Oldham
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{{for|the larger local government district|Metropolitan Borough of Oldham}}
{{infobox UK place|
|country = England
|static_image= [[Image:OldhamTownCentre.jpg|240px]]
|static_image_caption=<small>Oldham Town Centre</small>
|latitude= 53.5444
|longitude= -2.1169
|official_name= Oldham
|population= 103,544 ([[United Kingdom Census 2001|2001 Census]])
|population_density= {{Pop density mi2 to km2|3998|precision=0|abbr=yes|wiki=yes}} |metropolitan_borough= [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham]]
|metropolitan_county= [[Greater Manchester]]
|region= North West England
|constituency_westminster= [[Oldham East and Saddleworth (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham East and Saddleworth]]
|constituency_westminster1= [[Oldham West and Royton (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham West and Royton]]
|post_town= OLDHAM
|postcode_district = OL1-OL2, OL4, OL8-OL9
|postcode_area= OL
|dial_code= 0161
|os_grid_reference= SD922053
|london_distance= {{convert|164|mi|km|abbr=on}} [[Boxing the compass|SSE]]
|area_total_sq_mi=25.9
}}
'''Oldham''' is a large town in [[Greater Manchester]], [[England]].<ref name="GM Gazetteer">{{cite web|author=Anon|url=http://www.gmcro.co.uk/guides/gazette/gazframe.htm|date=2003-07-31|title=A select gazetteer of local government areas, Greater Manchester County|publisher=[[Greater Manchester County Records Office]]|accessdate=2007-07-09}}</ref> It lies amongst the [[Pennines]] on elevated ground between the rivers [[River Irk|Irk]] and [[River Medlock|Medlock]], {{convert|6.9|mi|km|1|lk=on}} northeast of the city of [[Manchester]], and {{convert|5.3|mi|km|1}} south-southeast of [[Rochdale]]. Oldham is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]], of which Oldham is the administrative centre.
[[Historic counties of England|Historically]] a part of [[Lancashire]], and with little [[Early Modern Britain|early history]] to speak of, Oldham rose to prominence during the 19th century as an international centre of [[Textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution|textile manufacture]]. It was a [[boomtown]] of the [[Industrial Revolution]], and amongst the first ever [[Industrialisation|industrialised]] towns, rapidly becoming "one of the most important centres of cotton and textile industries in England".<ref>{{cite book|title=Official Handbook of Oldham|author=[[County Borough of Oldham|Oldham County Borough Council]]|date=1973|publisher=|isbn=}}</ref> At its zenith, it was the most productive [[Spinning (textiles)|cotton spinning]] [[mill town]] in the world,<ref name="Cotton Mills">{{cite book|author=Gurr & Hunt|date=1998|title=The Cotton Mills of Oldham|publisher=Oldham Education & Leisure|page=4|isbn=0-902809-46-6}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spinningtheweb.org.uk/journey.php?Title=NW+Cotton+towns+learning+journey&step=2&theme=places|title=NW Cotton Towns Learning Journey|publisher=spinningtheweb.org.uk|date=|accessdate=2007-09-14}}</ref> spinning more cotton than [[France]] and [[Germany]] combined.<ref name="Contaminated"/> Oldham's textile industry began to fall into decline during the mid-20th century, and its last mill closed in 1998.
The demise of textile processing in Oldham caused a local economic depression.<ref name="GM Evolution"/> Today, Oldham is a predominantly residential town, although it is still distinguished architecturally by the surviving [[cotton mill]]s and other buildings associated with its former industry. The town has a population of [[List of towns and cities in England by population|103,544]],<ref name="Oldham Population">{{cite web|url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/ssdataset.asp?vlnk=8271&Pos=2&ColRank=1&Rank=224|title=Key Statistics for urban areas in England and Wales|author=United Kingdom Census 2001|publisher=statistics.gov.uk|accessdate=2007-09-14|date=2001}}</ref> and an area of around {{convert|26|sqmi|km2|0}}.<ref name="County of Lanc"/> It is a centre for [[further education]], and the [[performing arts]].<ref name="Oldham Heart"/>
==History==
{{main|History of Oldham}}
===Toponymy===
The [[toponymy]] of Oldham ({{pronEng|ˈəʊldəm}}) seems to imply "old village or place" from ''Eald'' ([[Saxon language|Saxon]]) signifying oldness or antiquity, and ''Ham'' (Saxon) a house, farm or [[Hamlet (place)|hamlet]].<ref name="Oldham Sketches"/> However, Oldham is known to be a derivative of ''Aldehulme''; undoubtedly an [[Old Norse]] name.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> It is believed to be derived from the [[Old English language|Old English]] ''ald'' combined with the Old Norse ''holmi'' or ''holmr'', meaning "old promontory or outcrop", possibly describing the town's hilltop position.<ref name="Oldham 100">{{cite book|title=A Centenary History of Oldham|date=1949|publisher=[[County Borough of Oldham|Oldham County Borough Council]]|first=Hartley|last=Bateson|isbn=5-00-095162-X}}</ref> It has alternatively been suggested that it may mean "holm or hulme of a farmer named Alda".<ref name="Oldham 100"/> The name is understood to date from 865, during the period of the [[Danelaw]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
===Early history===
The earliest known evidence of a human presence in what is now Oldham is attested by the discovery of [[Neolithic]] flint arrow-heads and workings found at [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth]] and Besom Hill, implying habitation 7–10,000 years ago.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Evidence of later [[Roman Britain|Roman]] and [[Celts|Celtic]] activity is confirmed by an ancient [[Roman road]] and [[Bronze Age]] archaeological relics found at various sites within the town.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Although [[Anglo-Saxons]] occupied territory around the area centuries earlier,<ref name="Oldham 100"/><ref name="Ballard">{{cite book | last=Ballard |first=Elsie |title=A Chronicle of Crompton |publisher=Burnage Press Limited| location= [[Royton]] |date= 1986 |origyear=1967 |isbn= 5-00-096678-3 |edition= 2nd }}</ref> Oldham as a permanent, named place of dwelling, is believed to date from 865, when [[Danelaw|Danish invaders]] established a settlement called Aldehulme.<ref name="Oldham 100"/><ref name="Oldham Legion">{{cite book|title=Oldham From the XX Legion to the 20th Century|first=J.D|last=Daly|publisher=|isbn=5-00-091284-5|date=N.D.}}</ref>
From its founding in the 9th century until the [[Industrial Revolution]], Oldham is believed to have been little more than a scattering of small and insignificant settlements spread across the [[moorland]] and dirt tracks which linked [[Manchester]] to [[York]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/><ref name="GM Arch">{{cite book|author=McNeil, R. & Nevell, M|title=A Guide to the Industrial Archaeology of Greater Manchester|publisher=Association for Industrial Archaeology|date=2000|isbn=0-9528930-3-7}}</ref> Although not mentioned in the [[Domesday Book]], Oldham does appear in legal documents from the [[Middle Ages]], invariably recorded as territory under the control of minor [[Feudalism|ruling families]] and [[baron]]s.<ref name="Oldham Legion"/> In the 13th century, Oldham was documented as a manor held from [[The Crown]] by a family surnamed [[Oldham (surname)|Oldham]], whose seat was at [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth Hall]].<ref name="Oldham Sketches">{{cite book|title=Historical Sketches of Oldham|publisher=E.J. Morten|date=1981|last=Butterworth|first=Edwin|isbn=978-0859720489}}</ref>
===Industrial Revolution and cotton===
[[Image:Oldham From Glodwick.png|thumb|right|''Oldham from [[Glodwick]]'' by [[James Howe Carse]] (1831), depicts the early skyline and industrial activities of Oldham. All the [[green space]] has since been [[Urbanization|urbanised]].]]
Much of Oldham's history is concerned with [[textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution]]; it has been said that "if ever the [[Industrial Revolution]] placed a town firmly and squarely on the map of the world, that town is Oldham."<ref name="GM Evolution">{{cite book|last=Frangopulo|first=N.J|date=1977|title=Tradition in Action: The Historical Evolution of the Greater Manchester County|publisher=EP Publishing, Wakefield|page=154|isbn=0-7158-1203-3}}</ref> Oldham's soils were too thin and poor to sustain [[crop (agriculture)|crop]] growing, and so for decades prior to [[industrialisation]] the area was used for grazing [[sheep]], which provided the raw material for a local [[wool]]len weaving trade.<ref name="Oldham Sketches"/> By 1756, Oldham emerged as centre of the [[hatter|hatting]] industry in England. The rough [[felt]] used in the production process is the origin of the term "Owdham Roughyed" a [[nickname]] for people from Oldham.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> It was not until the last quarter of the 18th century that Oldham changed from being a [[cottage industry]] township producing woollen garments via domestic [[manual labour]], to a sprawling industrial metropolis of textile factories.<ref name="Oldham Sketches"/>
The climate, geology, and topography of Oldham were unrelenting constraints upon the social and economic activities of the human inhabitants.<ref name="Oldham nature"/> Located {{convert|700|ft|m|0}} above sea level with no major river or visible natural resources, Oldham had poor geographic attributes compared with other settlements for investors and their engineers. As a result, Oldham played no part in the initial period of the Industrial Revolution,<ref name="Cotton Mills"/><ref name="GM Arch"/> although it did later become seen as obvious territory to industrialise because of its convenient position between the labour forces of [[Manchester]] and southwest [[Yorkshire]].<ref name="Foster"/> [[Cotton]] [[Spinning (textiles)|spinning]] and [[cotton mill|milling]] were introduced to Oldham when its first mill, Lees Hall, was built by William Clegg in about 1778, the beginning of a spiralling process of [[urbanisation]] and [[Socioeconomics|socioeconomic]] transformation.<ref name="Cotton Mills"/> Within a year, 11 other mills had been constructed,<ref name="Oldham 100"/> and by 1818 there were 19 – not a large number in comparison with other local settlements.<ref name="GM Arch"/> Oldham's small local population was greatly increased by the mass migration of workers from outlying villages,<ref name="Oldham 100"/> resulting in a population increase from just over {{formatnum:12000}} in 1801 to {{formatnum:137000}} in 1901.<ref name="GM Arch"/> The speed of this urban growth meant that Oldham, with little pre-industrial history to speak of, was effectively born as a [[mill town|factory town]].
[[Image:Royd Mill, Hollinwood.jpg|thumb|right|Royd mill, built in 1907,<ref name="Cotton Mills"/> and seen here in 1983, was one of Oldham's peak of 360 textile mills which operated night and day.]]
