47-453: The Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse , Northwich , Cheshire , records the social, cultural and industrial history of West Cheshire . Formerly known as the Salt Museum, its early focus was on the history of salt extraction , a local industry dating back to Roman times. The museum was renamed Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse in 2010 as its remit now extends to cover the broader history of
94-466: A borough from around 1288, though there is no surviving borough charter. Northwich originally constituted an area of only 13 acres (53,000 m ) at the confluence of the Rivers Weaver and Dane. The much larger township of Witton cum Twambrooks lay to the east, Leftwich to the south, Castle Northwich to the south-west, and Winnington to the north-west. The manor of Northwich was granted to
141-417: A much wider economic base to medieval Northwich than just the salt trade. Documentary evidence also exists for a mill from 1332 onwards and there is evidence for more than one mill from 1343. Allied to the extraction of salt was a bulk chemical industry, which became concentrated at the three ICI sites at Winnington, Wallerscote and Lostock. The first industrially practical method for producing polythene
188-439: A pool, dance studios and a gym. The £80 million Barons Quay Development, a retail and leisure complex, opened in 2016 and has seen the creation of more than 300,000 square feet (28,000 m ) of shopping space, together with a large supermarket with a petrol filling station, cinema, restaurants, cafés, new public spaces, and car parking. As of January 2023 roughly half of the retail space remains empty. A major fire occurred at
235-474: A public assistance institution. In 1948 the building became the Weaver Hall Old People’s Home. Most of the workhouse buildings were demolished in the 1960s, but an original range of rooms fronting London Road remained, along with an adjoining Board of Guardians room built in 1892. The main building ceased to be an old people's home in 1968, when residents were moved to a purpose-built facility at
282-637: A significant rise in visitor numbers. Special exhibitions included 2009's 'Above the Clouds: Mallory & Irvine and the Quest for Everest' featuring many artefacts sourced from a range of institutions (including the Royal Geographical Society ) and individuals relating to the two Cheshire born Everest explorers, George Mallory and Andrew ('Sandy') Irvine . It represented one of the most comprehensive exhibitions ever conducted on Mallory and Irvine and
329-472: A £28 million programme to stabilise the abandoned salt mines underneath Northwich was begun. The work was funded by the English Partnerships through its Land Stabilisation Programme, introduced to resolve issues associated with unstable mines around England. The four mines identified for work were Baron's Quay, Witton Bank, Neumann's and Penny's Lane. These mines were chosen because their subsidence
376-539: Is between 15 and 35 metres (49 and 115 ft) above mean sea level. Northwich is surrounded by the following civil parishes , starting due north and proceeding in a clockwise direction: Anderton with Marbury , Marston , Wincham , Lostock Gralam , Rudheath , Davenham , Hartford , Weaverham , Barnton . Two rivers meet in the town centre, the Weaver and the Dane . The town is surrounded by undulating pasture . Subsidence and
423-556: Is no surviving charter. The town still has a market today, which is earmarked for refurbishment as part of the Northwich Vision plans. The town's economy was dominated by the salt industry. However, a list of tolls for goods crossing over Northwich bridge in 1353 shows goods coming into the town, including a wide range of carcasses, fleeces, hides and skins, cloth, fish, alcoholic drinks, dairy products, building materials, household goods, metals and glass, and millstones. This indicates
470-556: Is that the word soldier itself comes from the Latin sal dare (to give salt). See History of salt for further details . There is archaeological evidence of a Roman auxiliary fort within the area of Northwich now known as "Castle" dated to AD 70. This and other northwestern forts were built as the Romans moved north from their stronghold in Chester. The association with salt continues in
517-571: The Antonine Itinerary , a 3rd-century road map split into 14 sections. Two of these sections, or Itinerary, mention Condate: Route II ("the route from the Wall to the port of Rutupiae ") and Route X ("the route from Glannoventa to Mediolanum "). The second document is the 7th-century Ravenna Cosmography . This document refers to Condate between the entries for Salinae (now Middlewich , Cheshire) and Ratae (now Leicester , Leicestershire ), at
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#1732851784832564-560: The Savings Bank and market hall in Nantwich. Hartwell et al. in the Buildings of England series consider Arley Hall to be his finest work. He designed buildings in a variety of architectural styles, including Neoclassical , Jacobean , and Georgian . Latham was approached by John Tollemache, 1st Baron Tollemache , with the prospect of becoming the architect for Peckforton Castle , but
