Hyde | |
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Hyde from Werneth Low |
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Hyde shown within Greater Manchester | |
Population | 34,003 (2011 Census) |
OS grid reference | SJ945945 |
Metropolitan borough | |
Metropolitan county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Hyde |
Postcode district | SK14 |
Dialling code | 0161 |
Police | Greater Manchester |
Fire | Greater Manchester |
Ambulance | North West |
EU Parliament | North West England |
UK Parliament | |
Hyde is a town in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, it had a population of 34,003.
Historically in Cheshire, it is 5 miles (8 km) northeast of , 6 miles (10 km) west of Glossop and 7 miles (11 km) east of Manchester.
Newton Hall was present in the 13th century. The area formed a township of the parish of . Its name is derived from the Hide, a measure of land for taxation purposes, taken to be that area of land necessary to support a peasant family. In later times it was taken to be equivalent to 120 acres (49 ha). In the late 18th century the area that was to become the town centre was no more than a cluster houses known as Red Pump Street. Gee Cross was much larger and 'Hyde' was still only used to refer to the estates of Hyde Hall on the banks of the River Tame. Altogether there were only 3,500 inhabitants in the district in 1801. The town is largely a creation of the 19th century and the Industrial Revolution.
The population of Hyde increased due to the success of the cotton mills during the Industrial Revolution of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, at one stage there were 40 working mills. By 1872 only 27 remained, half of the remaining mills closed between 1921 and 1939 and there is only one working mill in the town today. There were many mill owning families, including the Sidebotham, Hibbert and Horsfield families. The main employers in the mills were the Ashton family who successfully ran a combined spinning and weaving company. Most mills concentrated on one process only. The Ashton family built Hyde Chapel on Stockport Road, Gee Cross. The Ashton Brothers' Mill has recently been demolished to make way for a housing estate.
St George's Church was built in 1832 as a chapel of ease to . It was built at the instigation of John Hyde Clarke of Hyde Hall and was the first Church of England place of worship in the town. St George's became the parish church of part of Hyde township in 1842. Later additions include the lychgate, boathouse by the canal, hearse house, parish rooms and numerous vicarages. The church has a 110-foot (34 m) tower housing eight bells and a clock.