Oldham became the world's manufacturing centre for cotton spinning in the second half of the 19th century.<ref name="GM Arch"/> In 1851, over 30% of Oldham's population was employed within the textile sector, compared to 5% across [[Great Britain]].<ref name="Foster">{{cite book|last=Foster|first=John|title=Class Struggle and the Industrial Revolution - Early industrial capitalism in three English towns|publisher=Weidenfield & Nicolson|date=1974|isbn=978-0297766810}}</ref> It overtook the major urban centres of [[Manchester]] and [[Bolton]] as the result of a mill building boom in the 1860s and 1870s, a period during which Oldham became the most productive cotton-spinning town in the world.<ref name="GM Arch"/> By 1871 Oldham had more [[Cotton-spinning machinery|spindles]] than any country in the world except the [[United States]], and in 1909, was spinning more cotton than [[France]] and [[Germany]] combined.<ref name="Contaminated">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/contaminatedlandstrategy.pdf|format=PDF|title=Contaminated Land Strategy 2001|page=16|date=2001|accessdate=2008-03-11|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|publisher=oldham.gov.uk}}</ref> By 1911 there were 16.4 million spindles in Oldham, compared with a total of 58 million in the [[United Kingdom]] and 143.5 million in the world; in 1928, with the construction of Elk mill – the UK's largest textile factory – Oldham reached its manufacturing zenith.<ref name="GM Arch"/> At its peak, there were over 360 mills, operating night and day;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.visitoldham.co.uk/heritage/history.htm|title=Visit Oldham – The History of Oldham|publisher=visitoldham.co.uk|date=|accessdate=2007-09-16}}</ref><ref name="Oldham Spinning Web">{{cite web|url=http://www.spinningtheweb.org.uk/m_display.php?irn=52&sub=nwcotton&theme=places&crumb=Oldham|title=Spinning The Web - Oldham|publisher=spinningtheweb.org.uk|date=|accessdate=2006-06-28}}</ref> Oldham's townscape was dominated by distinctive rectangular brick-built mills.<ref>{{cite book|title=Walking the South Pennines|last=Sellers |first=Gladys |date=1991|isbn=978-1852840419 |publisher=Cicerone Press|page=47}}</ref>
Oldham was hit hard by the [[Lancashire Cotton Famine]] of 1861–1865, when supplies of raw cotton from the United States were cut off. Wholly reliant upon the textile industry, the cotton famine created chronic unemployment in the town.<ref name="Pocket">{{cite book|title=Images of England; Oldham|last=Millett|first=Freda|publisher=Nonsuch|date=1996|isbn=1-84588-164-8}}</ref> By 1863 a committee had been formed, and with aid from central government, land was purchased with the intention of employing local cotton workers to construct [[Alexandra Park, Oldham|Alexandra Park]], which opened on [[28 August]] [[1865]].<ref name="Pocket"/> Said to have over-relied upon the textile sector,<ref name="GM Evolution"/><ref name="Oldham Legion"/> as the importation of cheaper foreign [[yarn]]s grew during the 20th century, Oldham's economy declined into a depression, although it was not until 1964 that Oldham ceased to be the largest centre of cotton spinning.<ref name="GM Arch"/><ref name="GM Evolution"/><ref name="Bygone Oldham"/> In spite of efforts to increase the efficiency and competitiveness of its production, the last cotton spun in the town was at Elk mill, in 1998.<ref name="GM Arch"/>
====Engineering====
Facilitated by its flourishing textile industry, Oldham developed extensive [[Structural engineering|structural]] and [[mechanical engineering]] sectors during the 18th and 19th centuries. The manufacture of [[Cotton-spinning machinery|spinning and weaving machinery]] in Oldham belongs to the last decade of the 19th century, when it became a leading centre in the field of [[engineering]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/> The [[Platt Brothers]], originated in nearby [[Dobcross]] village, but moved to Oldham. They were pioneers of cotton-spinning machinery, developing innovatory products which enabled the mass-production of cotton yarn. Platt Brothers became the largest textile machine makers in the world, employing over {{formatnum:15000}} people in the 1890s,<ref name="Oldham Beyond">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/oldham_beyond_vision.pdf|format=PDF|title=Oldham Beyond; A Vision for the Borough of Oldham|date=April 2004|accessdate=2007-11-01|publisher=Oldham.gov.uk|author=URBED}}</ref> twice the number of their nearest rivals Dobson & Barlow in Bolton and Asa Lees on [[Greenacres, Greater Manchester|Greenacres Moor]].<ref name="Oldham Spinning Web"/> They were keen investors in the local area and at one time, were supporting 42% of the population.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> The centre of the company lay at the New Hartford Works in [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth]], a massive complex of buildings and internal railways on a site overlooking Manchester. The railway station which served this site later formed the basis of [[Oldham Werneth railway station]], which together with the main building exists to this day. Platts gained prestigious awards from around the world,<ref name="Pocket"/> and were heavily involved with local politics and civic pride in Oldham.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> John and James Platt were the largest subscribers for promoting Oldham from a township to a [[Borough status in the United Kingdom|Borough]], pledging £100 (more than double the next largest sum) in advance towards any expenses which may have been incurred by the [[Royal Charter]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/> In 1854 John Platt was made the (fourth) Mayor of Oldham, an office he was to hold twice more in 1855–56 and 1861–62.<ref name="Platts">{{cite book|title=Platts; Textile Machinery Makers|last=Eastham|first=Reginald H.|publisher=R.H Eastham|date=1994|isbn=}}</ref> John Platt was elected in 1865 to become [[Member of Parliament]] for [[Oldham (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham]], and was re-elected in 1868; he remained in office until his death in 1872.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> A bronze statue of Platt existed in the town centre for years, though was moved to [[Alexandra Park, Oldham|Alexandra Park]]. There have been recommendations for it to be returned to the town centre.<ref name="Oldham Heart"/>
Abraham Henthorn Stott, the son of a [[stonemason]], was born in nearby [[Shaw and Crompton]] in 1822.<ref name="Cotton Mills"/> He served a seven-year apprenticeship with [[Sir Charles Barry]], before starting a structural engineering practice in Oldham in 1847 that went on to become the pre-eminent mill architect firm in [[Lancashire]].<ref name="Cotton Mills"/> Philip Sydney Stott, third son of Abraham and later titled as [[Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet]], was the most prominent and famous of the Stott mill architects.<ref name="Cotton Mills"/> He established his own practice in 1883 and designed over a hundred mills in several countries. His factories, which improved upon his father's [[Fireproofing|fireproof]] mills, accounted for a 40% increase in Oldham's spindles between 1887 and 1914.<ref name="Cotton Mills"/>
Although textile-related engineering declined with the processing industry, leading to the demise of both Stotts and Platts, other engineering firms existed, notably electrical and later electronic engineers [[Ferranti]] in 1896.<ref name="Oldham Spinning Web"/> Ferranti went into receivership in 1993, but some of its former works continue in other hands, notably the original [[Hollinwood]] site now operated by [[Siemens AG|Siemens]].<ref name="Oldham Spinning Web"/>
====Coal mining====
On the back of the Industrial Revolution, Oldham developed an extensive coal mining sector, correlated to supporting the local cotton industry and the town's inhabitants, though there is evidence of small scale coal mining in the area as early as the 16th century.<ref name="Coalfield"/> The Oldham [[Coalfield]] stretched from [[Royton]] in the north to [[Bardsley, Greater Manchester|Bardsley]] in the south and in addition to Oldham, included the towns of [[Middleton, Greater Manchester|Middleton]] and [[Chadderton]] to the west.<ref name="Coalfield">{{cite book|last=Nadin|first=Jack|title=The Oldham Coalfield|isbn=0-7524-2945-0|date=2006|publisher=Tempus Publishing Limited}}</ref> The Oldham Coalfield was the site of over 150 collieries during its [[recorded history]].<ref name="Coalfield"/>
Although some contemporary sources suggest there was coal mining in Oldham at a commercial scale by 1738,<ref name="Coalfield"/> older sources attribute the commercial expansion of coal mining with the arrival in the town of two [[Welsh people|Welsh]] labourers, John Evans and William Jones, around 1770.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Foreseeing the growth in demand for coal as a source of motive and steam power, they acquired colliery rights for Oldham, which by 1771 had 14 colliers.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> The mines were largely to the southwest of the town around [[Hollinwood]] and [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth]] and provided enough coal to accelerate Oldham's rapid development at the centre of the cotton boom. At its height in the mid-19th century, when it was dominated by the Lees and Jones families, Oldham coal was mainly sourced from many small collieries whose lives varied from a few years to many decades, although two of the four largest collieries survived to [[National Coal Board|nationalisation]].<ref name="Oldham Coal">{{cite book|title=British Mining No. 68 - Oldham Coal|publisher=Keighley: Northern Mine Research Society|last=Fanning|first=Gerry|date=2001|isbn=0-901450-54-5}}</ref><ref name="Coalfield"/> In 1851, collieries employed over 2,000 men in Oldham,<ref name="Oldham Coal"/> although the amount of coal in the town was somewhat overestimated however, and production began to decline even before that of the local spinning industry.<ref name="Coalfield"/> Today, the only visible remnants of the mines are disused shafts and boreholes.<ref name="Coalfield"/>
===Social history===
Oldham's [[social history]], like that of other former [[Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918|unenfranchised]] towns, is marked by politicised [[civil disturbance]]s, as well as events related to the [[Luddite]], [[Suffragette]] and other [[Labour movement]]s from the [[working class]]es.<ref name="County of Lanc"/><ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> There has been a significant presence of "[[Friendly society|friendly societies]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unionancestors.co.uk/AtoZ%20O.htm|publisher=unionancestors.co.uk|author=|date=|accessdate=2007-10-30|title=Trade Union Ancestors; A to Z of trade unions - O}}</ref><ref name="Oldham 100"/>
