Colne The Five Minute Spare Guide

Colne The Lancashire town that’s nowhere near the Colne Valley.

Here at Five Minutes Spare, we take great delight in summarising the best places to visit in Britain. Colne is next on our list and presents a worthwhile adversary. While the Colne Water is not the River Colne, and the Colne Valley is far farther to the south, we want to give this other Colne a place on the shelves of the Five Minutes Spare Travel Guide Hall of Fame.

Do you come from Colne? Are you mad at us for making mistakes? Do you want to correct us? Hop over to Facebook and let us have it. You can also register with the site and give us what for on the forum. We just want the company.

Meantime let’s take a wander around Colne and find out why 17 thousand northerners so love to call it home.

Early History of Colne

Although the British History team say the background of Colne is quite obscure, they do point to it being an independent parish in 1120. By this time, Colne had a church, a school, a market, and a fair. This all points to a well-established town that was on its way to industrial prowess. We wondered if there were traces of the town that went back earlier than this… so we did some digging looking for Romans but didn’t find any. Since it’s not on any of the major roads, that makes sense.

What we did find was evidence regarding nearby Pendle Hill. Now we already produced a town guide on Clitheroe, the town nearest to Pendle Hill. They named the borough for the hill, in fact. This area has an archaeological trail that you can follow, which maps out the town’s growth down through history. The bones of a 13,000-year-old elk are the clearest historical artefacts from this time. Around 4,000 BC, Neolithic artefacts produced by early humans tell us the area saw settlement.

You can find these artefacts in Clitheroe Castle. The area has at least one Bronze Age burial mound at the Devils Apronful. There are also standing stones at the Nick of Pendle, thought to be an attempt at Bronze Age art.

We finally found our Romans. They built the Ribchester to Elslack road that ran around Pendle Hill. We knew they would be here somewhere. You can visit the Ribchester Roman Fort nearby if you’d like further evidence of Romans.

The Medieval Era

Although many of the towns in the north escaped logging in the Domesday Survey ordered by King William in 1186, we know that the land was occupied by then. The town was large enough in 1323 to require court records, so that shows us it was growing for some time.

Colne had a small role to play in the 1643 English Civil War. Parliamentarians stationed at Emmott Lane Head would check cavaliers from Yorkshire. There were skirmishes the following year, at least one of which was inside Colne itself. The Royalists won the fight under Sir Charles Lucas.

The Cloth Hall, where locals bought and sold cloth throughout the years, opened in 1775. By this time, the town had switched from wool weaving to cotton cloth weaving. When this industry died out it caused massive financial issues here, but it meant freedom for the slaves who were involved in the growing & picking.

Fun Facts About Colne

At this stage in the travel guides, we like to interrupt all that history. Walls of text are boring and nobody except a historian cares if we get it all down on paper. In this section, we gather the gossip from the area and turn it into fun facts. We call them fun facts and trivia, but some are macabre instead. It’s a potluck. Here’s what we learned about Colne:

• Colne is on the Colne Water, not the River Colne. The River Colne is in Yorkshire.
• The town’s heritage trail takes you passed the memorial to Wallace Hartley. He was the bandmaster on the Titanic who lived here in 1915.
• Lancashire Life Magazine once voted Colne the capital of cool. This is especially nice of them since Crime Rate votes it the third most dangerous small town in Lancashire.
• The Waterside Bridge appears in the Court Roll of 1323, though whether it was wood or stone, we don’t know.
• Colne Town Hall was the creation of Alfred Waterhouse. This is a Victorian architect known for his gothic revival style. It opened in 1894.
• There were 26,000 people living in Colne in 1911. Nowadays there are only 17,000.

OK, so Colne isn’t all that remarkable. Nevertheless, let’s dust it off and jump back into history. Even if the fun facts are less than fun, history always has something to talk about in-store.

The Industrial Revolution

The Industrial period saw huge growth for the whole area of Lancashire. When local prospectors discovered coal in the ground beneath their feet, wealthy landowners quickly began tapping into that resource. As well as a thriving coal mining history which began at the tail end of the 1700s, Colne had a thriving textile industry. Textile mills existed in any town that had a river running through them. The river would turn the wheels which powered the looms. Many mills employed children since their smaller hands could pick apart threads easier.

To begin with, the textile industry in Colne focused on wool. The wool would arrive in town, fulled out, dyed and woven into cloth. Later, that wool became cotton, brought over from America by the same wealthy landowners. Slaves picked the cotton in America and the landowners shipped it here for weaving. Of all the countries in the world, or of all the empires, the British did some terrible things and profited off the backs of free labour more than once.