611-454: The Solvay ammonia-soda process. This process used salt as a main raw material. The chemical industry used the subsided land for the disposal of waste from the manufacture of soda-ash . The waste was transported through a network of cranes and rails to the produce limebeds . This was a dangerous alkaline substance and caused the landscape to be abandoned as unusable. In 1975 Marbury Country Park
658-554: The etymology of Northwich. The "wich" (or wych) suffix applies to other towns in the area: Middlewich, Nantwich and Leftwich . This is considered to have been derived from the Norse , wic , for bay, and is associated with the more traditional method of obtaining salt by evaporating sea water. Therefore, a place for making salt became a wych-house; Northwich was the most northern of the -wich towns in Cheshire. The existence of Northwich in
705-414: The 1670s by employees of the local Smith-Barry family. The Smith-Barrys were looking for coal, but instead discovered rock salt , in the grounds of the family home, Marbury Hall (since demolished) to the north of Northwich. During the 19th century it became uneconomical to mine for the salt. Instead hot water was pumped through the mines, which dissolved the salt. The resultant brine was pumped out and
752-562: The 2001 Census, Northwich had 13,928 people aged between 16 and 74. Of these, 8,908 (64.0%) people were categorised as economically active; 4,268 (30.6%) were economically inactive; 455 (3.3%) were unemployed. The town hosts a number of large annual events including a music festival, a river festival and a Pina Colada festival. George Latham (architect) George Latham (died 1871) was an English architect and surveyor, who practised from an office in Nantwich , Cheshire . Latham married
799-455: The Cheshire West and Chester (Northwich and Winsford Locality) which has an estimated 2021 population of 107,000. Northwich and its urban area make up 63,000, Winsford makes up around 34,100 and the remaining 10,000 are the surrounding rural areas of the locality Northwich has been described as having a market since at least 1535, when it was described as a market town by Leland, but there
846-597: The Middle Ages. Battles at which there were sizeable numbers of Cheshire archers include Agincourt and Crécy ; many of these archers hailed from the Northwich Hundred. Richard II employed a bodyguard of these yeoman archers who came from the Macclesfield Hundred and the forest districts of Cheshire. That salt production continued throughout the centuries and can be seen through John Leland 's description of
893-641: The Northwich Outdoor Market on 3 January 2020. The Market's remains were quickly demolished and so far there are no plans to rebuild it. At the time of the Domesday survey (1086) Northwich was in the hundred of Middlewich, but by the 14th century it had become part of the Northwich hundred . This probably happened during the reorganisation of the Hundreds in the 12th century. Northwich has been described as
940-500: The Regalette, (named in honour of the town's last surviving cinema the Regal, which closed in 2007.) In 2009 more than 20,000 people visited Weaver Hall. The first salt museum was set up in the 19th century by Thomas Ward and John Brunner , two local salt proprietors, who felt the town needed something to explain its status as the then "salt capital of the world". Ward and Brunner donated
987-517: The Stanley family, later Earls of Derby in 1484, and stayed in the family's hands until the late 18th century. A local board was founded on 26 June 1863 after the Local Government Act 1858 and it purchased the manor from Arthur Heywood Esq. in 1871. In 1875, the local boards for Northwich and Witton cum Twambrooks were amalgamated, and the resultant district was further extended in 1880 to include
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#17328517848321034-537: The Urban District Council of Northwich with a new district (later borough) council: Vale Royal . Vale Royal covered areas previously covered by Northwich UDC (Urban District Council), Northwich RDC (Rural District Council), Winsford UDC and parts of Runcorn RDC. Northwich Town Council now has the powers of a parish council and is now made up of five main districts of Leftwich, Northwich, Castle, Winnington and Witton. In 2018 Northwich Town Council won 'Council of
1081-580: The Year' at the NALC Star Council Awards. The current Town Clerk of Northwich Town Council is Chris Shaw. Vale Royal Borough Council was abolished on 1 April 2009, and Northwich now falls within the new unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester . Between 1885 and 1983 Northwich gave its name to a parliamentary constituency . Northwich was also split between the Tatton and Eddisbury constituencies until
1128-690: The able-bodied poor to seek employment rather than rely on charity. The Northwich Union Workhouse was commissioned in 1837, after 65 local parishes and townships comprising nearly the whole of mid-Cheshire were combined in October 1836 into a single union. The building was designed by architect George Latham to a standard model. In 1850 a fever hospital was added, and in 1863 better receiving wards – with proper baths – were installed. Poor Law Unions and their Guardians were abolished in April 1930, when Northwich Workhouse transferred to Cheshire County Council as