It has been put that the people of Oldham became radical in politics in the early part of the 19th century, and movements suspected of [[sedition]] found patronage in the town.<ref name="County of Lanc"/> Oldham was frequently disturbed by bread and labour riots, facilitated by periods of scarcity and the disturbance of employment following the introduction of [[cotton-spinning machinery]].<ref name="County of Lanc"/> On [[20 April]] [[1812]], a "large crowd of riotous individuals" compelled local retailers to sell foods at a loss, whilst on the same day [[Luddites]] numbering in their thousands, many of whom were from Oldham, attacked a cotton mill in nearby [[Middleton, Greater Manchester|Middleton]].<ref name="Oldham Sketches"/> On [[16 August]] [[1819]], Oldham sent a contingent estimated at well above 10,000 to hear speakers in St Peter's Fields at Manchester discuss political reform.<ref>{{cite book |first=K.|last=McPhillips |year=1977|title=Oldham: The Formative Years|publisher=Neil Richardson |isbn=1852161191 |page=23}}</ref> It was the largest contingent sent to Manchester.<ref>{{cite book |first=Joyce |last=Marlow |title=The Peterloo Massacre |publisher=Rapp & Whiting |date=1969 |isbn=0853911223|page=120}}</ref> John Lees, a cotton operative and ex-soldier who had fought at [[Battle of Waterloo|Waterloo]], was one of the fifteen victims of the [[Peterloo Massacre]] which followed. The 'Oldham inquest' which proceeded the massacre was anxiously watched; the [[Court of King's Bench]], however, decided that the proceedings were irregular, and the jury were discharged without giving a verdict.<ref name="County of Lanc"/> [[Annie Kenney]], born in nearby [[Springhead, Greater Manchester|Springhead]], and who worked in Oldham's cotton mills, was a notable of the [[Suffragette]] movement credited with sparking off suffragette militancy when she heckled [[Winston Churchill]], and later (with [[Emmeline Pankhurst]]) the first [[Suffragist]] to be imprisoned. Oldham Women's Suffrage Society was established in 1910 with Margery Lees as president and quickly joined the Manchester and District Federation of the [[National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies]].<ref>{{cite book|title=The Women's Suffrage Movement: A Reference Guide, 1866-1928|last=Crawford|first=Elizabeth|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0415239264|date=[[23 November]] [[2000]]}}</ref> The [[Chartism|Chartist]] and [[History of the cooperative movement|Co-operative movement]]s had strong support in the town, whilst many Oldhamers protested against the emancipation of [[Atlantic slave trade|slaves]].<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> The [[Riot Act]] was read in [[United Kingdom general election, 1852|1852 on election day]] following a mass public brawl over the [[Reform Act]],<ref name="OSD"/> and irregularities with parliamentary candidate nominations.<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
For three days in late May 2001, Oldham became the centre of national and international media attention. Following high profile [[Racism|race-related]] conflicts, and long-term underlying racial tensions between local [[White people|white]] and [[South Asian]] communities, major [[race riots]] broke out in the town. Occurring with particular intensity in the [[Glodwick]] area of the town, the ''[[Oldham Riots]]'' were the worst racially-motivated riots in the [[United Kingdom]] for fifteen years prior, briefly eclipsing the sectarian violence in [[Northern Ireland]] in the media.<ref name="Ritchie">{{cite web|author=Ritchie, David|url=http://www.oldhamir.org.uk/OIR%20Report.pdf|title=The Ritchie Report|publisher=oldhamir.org.uk|format=PDF|date= 2001-12-11|accessdate=2007-09-17}}</ref> At least 20 people were injured in the riots, including 15 police officers, and 37 people were arrested. Similar riots took place in other towns in [[northern England]] over the following days and weeks. The 2001 riots prompted governmental and independent inquiries, which collectively agreed on community relations improvements and considerable regeneration schemes for the town.<ref name="Ritchie"/><ref name="Cantle">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/cantle-review-final-report.pdf|format=PDF|publisher=[[University of Coventry]]|author=Cantle, Ted|title=Challenging Local Communities to Change Oldham|date= 2006-03-30|accessdate=2007-10-31}}</ref>
==Governance==
===Civic history===
[[Image:Oldham Coat of Arms.jpg|thumb|right|The [[coat of arms]] of the former [[County Borough of Oldham]] council, granted [[7 November]] [[1894]], based upon those of an ancient local family [[Oldham (surname)|surnamed Oldham]]. The [[owls]] suggest that the family, like the town, called itself 'Owdham', and adopted the birds in allusion to its name. The motto ''"[[wikt:Sapere aude|Sapere aude]]"'' refers to the owls.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.civicheraldry.co.uk/great_man.html|title=Civic Heraldry of England and Wales - Greater Manchester|publisher=civicheraldry.co.uk|date=1998-2007|author=R.D.W. Young|accessdate=2007-09-14}}</ref><ref name="Oldham 100"/>]]
Lying within the [[Historic counties of England|historic county boundaries]] of [[Lancashire]] [[History of Lancashire|since the early 12th century]], Oldham was recorded in 1212 as being one of five parts of the [[thegn]]age estate of Kaskenmoor, which was held on behalf of [[John of England|King John]] by [[Roger de Montbegon]] and William de Nevill.<ref name="Oldham 100"/><ref name="County of Lanc">{{cite book |last=Brownbill|first=J|coauthors=William Farrer|title=A History of the County of Lancaster: Volume 5|publisher=Victoria County History|date=1911|pages=92–108|isbn=978-0712910552}}</ref> The other parts of this estate were [[Shaw and Crompton|Crompton]], [[Glodwick]], [[Sholver]], and [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth]].<ref name="Ballard"/> Oldham later formed a [[township (England)|township]] within the ancient ecclesiastical parish of [[Prestwich-cum-Oldham]], in the [[Salford (hundred)|hundred of Salford]].<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/><ref name= "County of Lanc"/>
In 1826 commissioners for the social and economic improvement of Oldham were established.<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/> The town was made part of a [[parliamentary borough]], in 1832, though it was in 1849 when Oldham was incorporated as a [[municipal borough]], giving it [[Borough status in the United Kingdom]],<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/><ref name="Oldham 100"/> and in 1850 the Borough Council obtained the powers of the improvement commissioners.<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/> In 1880 the [[Hollinwood]] and [[Crossbank]] parts of [[Chadderton]] and [[Ashton-under-Lyne]] townships were added to the Borough of Oldham.<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/> [[Oldham Above Town]] and [[Oldham Below Town]] were, from 1851 until c.1881, statistical units used for the gathering and organising of [[civil registration]] information, and output of [[census]] data.
When the [[Administrative counties of England|administrative county]] of Lancashire was created by the [[Local Government Act 1888]], Oldham was elevated to become the [[County Borough of Oldham]] and was effectively a [[unitary authority area]] exempt from the administration of [[Lancashire County Council]].<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/> In 1951 parts of Alt, [[Bardsley, Greater Manchester|Bardsley]] and Woodhouses [[civil parish]]es were added to the County Borough of Oldham, and in 1954 other parts of these same civil parishes were added to it. Since 1961, Oldham has been [[twin towns|twinned]] with [[Kranj]] in [[Slovenia]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/community/tourist_information.htm |title=Tourist Information in Oldham |publisher=oldham.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-05-01}}</ref> Under the [[Local Government Act 1972]], the town's autonomous [[County borough]] status was abolished, and Oldham has, since [[1 April]] [[1974]], formed part of the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]], within the [[Metropolitan county]] of [[Greater Manchester]].<ref name="GM Gazetteer"/>
===Parliamentary representation===
The boundaries of two [[United Kingdom constituencies|parliamentary constituencies]] divide Oldham: [[Oldham East and Saddleworth (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham East and Saddleworth]], and [[Oldham West and Royton (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham West and Royton]] (which includes the town centre), represented by [[Labour party (UK)|Labour]] [[Member of Parliament|Members of Parliament]] [[Phil Woolas]] and [[Michael Meacher]] respectively.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/phil_woolas/oldham_east_and_saddleworth|title=Phil Woolas MP|publisher=theyworkforyou.com|accessdate=2007-11-11}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/michael_meacher/oldham_west_and_royton|title=Michael Meacher MP|publisher=theyworkforyou.com|accessdate=2007-11-11}}</ref>
Created as a [[parliamentary borough]] [[Reform Act 1832|in 1832]], Oldham's first parliamentary representatives were the [[Radicalism (historical)|radicals]] [[William Cobbett]] and [[John Fielden]].<ref name="Vision of Oldham">{{cite web|url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/descriptions/entry_page.jsp?text_id=972920&word=NULL|publisher=visionofbritain.org.uk|author=Wilson, John Marius|title=Descriptive Gazetteer entry for OLDHAM|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-11-02}}</ref> [[Winston Churchill]] began his political career in Oldham. Although unsuccessful at his first attempt in 1899, Churchill was elected as the member of Parliament for the [[Oldham (UK Parliament constituency)|Oldham parliamentary borough constituency]] in the [[United Kingdom general election, 1900|1900 general election]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.winstonchurchill.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=710|title=Churchill and...Politics; All the Elections Churchill Ever Contested|author=The Churchill Centre|publisher=winstonchurchill.org|date=|accessdate=2007-10-09}}</ref> He held the constituency for the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] until the [[United Kingdom general election, 1906|1906 general election]], when he won the election for [[Manchester North West (UK Parliament constituency)|Manchester North West]] as a [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal]] MP. After he became the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]] in 1940, Churchill was made a [[Honorary Freedom of Boroughs Act 1885|Honorary Freeman of the Borough of Oldham]], on [[April 2]], [[1941]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
==Geography==
{{further|[[Geography of Greater Manchester]]}}
{{climate chart
|Oldham
|1|6|70
|1|7|50
|3|9|60
|4|12|50
|7|15|60
|10|18|70
|12|20|70
|12|20|80
|10|17|70
|8|14|80
|4|9|80
|2|7|80
|source={{cite web|url=http://weather.yahoo.com/climo/UKXX0105_c.html|publisher=Yahoo! Weather|date=2007|title=Records and averages}}
|float=right
}}
[[Image:Map of Oldham.png|thumb|left|A map of Oldham, and surrounding area.]]
At {{coor dms|53|32|39|N|2|7|0.8|W|city}} (53.5444°, -2.1169°), and {{convert|164|mi|km|0}} north-northwest of [[London]], Oldham stands {{convert|700|ft|m|0}} above [[sea level]], {{convert|6.9|mi|km|1}} northeast of [[Manchester City Centre]], on elevated ground between the rivers [[River Irk|Irk]] and [[River Medlock|Medlock]]. [[Saddleworth]] and the [[South Pennines]] are close to the east, whilst on all other sides, Oldham is bound by smaller towns, including [[Ashton-under-Lyne]], [[Chadderton]], [[Failsworth]], [[Royton]] and [[Shaw and Crompton]], with little or no [[green space]] between them. Oldham experiences a [[temperate]] [[Oceanic climate|maritime climate]], like much of the [[British Isles]], with relatively cool summers and mild winters. There is regular but generally light precipitation throughout the year.<ref name="Oldham nature">{{cite book|title=Oldham's natural history|last=Kidd|first=Leonard|date=1977|publisher=Oldham Libraries, Art Galleries and Museums|isbn=}}</ref>
The [[topography]] of Oldham is characterised by its rugged, [[upland (geology)|elevated]] [[Pennine]] terrain.<ref name="Cotton Mills"/><ref name="Top of England">{{cite book|last=Lewis|first=Samuel|title=A Topographical Dictionary of England; 'Ogbourn - Oldham'|publisher=Institute of Historical Research|date=1848|pages=729–33|isbn=978-0806315089}}</ref> Oldham, with an extreme length from southwest to northeast of over {{convert|4|mi|km|1}}, has an area of {{convert|25.9|sqmi|km2|1}}.<ref name="County of Lanc"/> The [[geology]] of Oldham is represented by the [[millstone grit]] and [[coal measures]] series of rocks.<ref name="Oldham nature"/> The [[River Beal]], flowing northwards, forms the boundary between Oldham on one side and [[Royton]] and [[Shaw and Crompton]] on the other. To the east of this river the surface rises, to a height of {{convert|1225|ft|m|0}}, being attained at Woodward Hill on the border with the parish of [[Saddleworth]].<ref name="County of Lanc"/> The rest of the surface is hilly, the average height decreasing towards the southwest to [[Failsworth]] and the city of [[Manchester]]. The ridge called Oldham Edge, {{convert|800|ft|m|0}} high, comes southward from Royton into the centre of the town.<ref name="County of Lanc"/>
[[Image:Mill & Church - Oldham.jpg|thumb|right|Oldham's irregularly constructed [[built environment]] is characterised by its red-brick [[cotton mill]]s and surrounding [[terraced house]]s.]]
