Clayton-le-Moors

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Clayton-le-Moors is a town near Blackburn in Lancashire two miles north of Accrington.

It lies on the A680 road alongside the M65 motorway.

The town is locally referred to as 'Clayton'. To the west lies Rishton, to the north Great Harwood, to the east Altham and to the south, Accrington. It is thought the town developed while the stretch of Leeds-Liverpool canal that runs through it was being built. Its main thoroughfare is Whalley Road, which still has a stretch of canal workers cottages in it. Coincidentally, the half-way point of the Leeds Liverpool canal is in Clayton-le-Moors. A mural that once depicted this fact has been demolished. Other attractions in Clayton-le-Moors include Mercer Park, the grounds of Mercer House. The house was previously known as Oakenshaw cottage and it was where John Mercer lived towards the end of his life. Mercer, a self-taught chemist who was born and lived in Great Harwood and Clayton-le-Moors, invented the mercerisation process for treating cotton which is still in use today and was a pioneer in colour photography. Traditionally Clayton-le-Moors was always considered to be a town of two halves. You were either a 'top-ender' or a 'bottom-ender' - depending on which side of the Load O'Mischief pub you lived on. The two had definite opinions about each other and rarely mixed socially. There was, however, an annual football match between players from each faction held at the town's running track at Wilson's Playing Fields. The playing fields sit behind a woodland area in Whalley Road - opposite Sparth House. The ashphalt track is surrounded by several football pitches, a cricket pitch and a changing rooms complex. There is a collection of shops in and around Pickup Street and Barnes Square.

Contents 1 Sport 2 Pubs 3 Hotels 4 Famous people

[edit] Sport

Clayton Le Moors Harriers, or CLEM as they are affectionately known, is one of the largest athletic clubs in the north of England, catering for cross country, fell and road running. Founded in 1922 they welcome runners of all standards and abilities. Primary schools include the Catholic St Mary's, the Church of England's All Saints and the non-denomination Mount Pleasant.

[edit] Pubs

There are many pubs in Clayton-le-Moors: The Albion, The Volunteers Arms, The Hare and Hounds, The Hyndburn Bridge, The Royal Oak, The Forts Arms, The Wellington Hotel, The Lamb Inn, The Oddfellows Arms, The Old England Forever, The Lynwood Arms and The Conservative Club.

There were three working men's clubs, known colloquially as the top, middle and bottom clubs. The top closed down in the 1990s and the middle is no longer a working men's club, but the bottom - Park View - is still going strong.

[edit] Hotels

Hotels in Clayton-le-Moors include the Dunkenhalgh in Blackburn Road and Sparth House in Whalley Road. The Dunkenhalgh is a four-star hotel built around a 700-year-old house - the manor of Dunkenhalgh. The house was built for the Grimshaw family, who also built Clayton Manor. They lived there until around 1715 when their heirs ran out and the manor passed to the Lomaxes. The manor was recently renovated.

[edit] Famous people

Comedian Eric Morecambe, one half of the comedy double act Morecambe and Wise, once lived above a shop in Whalley Road. Alex Higgins also lived in the town after his arrival from Northern Ireland. East Lancashire had a thriving snooker scene and Higgins was keen to set up there so he could learn from some of the great players in the area. Vicky Entwistle, the actress who played the gobby factory worker Janice Battersby in Coronation Street, also has a link to Clayton-le-Moors. Her parents ran a newsagents shop close to the M65 motorway bridge in Whalley Road.