Mossley, Lancashire Genealogy

England Lancashire  Lancashire Parishes

Parish History
MOSSLEY, a chapelry, in the division of Hartshead, parish and union of Ashton-under-Lyne, hundred of Salford, S. division of Lancashire, 3 miles (N. E.) from Ashton-under-Lyne, and 9½ (E.) from Manchester; containing, in 1841, 1081 inhabitants. This is a large village, prettily situated in a valley surrounded by the Saddleworth and Cheshire hills. About the year 1773 it was a small place; in 1794 it had increased to 100 houses; and in 1841 the number was 500, including the portion called Brook-Bottom. Formerly, the staple trade consisted of coarse woollens; cotton has been latterly introduced, and the inhabitants are now employed in both manufactures. Mr. James Buckley's cotton-mill, built in 1817, employs 250 hands; his residence at Quick-Edge, on the side of a hill, commands beautiful and extensive views. The mills of Mr. G. Mayall and Mr. J. Mayall are also in this vicinity. Several stone-quarries and collieries are in operation in the chapelry. The Huddersfield canal passes through it; and here is a station on the Manchester and Huddersfield railway: the river Tame separates Cheshire and Lancashire at Mossley. Fairs for cattle are held on June 21st and the last Monday in October. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £150, with a house; patron, the Rector of Ashton. The chapel, dedicated to St. George, was built in 1755, on land given by Sir Joseph Pickford, and was enlarged in 1789. The Methodists of the New Connexion have a place of worship. Excellent national schools were erected in 1843, and there are schools in the neighbourhood built in the same year.

From: A Topographical Dictionary of England by Samuel Lewis (1848), pp. 350-353. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51161 Date accessed: 20 July 2010.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
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Census records
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Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Lancashire Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

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 * England Jurisdictions 1851
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Web sites
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