Oldham's [[built environment]] is characterised by its 19th century red-brick [[terraced house]]s, the infrastructure that was built to support these and the town's former [[cotton mill]]s – which mark the town's skyline.<ref name="Bygone Oldham"/> The [[urban structure]] of Oldham is irregular when compared to most [[List of towns in England|towns in England]], its form restricted in places by its hilly upland terrain.<ref name="Top of England"/><ref name="County of Lanc"/> There are irregularly constructed residential dwellings and streets loosely centred around a [[central business district]] in the [[town centre]], which is the local centre of commerce. In 1849, Angus Reach of [[Inverness]] said: {{quote|The visitor to Oldham will find it essentially a mean-looking straggling town, built upon both sides and crowning the ridge of one of the outlying spurs which branch from Manchester, the neighbouring "backbone of England". The whole place has a shabby underdone look. The general appearance of the operatives' houses is filthy and smouldering.<ref>{{cite news|title=[[Morning Chronicle]]|last=Reach|first=Angus|date=1849|publisher=}}</ref>|Angus Reach|''Morning Chronicle, 1849''}}
In the 1870s, John Marius Wilson described Oldham as consisting of:
{{quote|... numerous streets, and contains numerous fine buildings, both public and private; but, in a general view, is irregularly constructed, presents the dingy aspect of a crowded seat of manufacture, and is more notable for factories than for any other feature.<ref name="Vision of Oldham"/>|John Marius Wilson|''[[Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales]] (1870–1872)''}} Although Oldham had a thriving economy during the 19th century, the local merchants were broadly reluctant to spend on civic institutions, and so the town lacks the grandeur seen in comparable nearby towns like [[Bolton]] or [[Huddersfield]];<ref name="Oldham Heart"/><ref name="Rebrand"/> public expenditure was seen as an overhead that undermined the competitiveness of the town.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> Subsequently, Oldham's architecture has been described as "mediocre".<ref name="Rebrand"/> The town has no [[listed building]]s with a Grade I rating.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/StatisticsPage/default.aspx?StatsCounty=GREATER%20MANCHESTER|title=Statistics by County|publisher=author=Images of England|publisher=imagesofengland.org.uk|accessdate=2007-12-22}}</ref>
There is a mixture of high-density [[urban areas]], [[suburb]]s, semi-rural and [[rural]] locations in Oldham. There is some permanent [[grassland]] but overwhelmingly the [[land use]] in the town is urban. The territory of Oldham is contiguous with other towns on all sides except for a small section along its eastern and southern boundaries, and for purposes of the [[Office for National Statistics]], forms the fourth largest settlement of the [[Greater Manchester Urban Area]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/census2001/ks_urban_north_part_5.pdf|format=PDF| title=Census 2001:Key Statistics for urban areas in the North; Map 3|author=[[Office for National Statistics]]|publisher=statistics.gov.uk|accessdate=2007-09-13|date=2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/greater_manchester_urban_area.asp|title=Greater Manchester Urban Area|date=2001|author=[[Office for National Statistics]]|publisher=statistics.gov.uk|accessdate=2007-12-24}}</ref> the [[List of conurbations in the United Kingdom|United Kingdom's third largest conurbation]]. The [[M60 motorway]] passes through the southwest of Oldham, through [[Hollinwood]], and a [[Passenger_rail_terminology#Heavy_rail|heavy rail]] line enters Oldham from the same direction, travelling northeast to the town centre before heading northwards through [[Derker]] towards Shaw and Crompton.
[[Image:Oldham panorama (crop).jpg|thumb|center|800px|<center>A panorama of Oldham from [[Hartshead Pike]] to the south east.</center>]]
===Divisions and suburbs===
[[Image:Oldham Terraced.jpg|right|thumb|Much of Oldham's housing stock is two-up-two-down rows of [[terraced house]]s, a reminder of its [[mill town]] history.]]
<!--- Please note this section is for the town proper, NOT the wider borough which includes OTHER TOWNS such as Royton, Chadderton etc.--->
Many of Oldham's present divisions and suburbs have origins as pre-industrial hamlets, manorial commons and ancient chapelries.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Some, such as [[Moorside, Oldham|Moorside]], exist as recently constructed residential [[suburbia]], whilst places like [[Hollinwood]] exist as [[electoral ward]]s<ref>{{cite web |author=[[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council]]|url=http://geoplanning.oldham.gov.uk/gis/map.aspx?ACTION=PLANNING |title=Interactive Planning Map |publisher=oldham.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-06-20}}</ref> and thoroughly industrialised districts. Throughout most of its [[recorded history]], Oldham was surrounded by large swathes of [[moorland]], which is reflected in the placenames of Moorside, [[Greenacres, Greater Manchester|Greenacres moor]], Littlemoor, Northmoor amongst others.
A large portion of Oldham's residences are "low value"<ref name="Oldham Heart"/> [[Victorian era]] [[brick|Accrington red-brick]] [[terraced house]]s in a row formation,<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> built for the most part from 1870 to 1920, to house the town's [[cotton mill]] workers.<ref name="OSD">{{cite web|url=http://www.edgehill.ac.uk/Faculties/FAS/gber/pdf/vol3/issue2/Article4.pdf|title=Oldham: Separate Development|author=Iain Jackson|format=PDF|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-09-13|publisher=edgehill.ac.uk}}</ref> There is more modern housing in the semi-rural east of the town, in areas such as [[Moorside, Oldham|Moorside]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gmp.police.uk/division12/pages/oldhameast.htm|title=Oldham East|date= 2006-01-27|accessdate=2007-11-01|publisher=gmp.police.uk|author=[[Greater Manchester Police]]}}</ref> although terraces are found in almost all parts of Oldham.
One of the oldest recorded named places of Oldham is [[Hathershaw]], occurring in a deed for 1280 with the spelling ''Halselinechaw Clugh''.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Existing as a manor in the 15th century, Hathershaw Hall was the home of a [[Cavalier|Royalist]] family in the 17th century who lost part of their possessions due to the [[English Civil War]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/> [[Waterhead, Greater Manchester|Waterhead]], an upland area in the east of Oldham, traces its roots to a water cornmill over the border in [[Lees, Greater Manchester|Lees]].<ref name="Oldham Legion"/> Recorded originally as ''Watergate'' and ''Waterhead Milne'', it was for a long time a hamlet in the parish of Oldham that formed a significant part of the [[Oldham Above Town]] registration sub-district. [[Derker]] was recorded as a place of residence in 1604 with the name ''Dirtcar''.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> Bound by [[Higginshaw]] to the north, Derker is the location of [[Derker railway station]] and, said to have terraced residencies "unsuited to modern needs", is currently being redeveloped as part of the [[Housing Market Renewal Initiative]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oldhamrochdalehmr.co.uk/derker.htm|title=Oldham Rochdale Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder; Derker|publisher=oldhamrochdalehmr.co.uk|author=Oldham Rochdale Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-10-14}}</ref> [[Coldhurst]], an area along Oldham's northern boundary with [[Royton]], was once a chapelry and the site of considerable industry and commerce, including [[coal mining]], [[cotton mills|cotton spinning]] and hat manufacture.<ref name="VCH">{{cite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=50889&strquery=prestwich-cum-oldham#s5 |title='Cold-Ashby - Coley' A Topographical Dictionary of England |date=1848 |author=British History Online |publisher=Victoria County History |accessdate=2007-04-07}}</ref> It is said to have been the scene of an action in the English Civil War in which the [[Roundheads|Parliamentarians]] were defeated.<ref name="VCH"/>
{{Areas of Oldham}}
==Demography==
{{further|[[Demography of Greater Manchester]]}}
<div style="padding-right:1.5em;">
{| id="toc" style="float: right; margin-left: 2em; width: 40%; font-size: 90%;" cellspacing="3"
!colspan="3"|'''Oldham compared'''
|-
|'''[[United Kingdom Census 2001|UK Census 2001]]'''||'''Oldham'''{{ref|pop_1|1}}||'''[[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham (Met. District)]]'''||'''England'''
|-
|Total population||[[List of towns and cities in England by population|103,544]]{{ref|pop_2|2}}||217,273||49,138,831
|-
|Foreign born||15%||8.2%||9.2%
|-
|White||71%||86%||91%
|-
|Asian||27%||12%||4.6%
|-
|Black||0.9%||0.6%||2.3%
|-
|Christian||58%||73%||72%
|-
|Muslim||25%||11%||3.1%
|-
|Hindu||1.1%||0.1%||1.1%
|-
|No religion||8.3%||8.9%||15%
|-
|Over 65 years old||12%||14%||16%
|-
|Unemployed||5.5%||3.7%||3.3%
|}
</div>
According to data from the [[United Kingdom Census 2001]], Oldham had a total resident population of 103,544, making it the [[List of English cities by population|55th most populous settlement]] in England, and the 5th most populous settlement of the [[Greater Manchester Urban Area]].<ref name="Oldham Population"/> This figure in conjunction with its area provides Oldham with a [[population density]] of 3,998 people per square mile (1,544 per km²). The local population has been described as broadly "[[working class]]"; the [[middle class]]es tending to live in outlying settlements.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/>
Oldham, considered as a combination of the 2001 [[ward (politics)|electoral wards]] of Alexandra,<ref name="Alexandra ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192662693546&a=7&b=5941626&c=Alexandra&d=14&e=15&g=352196&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192662693546&enc=1 |title=Alexandra (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> [[Coldhurst]],<ref name="Coldhurst ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663037109&a=7&b=5941622&c=coldhurst&d=14&e=16&g=352331&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663037109&enc=1 |title=Coldhurst (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> [[Hollinwood]],<ref name="Hollinwood ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663112296&a=7&b=5941618&c=hollinwood&d=14&e=16&g=352470&i=1001x1003x1004&m=0&r=1&s=1192663112296&enc=1 |title=Hollinwood (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> St. James,<ref name="James ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663188125&a=7&b=5941612&c=st.+james&d=14&e=15&g=352697&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663188125&enc=1 |title=St. James (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> St. Marys,<ref name="Mary ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663247234&a=7&b=5941611&c=St.+Marys&d=14&e=15&g=352729&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663247234&enc=1 |title=St. Marys (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> St. Pauls,<ref name="Paul ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663302171&a=7&b=5941610&c=st.+pauls&d=14&e=15&g=352761&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663302171&enc=1 |title=St. Pauls (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> [[Waterhead, Greater Manchester|Waterhead]]<ref name="Waterhead ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663365703&a=7&b=5941608&c=waterhead&d=14&e=16&g=352832&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663365703&enc=1 |title=Waterhead (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> and [[Werneth, Greater Manchester|Werneth]],<ref name="Werneth ward">{{cite web |url=http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadPage.do?pageId=1003&tc=1192663404140&a=7&b=5941607&c=werneth&d=14&e=15&g=352876&i=1001x1003x1004x1011&m=0&r=1&s=1192663404140&enc=1 |title=Werneth (Ward)|author=United Kingdom Census 2001 |publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk |accessdate=2007-10-18}}</ref> has an average age of 33.5, and compared against the average [[demography of the United Kingdom]], has a high level of people of [[South Asian]] heritage, particularly those with roots in [[Pakistan]] and [[Bangladesh]]. Due to the town's prevalence as an industrial centre and thus a hub for employment, Oldham attracted migrant workers throughout its history, including those from wider-England, [[Scotland]], [[Ireland]] and [[Poland]].<ref name="Oldham People">{{cite book|title=Oldham & its People|last=Millett|first=Freda|date=1994|publisher=Oldham Leisure Services|isbn=0902809318}}</ref> During the 1950s and 1960s, in an attempt to fill the shortfall of workers and revitalise local industries, citizens of the wider [[Commonwealth of Nations]] were encouraged to [[Immigration to the United Kingdom (1922-present day)|migrate to Oldham and other British towns]].<ref name="Oldham People"/> Many came from the [[Caribbean]] and [[Indian subcontinent]] and settled throughout the Oldham borough.<ref name="Oldham People"/> Today, Oldham has large communities with heritage from [[Bangladesh]], [[India]], [[Pakistan]] and parts of the Caribbean.<ref name="Oldham People"/> At the time of the 2001 census, over one in four of its residents identified themselves as from a South Asian or [[British Asian]] ethnic group. Cultural divisions along ethnic backgrounds are strong within the town,<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> with poor cross-community integration and cohesion along Asian and white backgrounds.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/>
