Lancashire

With a population of around 1,400, Lancashire covers 1,878 square miles (4,864 sq km) and is located in the North East of England, on the Irish Sea. The county town is Lancaster.

In Lancashire there are the popular towns of Bury, Colne, Preston, Thornton, Blackburn, Bolton, Leigh, Chorley, Bury, Lancaster, Southport, Darwen, Wigan, Morecambe, Accrington, Pilling, Blackpool, Oldham, Rochdale, Colne, Burnley, Fleetwood, and Blackpool.
 

Geography

The north-western part of the county is part of the Lake District and the National Park. The west and the south consist of lowlands, known as the Lancashire plain, and some moorlands. The county has deposits of coal, slate, and sandstone. The principal rivers are the Mersey (which forms much of the county's southern border), the Lune, the Wyre, and the Ribble. The coastline is low and broken by estuaries. Morecambe Bay separates Furness from the rest of the county. Lancashire's principal cities are Manchester and Liverpool.

 

Industry

The chief industries are textiles, paper, chemicals, rubber goods, and glass. Arable and dairy products are also economically important, and market gardening is a major source of income near the Ribble estuary. Lancaster and Preston are the main industrial centres.

 

History

Lancashire in Anglo-Saxon times was part of the kingdom of Northumbria. In 1351 it was made a county palatine, and in 1399 the palatine rights were vested in the king. Lancashire's economic growth began in medieval times with the introduction of the woollen industry. The process was accelerated by the Industrial Revolution, and the population increased rapidly in the 19th and early 20th cent.