1175-545: The area and also the history of the building itself as a former workhouse . The museum is located in the building of the old Northwich Union Workhouse, dating from 1839 and situated on the A533 road . It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II listed building . Weaver Hall Museum houses a large collection covering the archaeology, architecture and industries of Cheshire from prehistory to
1222-433: The average household size 2.62, an increase on 2001. The adjacent civil parishes of Anderton with Marbury , Barnton , Davenham , Hartford , Kingsmead , Lostock Gralam , Rudheath , Weaverham and Wincham are in part built up, giving a total population of 53,391 in 2011 considered to use the facilities of Northwich town centre. The population of Northwich is estimated at around 63,000 in 2021, The town forms part of
1269-405: The civil parish was 20,924 in 2021 and the wider built-up area (which also covers parts of several other civil parishes) was 50,531. The area around Northwich has been exploited for its salt pans since Roman times , when the settlement was known as Condate . The town had been severely affected by salt mining, and subsidence has historically been a significant problem. Mine stabilisation work
1316-501: The collapse of underground saltworks has created flashes and there are also local meres – for example, to the north is Budworth Mere and to the north-east is Pick Mere . The population of Northwich in 1664 has been estimated as 560. The population of Northwich over the last 200 years has been: The 2011 Census shows the population of Northwich civil parish to be 19,924. This was composed of 9,878 (49.6%) males and 10,046 (50.4%) females. There were 8,808 households. This makes
1363-690: The daughter of the Wesleyan Methodist minister of Nantwich, the Reverend Thomas Gee. They had at least three sons; the second, Baldwin Latham (1836–1917) became a civil engineer and meteorologist; the youngest, Edwin Davenport Latham, also became a civil engineer. In 1850, Latham was living on Hospital Street in Nantwich. His works include the country houses , Arley Hall and Willington Hall , several churches, Northwich Union Workhouse , and
1410-457: The early medieval period is shown by its record in the Domesday Book of 1086: In the same Mildestuic hundred there was a third wich called Norwich [Northwich] and it was at farm for £8. There were the same laws and customs there as there were in the other wiches and the king and the earl similarly divided the renders. ... All the other customs in these wiches are the same. This
1457-659: The formation of Weaver Vale for the 1997 general election. The seat is currently held by Mike Amesbury (Labour). The town coat of arms features the Latin motto "Sal est Vita" meaning "Salt is Life" , which can be seen on the town's crest of arms. The town is twinned with Dole in France. Northwich is situated in the Cheshire Plain at coordinates h 53°15′20″N 2°31′20″W / 53.25556°N 2.52222°W / 53.25556; -2.52222 (53.255, −2.522). The town
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1504-404: The library and museum to the town in 1887. The museum collection originally shared a building with Northwich library but mine subsidence – once a significant problem in the town – caused this to collapse. A new combined library-and-museum building was put up in 1909. This building still exists but now houses only Northwich library, though the former title over the door remains. The collection
1551-460: The movement of the ground. Some houses were built on a base of steel girders that could be jacked up to level the house with each change in the underlying ground. The town's historical link with the salt industry is celebrated in its museum , which is today in the old workhouse . In 1874, John Brunner and Ludwig Mond founded Brunner Mond in Winnington and started manufacturing soda ash using
1598-576: The present. Permanent displays include a Victorian workhouse schoolroom and the Board of Guardians boardroom. The museum also holds an image library of more than 8000 items recording the history of west Cheshire, particularly in relation to the salt and chemical industries and associated canal transport. In addition to regular displays of items from its own collections the museum also hosts visiting exhibitions, art exhibitions, special events, holiday activities, talks and regular film shows in its own mini-cinema,
1645-617: The rear. [REDACTED] Media related to Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse at Wikimedia Commons Northwich Northwich is a market and port town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester in the ceremonial county of Cheshire , England . It lies in the heart of the Cheshire Plain , at the confluence of the rivers Weaver and Dane . The town is about 18 miles (29 km) east of Chester , 15 miles (24 km) south of Warrington , and 19 miles (31 km) south of Manchester . The population of