With only a small local population during medieval times, as a result of the introduction of industry, mass migration of village workers into Oldham occurred,<ref name="Oldham 100"/> resulting in a population change from under 2,000 in 1714<ref name="Oldham Sketches"/><ref name="Parish Church1"/> to 12,000 in 1801 to 137,000 in 1901.<ref name="GM Arch"/> In 1851 its population of 52,820 made Oldham the 12th most populous town in England.<ref name="Oldham 1907"/> The following is a table outlining the population change of the town since 1801, which demonstrates a trend of rapid population growth in the 19th century and, after peaking at 147,483 people in 1911, a trend of general decline in population size during the 20th century.
{{clr}}
<center>
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:85%;width:70%;border:0px;text-align:center;line-height:120%;"
! style="background: #99CCCC; color: #000080" height="17" | Year
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1801
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1811
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1821
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1831
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1841
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1851
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1861
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1871
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1881
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1891
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1901
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1911
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1921
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1931
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1939
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1951
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1961
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1971
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 1991
! style="background: #FFFFFF; color:#000080;" | 2001
|- Align="center"
! style="background: #99CCCC; color: #000080" height="17" | Population
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 12,024
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 16,690
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 21,662
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 32,381
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 42,595
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 52,820
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 72,333
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 82,629
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 111,349
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 131,463
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 137,246
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 147,483
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 144,983
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 140,314
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 120,511
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 121,266
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 115,346
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 105,922
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 103,931
| style="background: #FFFFFF; color: black;" | 103,544
|-
| colspan="21" style="text-align:center;font-size:90%;"|<small>'''Sources:'''<br>[http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/data_cube_table_page.jsp?data_theme=T_POP&data_cube=N_TPop&u_id=10186778&c_id=10001043&add=N A Vision of Britain through Time]<br>{{cite book|title=A Centenary History of Oldham|date=1949|page=232|first=H.|last=Bateson}}<ref name="Oldham 100"/></small>
|}
</center>
==Economy==
[[Image:MapleMill.jpg|thumb|right|Although mass cotton spinning no longer takes place in Oldham, [[cotton mill]]s mark its skyline, now used as processing and distribution centres.]]
For years Oldham's economy was heavily dependent on manufacturing industry, especially textiles and mechanical engineering.<ref name="Local Company">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working/economic_profile/local_companies.htm|title=Local Companies|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|date=2007|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref><ref name="Oldham Means Business">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working.htm|title=Oldham Means Business!|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|date=2007|accessdate=2007-09-14}}</ref> Since the [[deindustrialisation]] of Oldham in the mid-20th century, these industries have been replaced by [[home shopping]], [[publishing]], [[healthcare]] and [[food processing]] sectors, though factory-generated employment retains a significant presence.<ref name="Local Company"/> Many of the modern sectors are low-skill and low-wage.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/>
Park Cake Bakeries, recently sold as part of a large shake-up by the Northern Foods Group, have a large food processing centre in [[Hathershaw]], which employs in excess of 1,600 people. Over 90% of the [[cake]]s produced go to [[Marks & Spencer]].<ref name="Food">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working/economic_profile/food_processing.htm|title=Oldham's Economic Profile - Food Processing|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|date=2007|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.go2work.net/demosite/parkcakes.htm|title=Park Cakes|publisher=go2work.net|date=2005|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref> Long existing as an [[industrial district]], [[Hollinwood]] is home to the Northern Counties Housing Association,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.housingcorp.gov.uk/server/show/ConRSL.1207|title=Northern Counties Housing Association Limited|publisher=housingcorp.gov.uk|date=|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref> and Mirror Colour Print Ltd; the printing division of the [[Trinity Mirror]] group, which prints and distributes 36 major newspapers, and employs 500 staff.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working/economic_profile/printing_publishing.htm|title=Oldham's Economic Profile - Printing & Publishing|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|date=2007|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref>
[[Image:Brian Clarke Spindles Oldham.jpg|thumb|left|The stained glass roof of The Spindles, created by local artist Brian Clarke.]]
Oldham's town centre contains the highest concentration of retailing, cultural facilities and employment in the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]].<ref name="Oldham Heart">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/heart_of_oldham.pdf|title=The Heart of Oldham; A masterplan for Oldham Town Centre|author=URBED|date=May 2004|format=PDF|accessdate=2007-11-31|publisher=Oldham.gov.uk}}</ref> It has been extensively redeveloped during the last few decades, and its two shopping centres, Town Square and The Spindles, now provide one of the largest covered retail areas in [[Greater Manchester]].<ref name="Retail">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working/economic_profile/land_property.htm|title=Oldham's Economic Profile - Land & Property|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|date=2007|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref> The Spindles (named with reference to [[Spindle (textiles)|textile spindles]]) is a modern [[Shopping mall|shopping centre]] with over 40 retailers, banks, building societies and catering outlets. It houses one of Europe's largest stained glass roofs, created by local artist [[Brian Clarke]] in celebration of the music of one of Oldham's famous sons, [[composer]] and [[Conductor (music)|conductor]] [[William Walton|Sir William Walton]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.visitoldham.co.uk/shopping/spindles.htm|title=The Spindles Shopping Centre
|date=N.D.|author=|publisher=visitoldham.co.uk|accessdate=2007-09-13}}</ref>
[[Ferranti|Ferranti Technologies]] is an electronic, electromechanical and electrical engineering company based in [[Waterhead, Greater Manchester|Waterhead]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ferranti-technologies.co.uk/location.html|title=Ferranti Technologies|publisher=ferranti-technologies.co.uk|date=|accessdate=2007-09-14}}</ref>
A number of culinary and medical advances have been developed in Oldham. There are claims that Oldham was the birthplace of the first [[Fish and chips|chip shop]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/nwh_gfx_en/ART21959.html|title=From Butties to Bhajis at the People's History Museum|publisher=24hourmuseum.org.uk|author=Graham, Zoe|date= 2004-05-20|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lovechips.co.uk/chip-history/|publisher=lovechips.co.uk|author=[[British Potato Council]]|accessdate=2008-02-17|title=Chip History}}</ref><ref name="Chips">{{Citation|last =Anon|title=Birthplace of the tasty chippy!|newspaper=[[Oldham Evening Chronicle]]|pages=10|year=2008|date=[[2008-07-08]]}}</ref> The sometimes disputed claim of trade in deep-fried chipped potatoes is said to have been started in around 1858–60 from an outlet owned by a John Lees, on what is the present site of Oldham's Tommyfield Market.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fishexpressonline.com/history.php|publisher=fishexpressonline.com|title=History|accessdate=2007-11-01|author=Anon}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.open2.net/historyandthearts/history/food_timeline_html.html|publisher=open2.net|title=Timeline: Just The Facts|author=Anon|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref><ref name="Chips"/> In 1900 Oldham had the highest concentration of chip shops in the country; one for every 400 people.<ref name="Chips"/> [[Rag Pudding]] is a savoury dish said to be native to Oldham.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/news_detail.aspx?articleid=11430|publisher=morningadvertiser.co.uk|author=Cooper, Natalie|date= 2005-11-01|accessdate=2007-11-01|title=PubChef Awards - Beer and Food}}</ref> [[Yates Wine Lodge]] was founded in Oldham by Peter and Simon Yates in 1884.<ref name="Bygone Oldham"/>
The [[Bandage|tubular bandage]] was invented and developed in Oldham in 1961.<ref name="Bandage Bridge">{{cite web|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1004/1004879_bandage_bridge_under_threat.html|title='Bandage bridge' under threat|author=Keegan, Mike|date=2007-04-19|accessdate=2007-10-31|publisher=manchestereveningnews.co.uk}}</ref> That "vital contribution to advancing medical science" resulted from a collaboration between local firm Seton and a cotton manufacturer in the town.