During the 18^th century, the population of Colne was bigger than it is now. It was a thriving industrial town with miners, weavers, and a brand new railway opened in 1848. The line to Skipton closed in the 1970s. At the height of its prosperity, there were 55 cotton mills in Colne. 17 were in the south valley and 10 were towards Nelson. Most of the roads as we know them opened in the 20s and 30s. The Crown Hotel opened in 1852 to serve railroad users.

You can still see the remaining 5-storey mill, the only one in town. The Haslam’s Mill opened in 1840 but its owner went bankrupt. Legend has it that he hung himself from the main beam on the fifth floor, right beside the water tower. He died in 1933.

The Modern Town of Colne

After the new roads of the 20s and 30s, and after the great depression saw a mill owner commit suicide, the town was in recession. The young men from Colne gave their lives twice for the World Wars. The memorial commemorates both wars after its unveiling in 1930. Those that did not go to war stayed home to mine the coal and iron we needed to keep making weapons. It was a challenging time for this area of the country. Although removed from bombing, the rural areas suffered rationing and often had extra moves to feed thanks to the displacement of children out of cities.

Modern Colne retains the architecture, history, and stories, that make it such an abundant place to live. Colne is attractive and still quiet. The fall of the population here means more space to stretch out in, a premise enjoyed by many residents. The town’s descendants are the grandsons and daughters of the coal miners that worked so hard here. The heritage of the industrial past is deep-rooted in all areas of Lancashire – but especially here.

Since the last of the mines closed in the 80s and the town turned to retail for prosperity, there has been a shift in the demographics. The town is now one of many commuter towns supporting the major commerce centres in the region. New gardens and sculptures around the town centre have perked the area up anew, leading to a brighter future for all the residents involved. Go along and have a gander – but not until we talk you through the best things to see and do when you get there.

Famous People from Colne in Lancashire

In this section, we like to take note of all the famous people from our destination of choice. Today we are hunting down the famous people from Colne in the Borough of Pendle. There may be a few surprises, but usually northern towns have fifty famous footballers and a spattering of other notable names. Here are our top picks of famous people from Colne:

• Remember the story about how the band on the Titanic knew they were going to drown? They say the band played even as the ship snapped in half and the crowd screamed. They say they played their way to a watery grave, gallantly losing themselves in the music while their lives ebbed away. Those guys? The band leader’s name was Wallace Hartley. He was a Colne man. You can visit a memorial to him near the cenotaph in the town’s cemetery.
• Hartley is a big name in the area. The maker behind Hartley’s Jam, Sir William Pickles Hartley, was a Colne man.
• British journalist Tony Livesey lives in Colne.
• We want to say J.R. Hartley, but only because it would be funny, not because it would be true. Remember Fly Fishing? If you know, you know. If you don’t, welcome to the world youngsters. Fun fact: this is Fly Fishing is a real book by a real author, who was played by an actor in the ad.
• Actress Natalie Gumede is from here. She plays Kirsty Soames in Corrie.
• Actress Hannah Hobley, who plays Chantelle in Benidorm.
• Southampton and Burnley footballer Dave Walker was from here.
• Royal Opera House singer and actor John Rawnsley is a Colne man.

That’s a sizable sum of famous people from a town with less than 20,000 people in it. Not bad Colne, not bad at all. Let’s move on to the part you have all been waiting for. Put your hands together and welcome the best attractions in Colne for your entertainment.

Best Attractions in Colne

If you want to know whether Colne makes a wonderful place to visit for the day or not, then this section has the answers. Here are all the best things to see and do if you visit.

Historic Sites & Landmarks

The Colne Parish Church is a well-known local landmark. The pews are of dark teak woods and the interior décor is impressive. They named the church St Bartholomew’s. It has been the Pendle parish church for close to 900 years now. It’s big enough to have once accommodated hundreds of miners and weavers.

In the churchyard, you will find graves dating back to the 1700s and even beyond that. One of the more interesting sites to spot is the Wallace Hartley memorial. This tombstone marks the sinking of the Titanic and its incredible band, who still play on it even now.

Galleries

Not a true gallery, but Colne is home to a wonderful outdoor sculpted art space. The Panopticon Atom sits atop a nearby hill where it highlights spectacular views over the town. The atom was the brainchild of Peter Meacock and Katarina Novomestska. The Architecture Central Workshop is responsible for this one. It’s a bit of a hike up into the country park so again, this attraction is only for those who are fully mobile.

Museums

The best-known museum in town is the British in India Museum. This hidden niche museum is in Hendon Mill on Hallam Road. Opened in 1972, it features a collection of artefacts all commemorating the British wars in India. There are swords and pieces of armour, they have paintings and items stolen from Indian army camps. The museum has ivory pieces and paintings from the era.

