Calder Vale

Calder Vale is an English village, located on the edge of the Forest of Bowland[1] in Lancashire. It lies on the River Calder in a deep valley with only a single road providing vehicular access. The name Calder is thought to be derived from the Old Norse kaldr ("cold").

Calder Vale

St. John's church
Calder Vale
Location in Wyre Borough
Calder Vale
Location in the Forest of Bowland
Calder Vale
Location within Lancashire
Population2,148 (2011.Ward)
OS grid referenceSD535455
Civil parish
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townPRESTON
Postcode districtPR3
Dialling code01995
PoliceLancashire
FireLancashire
AmbulanceNorth West
UK Parliament

The village was founded by Quakers Jonathan and Richard Jackson,[2] and in 1835 a cotton-weaving mill — the Lappet Mill — was built, powered by the River Calder. The mill and mill pond still exist and Lappet Mill is still working as a cotton mill. One of its main products is the red, black and white checked cloth used for Arab headscarves and it was said that Yasser Arafat's headdresses were made at the Mill.[3] The Jackson brothers also built many of the terraced houses still in occupation close to the mills.[4]

The church of St. John the Evangelist lies high above the village, linked to it by a woodland footpath. It was consecrated on 12 August 1863.[5] It serves the adjacent village of Oakenclough, in addition to Calder Vale.

The village also contains a primary school, Calder Vale Church of England School, which was built concurrently with the church.[6] It is a small school consisting of two teachers and about 30 pupils, and it is situated next door to St. John's Church, the two being very closely linked.

There is also a village hall and a Methodist chapel in the village centre. The village also has Boy Scouts and Brownies, a Women's Institute, who meets monthly in the village hall, and a Village Club.

Every Sunday in May the villagers get together and organise the 'BlueBell Teas' (cakes, sandwiches and local produce are sold for charity and for the upkeep of the village hall and 'mission room'). On the second Saturday of June every year there is a village festival.

The elected Member for Wyre Borough Council's Calder Ward is Councillor David Meirion Williams.[7]

Governance

The village falls in the electoral ward of Calder. This ward stretches south-east to Barnacre. The total ward population at the 2011 census was 2,148.[8]

  • The terraced housing that makes up the village's Victoria Terrace. The village hall, with its green sign, is in view
  • Another flank of terraced houses, on the aptly named Long Row, stands next to the church
  • Lappet Mill

See also

References
  1. http://www.forestofbowland.com/files/uploads/pdfs/leaflets/vl_caldervale_bleasdale.pdf
  2. "Calder Vale at ForestofBowland.com". Archived from the original on 22 September 2008. Retrieved 7 September 2008.
  3. Lappet Mill on geograph.org.uk
  4. Lancashire Telegraph article on Calder Vale
  5. Wyre Borough Council - Calder Vale Archived 17 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Brief history" of Calder Vale C of E School
  7. Wyre Councillor David Williams
  8. "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 4 June 2015.

Further reading
  • Wilcock, Jack (2012). The Story of Calder Vale and Oakenclough: A Lancashire Village Victorian Diary. ISBN 978-0-9531719-3-4.
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