==Landmarks==
===Town Hall===
[[Image:Oldham Town Hall.jpg|thumb|right|Oldham's Old Town Hall, is an unused [[Neoclassical architecture|neo-classical]] [[City hall|town hall]] built in 1841.]]
Oldham's Old Town Hall is a Grade II listed [[Georgian architecture|Georgian]] [[Neoclassical architecture|neo-classical]] [[City hall|town hall]] built in 1841,<ref>{{cite web | title=Town Hall | work=Images of England | url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=388963 | accessdate=2007-11-14}}</ref> eight years before Oldham received its [[Borough status in the United Kingdom|borough status]].<ref name="Town Hall">{{cite web|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/221/221793_in_danger_our_creaking_monuments_to_civic_pride.html|publisher=manchestereveningnews.co.uk|author=Ottewell, David|title=In danger, our creaking monuments to civic pride|date= 2006-08-26|accessdate=2007-11-01}}</ref> One of the last purpose built town halls in northwest England,<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> it has a tetrastyle [[Ionic order|Ionic]] [[portico]], copied from the temple of [[Ceres (mythology)|Ceres]], on the [[Ilissos|River Ilissos]], near [[Athens]].<ref name="Vision of Oldham"/> [[Sir Winston Churchill]] made his inaugural acceptance speech from the steps of the town hall when he was first elected as a Conservative MP in 1900. A [[Blue Plaque]] on the exterior of the building commemorates the event.
Long existing as the political centre of the town, the structure has stood empty since the mid 1980s, but has regularly been earmarked for redevelopment as part of regeneration project proposals.<ref name="Town Hall"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/working/regeneration/regeneration_projects/town-centre-redevelopment.htm|title=Town Centre Redevelopment|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|author=[[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council]]|accessdate=2007-11-02}}</ref><ref name="Oldham Heart"/>
===War memorial===
[[Image:Oldham War Memorial.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Oldham's war memorial was commissioned in 1919 to "symbolise the spirit of 1914–1918".]]
Erected as a permanent memorial to the men of Oldham who were killed in [[World War I]], Oldham's [[war memorial]] consists of a [[granite]] base surmounted by a [[bronze]] sculpture depicting five soldiers making their way along the trenches in order to go into battle.<ref name="Oldham War Memorial">{{cite web |url=http://pmsa.cch.kcl.ac.uk/MR/MR-OLD17.htm|title=Oldham, War Memorial |author=[[Public Monuments and Sculpture Association]] |date=[[2003-06-16]] |accessdate=2007-10-12}}</ref> The main standing figure, having climbed out of the trenches, is shown calling on his comrades to advance. The base serves to house books containing the roll of honour of the 1st, 10th and 24th Battalions, [[Manchester Regiment]]. The pedestal has two bronze doors at either side.<ref name="Oldham War Memorial"/>
Commissioned in 1919 by the Oldham War Memorial Committee, the memorial was designed and built by [[Albert Toft]].<ref>{{cite web | title=War Memorial | work=Images of England | url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=388887 | accessdate=2007-11-14}}</ref> It was unveiled by [[Ian Standish Monteith Hamilton|General Sir Ian Hamilton]] on [[April 28]], [[1923]], before a crowd estimated at over 10,000.<ref name="Oldham War Memorial"/> The monument was intended to symbolise the spirit of 1914–1918.<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
The inscriptions on the memorial read:
*Over doors: ''"Mors Januva Vitae, 1914-1918"'' (death is the gate of life)
*Opposite side: ''"To God Be The Praise"''
===Civic Centre===
[[Image:Civic Centre at Oldham.png|thumb|right|The ''Civic Centre'' is the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]]'s centre of local governance.]]
The Civic Centre tower is the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]]'s centre of local governance. The 15-storey white-brick building has housed the vast majority of the local government's offices since its completion in 1977. Standing at the summit of the town, the tower stands over {{convert|200|ft|m|0}} high.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/ewm/links/districts/index.html|title=The 10 Greater Manchester Districts|publisher=manchesteronline.co.uk|date= 1999-07-29|accessdate=2007-11-09|author=Anon}}</ref> It was designed by Cecil Howitt & Partners,<ref name="Oldham Heart"/> and the [[topping out]] ceremony was held on [[18 June]] [[1976]].<ref name="Pocket"/> The Civic Centre can be seen as far away as [[Salford]], [[Trafford]], [[Wythenshawe]] and [[Winter Hill (Lancashire)|Winter Hill]] in Lancashire, and offers panoramic views across the city of [[Manchester]] and the [[Cheshire Plain]].
===Parish Church===
{{seealso|List of churches in Greater Manchester}}
[[Image:OldhamParishChurch.jpg|left|thumb|Oldham Parish Church dates from 1830.]]
The [[Oldham Parish Church|Oldham Parish Church of St. Mary with St. Peter]], in its present form, dates from 1830 and was designed in the [[Gothic Revival architecture|Gothic Revival Style]] by [[Richard Lane (architect)|Richard Lane]], a Manchester based architect.<ref name="Parish Church1">{{cite web|url=http://oldhamparishchurch.org/html/history.html|title=Oldham Parish Church; A Brief History|publisher=oldhamparishchurch.org|author=|date=2005-03-21|accessdate=2007-10-16}}</ref> It has been designated by [[English Heritage]] as a Grade II* [[listed building]].<ref>{{cite web | title= Church of St Mary and St Peter | work=Images of England | url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=388885 | accessdate=2007-11-14}}</ref> It was linked with the [[church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich]] and together the sites were principal churches of the ancient ecclesiastical parish of [[Prestwich-cum-Oldham]].<ref name="Parish Church1"/>
A church building had existed on the site since 1280.<ref name="Parish Church1"/> During this time, a small chapel stood on the site to serve the local townships of Oldham, [[Chadderton]], [[Royton]] and [[Shaw and Crompton|Crompton]]. This was later replaced by an [[Gothic architecture|Early English Gothic]] church in the 15th century.<ref name="Parish Church1"/> With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, the population of Oldham increased at a rapid rate (from under 2,000 in 1714, to over 32,000 by 1831).<ref name="Parish Church1"/> The rapid growth of the local population warranted that the building be rebuilt in to the current structure. Though the budget was originally agreed at £5,000,<ref name="Oldham Heart"/> the final cost of building was £30,000, one third of which was spent on the crypt structure.<ref name="Parish Church1"/> Alternative designs by [[Sir Charles Barry]], the designer of the [[Palace of Westminster]], although now regarded by some as superior, were rejected.<ref name="Parish Church1"/><ref name="Oldham Heart"/> The Church, of the [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] denomination, is in active use for worship, and forms part of the [[Anglican Diocese of Manchester|Diocese of Manchester]].<ref name="Parish Church1"/>
== Transport ==
The geography of Oldham constrained the development of major transport infrastructure.<ref name="Oldham 1907">{{cite map|title=Oldham|edition=1907|publisher=Alan Godfrey Maps|cartography=[[Ordnance Survey]]|isbn=1-84151-056-4|section=Lancashire Sheet 97.06|date=1999}}</ref> It has been put that "if it had not grown substantially before the railway age it would surely have been overlooked".<ref name="Oldham 1907"/> Oldham has never been on a main line railway route, and canals too have only been able to serve it from a distance.<ref name="Oldham 1907"/>
A principal destination along the [[Oldham Loop Line]], Oldham once had six [[railway station]]s but now has four ([[Oldham Central railway station|Oldham Central]] and [[Glodwick Road railway station|Glodwick Road]] having closed), [[Oldham Werneth railway station|Oldham Werneth]], [[Oldham Mumps railway station|Oldham Mumps]], [[Derker railway station|Derker]] and [[Hollinwood railway station|Hollinwood]]. The train from [[Manchester Victoria station]] must climb steeply through much of its {{convert|6|mi|km|1|adj=on}} route, from around {{convert|100|ft|m|1}} at [[Manchester city centre]] to around {{convert|600|ft|m|1}} at Oldham Mumps.<ref name="Oldham 1907"/> Oldham Mumps takes its name from being within the Mumps area of Oldham, which itself probably derived from the archaic word "mumper" which was slang for a [[beggar]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Greater Manchester: A panorama of people and places in Manchester and its surrounding towns|page=28|last=Gibb|first=Robert|publisher=Myriad|date=2005|isbn=1-904736-86-6}}</ref> It is planned to convert the Oldham Loop Line to part of the [[Manchester Metrolink]] tram network.<ref name="Oldham Heart"/>
Oldham has had electric [[tram]]ways to Manchester in the past; the first tram was driven from Manchester into Oldham in 1900 by the [[List of Lord Mayors of Manchester|Lord Mayor of Manchester]].<ref name="Pocket"/> The system came to an end on [[3 August]] [[1946]], however.<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
The £3.3m [[Oldham Bus Station]] has frequent bus services to Manchester, Rochdale, Ashton-under-Lyne and Middleton with other services to the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, [[Tameside]], and across the Pennines to [[Huddersfield]] in [[West Yorkshire]].<ref name="Oldham Bus Station">{{cite web|url=http://www.building.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=113&storycode=1006962&c=1|publisher=building.co.uk|date=2001|title=Oldham Bus Station - Cost study|accessdate=2007-11-09}}</ref> The roof canopy is supported internally on two rows of steel trees. The extensive use of glass and stainless steel maximises visibility, and there is a carefully co-ordinated family of information fittings, posters and seating, using robust natural materials for floors and plinths.<ref name="Oldham Bus Station"/> The bus station is used by [[National Express]] coaches. [[First Manchester]], [[FirstGroup plc]]'s bus operator for north-[[Greater Manchester]], has its headquarters in Oldham.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.firstgroup.com/ukbus/northwest/manchester/contact/index.php|publisher=firstgroup.com|date=2007|accessdate=2007-11-14|author=[[First Manchester]]|title=Contact us}}</ref>
Oldham is about {{convert|4|mi|km|1}} south of the major [[M62 motorway]], but is linked to it by the [[M60 motorway|M60]] at [[Hollinwood]], and [[A627(M) motorway|A627(M)]] via [[Chadderton]]. There are major [[Great Britain road numbering scheme|A roads]] to [[Ashton-under-Lyne]], [[Huddersfield]], [[Manchester]], and [[Rochdale]].<ref name="Oldham 100"/>
The [[Hollinwood Branch Canal|Hollinwood Branch]] of the [[Ashton Canal]] was a [[Canals of Great Britain|canal]] that ran from [[Fairfield]] in [[Droylsden]], through Littlemoss and [[Daisy Nook|Daisy Nook Country Park]] to the [[Hollinwood]] area of Oldham, with a branch from Daisy Nook to the [[Fairbottom Branch Canal]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollinwoodcanal.co.uk/|title=Hollinwood Canal Society|author=Hollinwood Canal Society|publisher=hollinwoodcanal.co.uk|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-11-06}}</ref> The canal was mainly used for the haulage of [[coal]] until it fell into disuse for commercial traffic in the 1930s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hollinwoodcanal.co.uk/canal.htm|title=About the Hollinwood Canal|author=Hollinwood Canal Society|publisher=hollinwoodcanal.co.uk|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-11-06}}</ref> It included four aqueducts and a two-rise lock staircase.