1692-477: The salt extracted from the brine. This technique weakened the mines and led to land subsidence as they collapsed. Subsidence affected the town and the surrounding landscape. For example, collapses in 1880 formed Witton Flash as the River Weaver flowed into a huge hole caused by subsidence. Subsidence also allegedly accounts for many old timber-framed houses in the town centre, which were better able to withstand
1739-572: The time the capital of the Corieltauvi tribe . The Romans' interest in the Northwich area is thought to be due to the strategic river crossing and the location of the salt brines . Salt was very important in Roman society; the Roman word salarium , linked employment, salt and soldiers, but the exact link is unclear. It is also theorised that this is the basis for the modern word salary . Another theory
1786-566: The town in 1540: Northwich is a pratie market town but fowle, and by the Salters houses be great stakes of smaul cloven wood, to seethe the salt water that thei make white salt of. Between 1642 and 1643, during the English Civil War , Northwich was fortified and garrisoned by Sir William Brereton for the Parliamentarians . The salt beds beneath Northwich were re-discovered in
1833-474: The whole of Castle Northwich and parts of Hartford , Winnington and Leftwich. On 10 September 1894 these areas were united as the civil parish of Northwich, served by Northwich Urban District Council. The town was further enlarged in 1936 by the addition of parts of Winnington, Lostock Gralam , Barnton , Leftwich and Rudheath , and again in 1955 when parts of Davenham , Hartford, Rudheath and Whatcroft were added. The Local Government Act 1972 replaced
1880-656: Was accidentally discovered at the Winnington Laboratory in 1933. Bakers Frank Roberts & Sons have been associated with the town since 1887 and continues to be based near the town at Rudheath on the A556 . Two of Frank Roberts & Sons's three main business divisions, Roberts Bakery and The Little Treats Co, are based in Northwich and Aldred's The Bakers, is in Ilkeston, Derbyshire. There are many contemporary major employers in nearby Rudheath and Hartford . Based on
1927-416: Was causing problems for the town centre. The stabilisation plan involved removing millions of litres of brine from the four mines and replacing it with a mixture of pulverised fuel ash (PFA), cement and salt. The project was completed in late 2007. The old Magistrates Court and Memorial Hall have been demolished and been replaced by Memorial Court, a £12.5 million cultural and leisure centre, which offers
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1974-449: Was completed in 2007. During Roman times , Northwich was known as Condate, thought to be a Latinisation of a Brittonic name meaning "Confluence". There are several other sites of the same name , mostly in France ; in Northwich's case, it lies at the junction of the rivers Dane and Weaver . Northwich can be identified through two contemporary Roman documents. The first of these is
2021-549: Was moved into its current premises in the former workhouse building at Weaver Hall in June 1981, in large part thanks to the efforts of Mary, Lady Rochester, who played a leading role in its early establishment. It opened under the name of The Salt Museum and displayed exhibits that particularly illustrated the history of the salt industry and its impact on the area. The appointment of Matt Wheeler as Curator in 2004 led to an enhanced programme of special exhibitions and events and prompted
2068-506: Was opened in 1839 in response to the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 , which standardized the system of poor relief throughout England and Wales. Groups of parishes were combined into unions which were responsible for providing for the poor and needy in the area. The law forbade all relief to the able-bodied in their own homes; anyone wishing to receive aid had to live in a workhouse, in which the harsh conditions were intended to encourage
2115-553: Was shortlisted at the British Museum and Heritage Awards for Excellence. In 2010 the proposed redevelopment of a second museum based nearby at the former Lion Salt Works encouraged restructuring, and the museum to adopt its current name of the Weaver Hall Museum and Workhouse. Its focus was also enlarged to cover the broader history of the west Cheshire region. The building which was eventually to become known as Weaver Hall
2162-504: Was the first area to be reclaimed from dereliction and has become a popular recreational area. In 1987 more land was reclaimed to form Furey Wood and over later years, Cheshire County Council 's Land Regeneration Unit reclaimed what is now known as Anderton Nature Park, Witton Flash, Dairy House Meadows, Witton Mill Meadows, and Ashton's and Neumann's Flashes. The area now extends to approximately 800 acres (323 ha) of public space known as Northwich Community Woodlands . In February 2004
2209-535: Was waste when (Earl) Hugh received it; it is now worth 35s. The manor of Northwich belonged to the Earls of Chester until 1237 when the family line died out. Subsequently, Northwich became a royal manor and was given to a noble family to collect tolls in exchange for a set rent. The Cheshire archers were a body of élite soldiers noted for their skills with the longbow, who fought in many engagements in Britain and France in
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