter in 1972 Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip visited Congleton in May, this was the first visit by a reigning monarch since the visit of King George V and Queen Mary in 1913.
In 1983, Princess Michael of Kent visited Congleton.
Between 2008 and 2010 Congleton broke 3 world records.
During the celebration marking 700 years of Mayoralty in Congleton in 2018 the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall visited the town.
In 2019 the serial rapist Joseph Mccann was arrested on a country lane in Congleton after a nationwide manhunt for him.
In 2022 a celebration marked the 750th anniversary of Congleton's first charter. An ale taster was appointed as part of the celebrations.
In 2023 part of the Congleton town centre was regenerated as part of the Congleton Market Quarter project. The regenerated part of Congleton town centre is named the "Congleton Market Quarter" and opened in November 2023. Another phase of expansion for the "Congleton Market Quarter" was announced in December 2024, and was due for completion in March 2025.
On 28 September 2024 Congleton appointed its first female town crier.
Governance
There are two tiers of local government covering Congleton, at civil parish and unitary authority level: Congleton Town Council and Cheshire East Council. The town council is based at Congleton Town Hall on High Street.The Congleton parliamentary constituency is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It includes the towns of Congleton, Alsager, Holmes Chapel and Sandbach. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election. The current MP is Sarah Russell of the Labour Party, the previous incumbent was Fiona Bruce of the Conservative Party.
Administrative history
Congleton was historically one of twelve townships within the ancient parish of Astbury, and formed part of the Northwich hundred of Cheshire. From the 17th century onwards, parishes were gradually given various civil functions under the poor laws, in addition to their original ecclesiastical functions. In some cases, including Astbury, the civil functions were exercised by each township separately rather than the parish as a whole. In 1866, the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws, and so Congleton became a civil parish.The Congleton township was granted a municipal charter making it a borough by Henry de Lacy, 3rd Earl of Lincoln. The charter itself is not dated, but is generally assumed to have been issued in 1272, the same year that Lacy became Earl of Lincoln. The borough was reformed to become a municipal borough in 1836 under the Municipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country. In 1837, the government's boundary commissioners recommended that Buglawton should be brought within the borough boundaries, but their recommendations were not implemented. Buglawton was eventually absorbed into the borough in 1936.
The municipal borough of Congleton was abolished in 1974. Its area became part of a larger Congleton borough which also covered nearby towns and surrounding rural areas. No successor parish was created for the area of the old municipal borough at the time of the 1974 reforms, but a new parish of Congleton was subsequently created in 1980, with its parish council taking the name Congleton Town Council.
In 2009, Cheshire East Council was created, taking over the functions of the borough council and Cheshire County Council, which were both abolished.
Geography
Mossley is sometimes classed as the wealthier part of town. Hightown is located in Mossley. West Heath is an estate built in the early 1960s to the early 1980s. Lower Heath lies to the north of the town. There is also the town centre.
Congleton is in the valley of the River Dane. South of the town lies an expanse of green space known locally as Priesty Fields which forms a green corridor right into the heart of the town – a rare feature in English towns. Folklore says that Priesty Fields gained its name as there was no priest performing services within the town. The nearest priest was based at the nearby village of Astbury. It is told that the priest would walk along an ancient medieval pathway which ran between the fields at the Parish Church in Astbury and St Peter's Church in Congleton.
Economy
The principal industries in Congleton include the manufacture of golf balls. There are light engineering factories near the town and sand extraction occurs on the Cheshire Plain.One of the most prominent industries during the nineteenth century onwards was Berisfords Ribbons, established in 1858. It was founded by Charles Berisford and his brothers Francis and William. The brothers leased part of Victoria Mill, on Foundry Bank, owning the entire factory by 1872. By 1898, the company had offices in London, Manchester, Leeds and Bristol.
Congleton Market operates every Tuesday and Saturday from the Bridestones Centre.
Until about 2000, Super Crystalate balls, made of crystalate, were manufactured by The Composition Billiard Ball Company in Congleton. The company was then sold by its owner to Saluc S.A., the Belgian manufacturer of Aramith Balls. The name Super Crystalate was retained, but the manufacturing process was integrated into the standard process used for Aramith balls.