==Sports==
[[Oldham Roughyeds]] was established in 1876 as Oldham Rugby League Club,<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> and [[Oldham Athletic A.F.C.|Oldham Athletic Football Club]] in 1895 as Pine Villa Football Club. Oldham Athletic have achieved both league and cup successes, particularly under [[Joe Royle]] in the 1990s.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> They were [[Football League]] runners-up in the [[1914-15 in English football|last season before the outbreak]] of the [[First World War]], but were relegated from the [[Football League First Division]] in 1923. They reached the [[Football League Cup]] final in 1990 and won the [[Football League Second Division]] title in 1991, ending 68 years outside the top flight. They secured their top division status a year later to become founder members of the new [[Premier League]],<ref name="Bandage Bridge"/> but were relegated after [[1993-94 in English football|two seasons]] despite reaching that year's [[FA Cup]] semi-finals. They are currently playing [[Football League One]], the third tier of the English league. The club's current manager is [[John Sheridan (footballer)|John Sheridan]], and they play at [[Boundary Park]] which is the current site of proposed regeneration.<ref name="Oldham Beyond"/> [[Oldham Town F.C.|Oldham Town Football Club]] was established in 1964, and plays in the [[North West Counties Football League]] Division Two.
Renamed in 1997 to [[Oldham Roughyeds]], Oldham Rugby League Club has received several club honours during its history,<ref name="Oldham Rugby">{{cite web|url=http://www.orl-heritagetrust.org.uk/HTML%20docs/Club_honours.htm|publisher=orl-heritagetrust.org.uk|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-11-11|title=Club Honours|author=Anon}}</ref> winning the [[Rugby League Championship]] five times and [[Rugby League Challenge Cup]] three times.<ref name="Oldham Rugby"/> They played at [[Watersheddings]] for years before joining Oldham Athletic at [[Boundary Park]].<ref name="Oldham Rugby"/> Oldham has league cricket teams with a number of semi-professional league clubs including [[Oldham Cricket Club|Oldham CC]], and [[Werneth Cricket Club|Werneth CC]] in the Central Lancashire League.
==Education==
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**** THEY ARE IN NOT IN OLDHAM!!!!!! AGAIN - *NOT IN OLDHAM*, ****
**** BUT SHAW, ROYTON OR CHADDERTON, WHICH ARE DIFFERENT TOWNS WITH *SEPERATE* ARTICLES! ****
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**** YOU WILL FIND YOUR SCHOOL FROM THE WIDER OLDHAM AREA LISTED AT THE ****
**** "METROPOLITAN BOROUGH OF OLDHAM" ARTICLE. THANKS. ****
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{{seealso|List of schools in Oldham}}
[[Image:Blue coat0004.jpg|thumb|right|[[Blue Coat School (Oldham, Greater Manchester)|The Blue Coat School]] is one of Oldham's oldest schools, dating back to 1834.]]
Almost every part of Oldham is served by a school of some kind, some with religious affiliations. According to the [[Office for Standards in Education]], schools within the town perform at mixed levels. [[The Blue Coat School, Oldham|The Blue Coat School]], which dates from 1834,<ref>{{cite web | title=Henshaw's Bluecoat School | work=Images of England | url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=388891 | accessdate=2007-11-14}}</ref> is consistently Oldham's top performing secondary school for 11- to 16-year-olds, and has a [[sixth form college]] of [[further education]] for 16- to 18-year-olds on the same site.
Oldham produced someone who is considered<ref name="GM Evolution"/> to be one of the greatest benefactors of education for the nation, [[Hugh Oldham]], who in 1504 was appointed as [[Bishop of Exeter]], and later went on to found what is now [[Manchester Grammar School]].
[[University Centre Oldham]] is a centre for [[higher education]] and a sister campus of the [[University of Huddersfield]]. It was opened in May 2005 by actor [[Patrick Stewart]], the centre's Chancellor.<ref name="UCO">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.hud.ac.uk/about/index.html|publisher=oldham.hud.ac.uk|date= 2006-07-14|accessdate=2007-11-13|author=|title=About University Centre Oldham}}</ref> The University Centre Oldham presented actress [[Shobna Gulati]] and artist, [[Brian Clarke]] (both born in Oldham) with an [[Doctor of Letters|Honorary Doctorate of Letters]] at the Graduation Ceremony of November 2006, for their achievements and contributions to Oldham and its community.<ref name="UCO"/>
<div style="font-size: 95%">
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! School !! Type/Status !! OfSTED !! Website
|-
! [[Blue Coat School, Oldham|The Blue Coat School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=268951&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\\school\\105\\s10_105739_20050113.pdf 105739] || [http://www.blue-coat.oldham.sch.uk/index.cfm www.blue-coat.oldham.sch.uk]
|-
! [[Breeze Hill School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=269622&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=%5C%5Cschool%5C%5C105%5C%5Cs10_105731_20041202.pdf 105731] || [http://www.breezehill.oldham.sch.uk/ www.breezehill.oldham.sch.uk]
|-
! [[Counthill School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=295644&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=%5C%5Cschool%5C%5C105%5C%5Cs8ds5_105728_20061213.pdf 105728] || [http://www.counthill.org.uk/ www.counthill.org.uk]
|-
! [[Grange School, Oldham|Grange School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=287316&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\\school\\105\\s5_105729_20061205.pdf 105729] || [http://www.grange.oldham.sch.uk/ www.grange.oldham.sch.uk]
|-
! [[Hulme Grammar School]]
| Grammar School || N/A || [http://www.hulme-grammar.oldham.sch.uk/allschools/index.php www.hulme-grammar.oldham.sch.uk]
|-
! [[Kaskenmoor School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=287317&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\\school\\105\\s5_105732_20070906.pdf 105732] || [http://www.kaskenmoor.org.uk/ www.kaskenmoor.org.uk]
|-
! [[New Bridge School]]
| Secondary Special School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=282590&providerCategoryID=65536&fileName=\\school\\134\\s5_134517_20060601.pdf 134517] || [http://www.newbridgeschool.net/ www.newbridgeschool.net]
|-
! [[Oldham Sixth Form College]]
| [[Sixth Form College]] || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=294932&providerCategoryID=524288&fileName=\\school\\130\\av1_130506_20070209.pdf 130506] || [http://www.osfc.ac.uk/ www.osfc.ac.uk]
|-
! [[The Oldham College]]
| Further education college || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=294931&providerCategoryID=524288&fileName=\\school\\130\\av1_130505_20070112.pdf 130505] || [http://www.oldham.ac.uk/ www.oldham.ac.uk]
|-
! [[University Centre Oldham]]
| Higher education college || N/A || [http://www.oldham.hud.ac.uk/ www.oldham.hud.ac.uk]
|-
! [[St Augustine of Canterbury R.C. High School]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=277397&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\\school\\105\\s5_105741_20051215.pdf 105741] || [http://www.staugustine.oldham.sch.uk/ www.staugustine.oldham.sch.uk]
|-
! [[The Hathershaw College]]
| Secondary School || [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=258814&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\\school\\105\\s10_105730_20040610.pdf 105730] || [http://www.hathershaw.org.uk/ www.hathershaw.org.uk]
|}
</div>
==Public services==
[[Home Office]] policing in Oldham is provided by the [[Greater Manchester Police]]. The force's "(Q) Division" have their headquarters for policing the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]] at central Oldham. [[Public transport]] is co-ordinated by the [[Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive]]. [[Fire service in the United Kingdom|Statutory emergency fire and rescue service]] is provided by the [[Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service]], which has two stations in Oldham; at Hollins on Hollins Road,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/my-area/oldham/hollins-fire-station.aspx|publisher=manchesterfire.gov.uk|author=[[Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service]]|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-10-31|title=Hollins fire station}}</ref> and at Clarksfield on Lees Road.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.manchesterfire.gov.uk/my-area/oldham/oldham-fire-station.aspx|publisher=manchesterfire.gov.uk|author=[[Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service]]|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-10-31|title=Oldham fire station}}</ref>
The [[Royal Oldham Hospital]], at Oldham's northern boundary with [[Royton]], is a large [[NHS]] hospital administrated by [[Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust]]. It was opened under its existing name on [[1 December]] [[1989]].<ref name="Workhouse">{{cite web|url=http://www.workhouses.org.uk/index.html?Oldham/Oldham1881.shtml|publisher=workhouses.org.uk|author=Higginbotham, Peter|title=Oldham|date=2006-10-13|accessdate=2008-02-09}}</ref> Formerly known as Oldham District and General, and occupying the site of the town's former [[workhouse]] (named Oldham Union Workhouse in 1851),<ref name="Workhouse"/> the hospital is notable for being the birthplace of [[Louise Joy Brown]] – the world's first successful [[In vitro fertilisation|''In vitro'' fertilised "test tube baby"]], on [[25 July]] [[1978]].<ref name="Test Tube Baby">{{cite journal | author=Steptoe PC, Edwards RG | title=Birth after the reimplantation of a human embryo | journal=Lancet | year=1978 | pages=366 | volume=2 | issue=8085 | pmid=79723 | doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(78)92957-4}}</ref> The [[North West Ambulance Service]] provides emergency patient transport. Other forms of [[health care]] are provided for locally by several small clinics and surgeries.