Outdoor Attractions

You can’t come to Colne without visiting the Wycoller Country Park. There is a bit of a walk from the car park to the main parts of the park, so please bear this in mind if you have mobility issues.  Noted for being one of the prettiest public country parks in Lancashire, this area is famous for the Bronte sisters, who grew up nearby. Historians believe some of the landscapes you see on this walk could have inspired such writings as ‘Jane Eyre.’

Ball Grove Park is also worth a visit especially if you are an angler. There is a car park which is handy as it is a bit of a hike from the train station. Facilities wise there is a cafe & picnic area and a play area for the kids. Fishing wise it s a coarse pond covering around 2.5 acres and although there are around 20 pegs it’s worth booking in advance. You will need a rod licence but all but the casual angler should have one already.

Lastly, head to Earnie’s if you want to have some fun on your day off. This place is ideal for kids and teens. It has roller skating inside and its own pool. You can drop the kids off and sit in the café. They have a juice bar and an arcade room filled with games to play. You can leave your teenagers here on a Saturday morning, go do your shopping, and then pick them up at 5 pm for tea. They won’t even be bored.

Sports Teams

Colne Football Club describes itself as a forward-thinking professional football club. They started in 1996 and are still going strong today. They have a lady and a youth team, as well as a first team.

For rugby, Colne and Nelson have two senior teams and a youth team on the go. You can learn more about rugby in Colne here.

Colne only has a 9-hole golf course, which is a little unusual for a town based in England. You can visit Colne Golf Club and play, or you can trek out to Nelson Golf Course, instead. There is a golf club at Brierfield about 3 miles away, and another at Marsden Park, about 8 miles away.

Recreation

Visit the Hippodrome Theatre in Colne to catch a show. This place has both amateur and professional performances. See the youth theatre group or join an am-dram play for yourself. Catch a matinee or browse shows when you are in town. It’s a beautiful old building, too.

The Pendle Hippodrome isn’t the only theatre in town. Colne still retains a number of theatre-loving residents. You can also catch a pantomime or professional show at the Muni. This venue turns into a suitable place to hire for your big event. They regularly facilitate wedding events here. So you never know, you might get two shows for the price of one.

Shopping

There is a weekly market in Colne which they hold on a Wednesday and a Saturday. You can buy an array of things here, from jewellery to furniture, pants to vegetables. They have an annual fair day, which used to fall on the 24^th of August but may change year on year. You can still attend a cattle market here on the last Wednesday of any given month.

There is a strange story about the Piece Hall or Cloth Hall here. The building saw the trade of cotton and wool cloth goods over the years. The trading would start when the overseer rang a bell. After the bell rang a second time, they added a tax to the cost of trading. You can imagine the madness and rushing this system caused.

Asides from the weekly market, go to the Boundary Outlet for great discount clothing.

Places to Eat in Colne

This depends on who you are. If you are a teenager looking for some cool places to eat ice cream and hang out, try Tubbs. If you want a sit-down meal for an evening’s date, Carlo’s or Bannisters are good stops. Bannisters do a mean high tea. There’s Jim’s Vegetarian for those that don’t eat meat and there’s a Jaipur Indian for the spice lovers.

Places to Drink in Colne

There are loads of places to drink. Try the Cask N Keg for a good pint or visit Boyce’s Barrel to enjoy a sit-in bar. You might also choose the Venue if you want to eat with your drink.

Places to Stay in Colne

You have the option of the old Crown Hotel, circa the 1800s. You can stay in Throstle Nest Farm B&B, or you can choose the Hare & Hounds Inn. The Alma Inn is the more expensive option.

Other Notable Attractions in the Borough of Pendle

There are plenty of other things to do in the surrounding countryside if you find yourself tired of Colne. Check out these nearby attractions and get ready to have an enjoyable time:

• Visit Lancaster Castle
• Go explore the Forest of Bowland
• Climb Pendle Hill and enjoy the views
• Go to Blackpool on a day trip
• Visit nearby Accrington
• Go to Clitheroe Castle
• Visit Turbary Woods Bird and Owl Sanctuary

There’s something for everyone in this area of the country. We actively encourage exploration.

How to get there?

You now know everything there is to know about Colne in Pendle. Of course, it would help if you could get there. Here are our best directions, bearing in mind that goldfish have better geographical instincts than we do.

By Road

Take the M65 north heading out of Manchester, and you’ll hit Colne.

By Rail

Look for Colne Station on the Northern Line.

By Air

The nearest airport should be Manchester Airport.

By Sea

Unfortunately, there is no port or seafront here.

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