The Borough of Bury has a rich and diverse heritage.
The name Bury was established in Saxon times and means ‘a stronghold’. In ancient times the area was made up of forest, marsh and moorland and was inhabited by nomadic herdsmen. During the Middle Ages, the outbreak of the Bubonic Plague led to a shortage of farm labour throughout the country and, as a result, the land fell into decay.
In order to turn around their fortunes, the people of Bury turned the land into pastures, began farming sheep and before long, Bury became a centre for wool and woollen cloth. Little changed from this time until the beginning of the 18th century, when a local resident revolutionised the textile industry. In 1733, John Kay, born in Walmersley, Bury, invented the ‘picking peg’ which made the shuttle in his hand loom move more quickly. It became known as the “Flying Shuttle” and revolutionised cotton weaving. The Industrial Revolution began, mills were erected at an astonishing rate and the town of Bury ad the surrounding areas grew both in stature and population.
The Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal Company was formed in 1791, and within five years, barges were transporting coal into Bury and organising passenger trips to Bolton. The canal is still in existence, and plans to restore it to its former glory are in progress.
The nineteen fifties and sixties saw a decline in the cotton industry, but Bury’s diversity of industry helped the area survive the decline.
Architectural heritage
Bury boasts a wide ranging collection of architecture, making it a vibrant and captivating Borough. In 1903, the Earl of Derby and Sir W H Bailey commissioned the erection of a memorial to John Kay, the Bury-born inventor of the Flying Shuttle which still stands in Kay Gardens.
Bury based architectural firm, Maxwell and Tuke, who most notably designed Blackpool Tower was responsible for designing numerous buildings in the area, the last of which was the Whitehead Clock Tower and Gardens, which stands just south of the Town Hall.
Other attractive buildings in Bury include Bury Art Gallery and Museum which was specially built in 1901 to house the Wrigley Collection – over two hundred oil paintings, watercolours, prints and ceramics collected by local paper manufacturer Thomas Wrigley. The town also has ten war memorials dedicated to those who lost their lives in the first and second world wars.
The history of Bury has laid the foundations to what we now see today – a thriving and bustling Borough.