[[Waste management]] is co-ordinated by the [[local authority]] via the [[Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gmwda.gov.uk/|title=Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority (GMWDA)|publisher=gmwda.gov.uk|author=[[Greater Manchester Waste Disposal Authority]]|date=2008|accessdate=2008-02-08}}</ref> Locally produced [[inert waste]] for disposal is sent to [[landfill]] at the Beal Valley.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/minerals-waste.htm|title=Minerals and Waste development planning|author=Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|date=N.D.|accessdate=2008-02-08}}</ref> Oldham's [[Distribution Network Operator]] for electricity is [[United Utilities]];<ref name="UU">{{cite web|url=http://www.unitedutilities.com/?OBH=4188&ID=1442|title=Oldham|publisher=unitedutilities.com|author=[[United Utilities]]|date=2007-04-17|accessdate=2008-02-08}}</ref> there are no [[power station]]s in the town. United Utilities also manages Oldham's [[drinking water|drinking]] and [[waste water]];<ref name="UU"/> water supplies being sourced from several local reservoirs, including [[Dovestones Reservoir|Dovestones]] and [[Chew Reservoir, Greater Manchester|Chew]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unitedutilities.com/?OBH=445&ID=3526 |title=Dove Stone Reservoirs|publisher=unitedutilities.com|author=[[United Utilities]]|date=2007-04-17|accessdate=2008-02-08}}</ref> There is a [[water treatment]] works at [[Waterhead, Greater Manchester|Waterhead]].<ref name="UU"/>
==Culture==
Oldham, though lacking in leisure and cultural amenities,<ref name="Rebrand"/> is historically notable for its theatrical culture.<ref name="Oldham Colosseum"/> Once having a peak of six ''"fine"'' theatres in 1908,<ref name="Oldham Colosseum">{{cite book|title=Oldham Colosseum Theatre - The first hundred years|last=Carter|first=James|date=1986|publisher=Oldham Leisure Services|isbn=0-902809-15-6}}</ref> Oldham is home to the [[Oldham Coliseum Theatre]] and the [[Oldham Theatre Workshop]], which have facilitated the early careers of notable actors and writers, including [[Eric Sykes]],<ref name="Oldham Colosseum"/> [[Bernard Cribbins]]<ref name="Oldham Career1">{{cite web|url=http://www.coliseum.org.uk/default.asp?id=155|publisher=www.coliseum.org.uk|date=2006-01-04|accessdate=2007-10-23|author=Anon|title=Curtain recall}}</ref> and [[Anne Kirkbride]],<ref name="Oldham Career1"/> daughter of acclaimed [[cartoonist]] [[Jack Kirkbride]] who worked for the ''[[Oldham Evening Chronicle]]''. Oldham Coliseum Theatre is one of Britain's last remaining [[repertory theatre]]s; [[Charlie Chaplin]] and [[Stan Laurel]] performed there in the early 20th century, and contemporary actors such as [[Ralph Fiennes]] and [[Minnie Driver]], amongst others, have appeared more recently.<ref>{{cite book|title=They Started Here!: The Story of Oldham Coliseum Theatre|first=Mark|last=Llewellin|publisher=P & D Riley Publishers|date=2000|isbn=978-1874712473}}</ref> Criticised for its lack of a [[cinema]],<ref name="Rebrand"/> there are plans to develop an "Oldham [[West End theatre|West End]]".<ref name="West End">{{cite press release|title = Launch of exciting new vision to develop the West End | publisher = oldham.gov.uk|author=Terence O'Rourke |date=2006-09-18|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/west-end-pr5.pdf|format=PDF}}</ref> Oldham has a thriving bar and [[night club]] culture which attracts significant number of young people into the town centre.<ref name="Oldham Heart"/> Oldham's "hard [[binge drinking]] culture" has been criticised however for conveying a negative regional image of the town.<ref name="Rebrand">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/a_brand_for_oldham.pdf|title=Rebranding Oldham|date=February 2008|accessdate=2008-03-02|author=Hemisphere Design and Marketing Consultants|publisher=oldham.gov.uk}}</ref>
===Communal facilities===
[[Image:Lyceum Oldham.png|thumb|right|The Lyceum is a Grade II listed building opened in 1856 as a "mutual improvement" centre for the working men of Oldham.]]
The Lyceum is a [[Listed building|Grade II listed building]]<ref name="Oldham Lyceum"/><ref>{{cite web | title=Lyceum and School of Art | work=Images of England | url=http://www.imagesofengland.org.uk/details/default.aspx?id=388949 | accessdate=2007-11-14}}</ref> opened in 1856 at a cost of £6,500 as a "mutual improvement" centre for the working men of Oldham;<ref name="Oldham 100"/> it replaced an earlier building constructed in 1839. The facilities provided to members included a library, a newsroom, and a series of lectures on geology, geography and education, microscopy and chemistry, female education, and botany.<ref name="Oldham Lyceum">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldham.gov.uk/community/music-service/ms-history.htm|title=Music Centre History|publisher=oldham.gov.uk|author=[[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham|Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council]]|date=N.D.|accessdate=2007-10-15}}</ref> Instrumental music was introduced and there were soon 16 violinists and 3 'cellists. Eventually the building was extended to include a School of Science and Art. Music had always been important in the life of the Lyceum, and in 1892 a school of music was opened, with 39 students enrolled for the "theory and practice of music".
The Lyceum continued throughout the 20th century as a centre for the arts in Oldham, and in 1986 the local authority was invited by its directors and trustees to accept the building as a gift.<ref name="Oldham Lyceum"/> The acceptance of the Lyceum building by the Education Committee provided the opportunity to re-locate The Music Centre and "further enhance the cultural activities of the town".<ref name="Oldham Lyceum"/> In 1989 the Oldham Metropolitan Borough Music Centre moved into the Lyceum building, which is now the home of the Oldham Lyceum School of Music.<ref name="Oldham Lyceum"/>
Oldham’s museum and gallery service dates back to 1883.<ref name="Gallery Oldham 1">{{cite web|url=http://www.galleryoldham.org.uk/collections.htm|title=Gallery Oldham Collections
|publisher=galleryoldham.org.uk|accessdate=2007-10-15|date=|author=}}</ref> Since then it has established itself as a cultural focus for Oldham and has developed one of the largest and most varied permanent collections in [[North West England]]. The current collection includes over {{formatnum:12000}} social and industrial history items, more than {{formatnum:2000}} works of art, about {{formatnum:1000}} items of decorative art, more than {{formatnum:80000}} natural history specimens, over {{formatnum:1000}} geological specimens, about {{formatnum:3000}} archaeological artefacts, {{formatnum:15000}} photographs and a large number of books, pamphlets and documents.<ref name="Gallery Oldham 1"/>
Oldham is now home to a newly built state-of-the-art art gallery, [[Gallery Oldham]], which was completed in February 2002 as the first phase of the Oldham Cultural Quarter.<ref name="Gallery Oldham 2">{{cite web|title=Cultural Quarter|url=http://www.galleryoldham.org.uk/cultural-quarter.htm|publisher=galleryoldham.org.uk|accessdate=2007-10-15|date=|author=}}</ref> Later phases of the development saw the opening of an extended [[Oldham Library]], a lifelong learning centre and there are plans to include a performing arts centre.<ref name="Oldham Heart"/>
===Carnival===
The annual Oldham Carnival started around 1900, although the tradition of [[carnival]]s in the town goes back much further, providing a "welcomed respite from the tedium of everyday life".<ref name="Events">{{cite book|last=Drummond|first=Christine|title=Oldham Celebrates; Events in Oldham's History|isbn=0-902809-58-X|date=2005|publisher=Oldham Arts and Heritage Publications}}</ref> The carnival parade was always held in mid-to-late summer, with the primary aim of raising money for charities.<ref name="Events"/> It often featured local dignitaries or popular entertainers, in addition to brass, military and jazz bands, the Carnival Queen, people in [[fancy dress]], dancers and decorated [[Float (parade)|floats]] from local churches and businesses.<ref name="Events"/> Whenever possible, local people who had attained national celebrity status were invited to join the cavalcade.<ref name="Events"/> The carnival's route began in the town centre, wound its way along King Street, and ended with a party in [[Alexandra Park, Oldham|Alexandra Park]].<ref name="Events"/>
The carnival was a popular and prestigious event,<ref name="Events"/> though it fell out of favour in the late 1990s.<ref name="Carnival History">{{cite web|url=http://www.oldhamcarnival.org.uk/carnivalhistory.htm|publisher=oldhamcarnival.org.uk|date=2007|author=|accessdate=2007-11-10|title=A History of Oldham's Carnivals}}</ref> The carnival was resurrected in 2006, rebranded the People's Carnival.<ref name="Carnival History"/>
==Notable people==
{{main|List of people from Oldham}}
People from Oldham are called Oldhamers,<ref name="Bygone Oldham">{{cite book|title=Bygone Oldham|author=Anon|publisher=True North Publishing|date=1996|isbn=1900463253}}</ref> though "Roughyed" is a [[nickname]] from the 18th century when rough [[felt]] was used in Oldham to make hats.<ref name="Oldham 100"/> The town has been the birthplace and home to notable people, of national and international acclaim. Amongst the most notable persons of historic significance with a connection to Oldham are acclaimed composer [[William Walton|Sir William Walton]], former [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|British Prime Minister]] [[Winston Churchill|Sir Winston Churchill]], and [[Louise Brown]],<ref name="Test Tube Baby"/> the world's first baby to be conceived by [[in vitro fertilisation|''in vitro'' fertilisation]]. Notable Oldhamers from [[TV]] [[entertainment]] include comedy [[double act]] [[Tommy Cannon]] and [[Bobby Ball]], TV host [[Phillip Schofield]],<ref name="Bandage Bridge"/> and actress [[Shobna Gulati]]. Notable musicians from Oldham include the [[Inspiral Carpets]], and [[Mark Owen]] of boyband [[Take That]].<ref name="Bandage Bridge"/> Notable sportsmen from Oldham include former [[England national football team]] captain [[David Platt]].<ref name="Bandage Bridge"/>
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
===Notes===
<sub>{{note|pop_1|'''1'''}} Percentages are taken from 2001 ward boundaries that together most closely match the territory of the former [[County Borough of Oldham]].<br>{{note|pop_2|'''2'''}} The total population of Oldham is given as those within an urban area divorced from the [[Metropolitan Borough of Oldham]].</sub>
<!---==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = | publisher = | series = | date = | location = | pages = | url = | doi = | id = | isbn = }}
{{refend}}--->
==External links==
{{Spoken Wikipedia|Oldham.ogg|2008-02-10}}
{{commonscat|Oldham}}
*[http://www.oldham.gov.uk/ www.oldham.gov.uk], Website of Oldham Council.
*[http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/LAN/Oldham/ www.genuki.org.uk], GENUKI entry for Oldham, including genealogical data and historic descriptions.
*[http://www.oldhamadvertiser.co.uk/ www.oldhamadvertiser.co.uk], Website for one of Oldham's weekly newspapers, the ''[[Oldham Advertiser]]''.
*[http://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/ www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk], Website for Oldham's daily newspaper, the ''[[Oldham Evening Chronicle]]''.
*[http://www.coliseum.org.uk/ www.coliseum.org.uk/], Official website of [[Oldham Coliseum Theatre]].
*[http://www.oldhamcarnival.org.uk/index.htm www.oldhamcarnival.org.uk], Official website for the planning and reporting of the annual Oldham Carnival.
{{Greater Manchester}}
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[[Category:Towns in Greater Manchester]]
[[Category:Settlements established in the 9th century]]
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