River Bollin

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The River Bollin is a river in the north-west of England and a major tributary of the River Mersey. It is one of the most placid tributaries of the Mersey, and is not heavily polluted. The town of Macclesfield used to dispose all its waste and sewage into the Bollin. Given the steep incline that surrounds the town, with the Bollin flowing beneath, this was the natural thing to do. The profusion of human sewage in the Bollin was still around in 1850.

It rises in Macclesfield Forest at the western end of the Peak District, and can be seen in spring form, from the Buxton to Macclesfield road. The stream then descends the 10 miles through Macclesfield and Wilmslow where it has a confluence with the River Dean, near to Styal Prison. For the following 10 miles it defines the southwestern portion of the border between Greater Manchester and Cheshire before merging with the Mersey north of Lymm.It flows through the lovely Styal country park and was used in the cotton calico factory there, Quarry Bank Mill, as a source of power. This Mill is now owned by the National Trust - National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty - and Contains an important historical collection of textile machinery, much of it still operating, from the textile industry in the North West of England. The Bollin is also culverted underneath one of the runways of Manchester Airport