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Hi
I wonder if anyone on GR knows the area of Todmorden, West Yorkshire, and can tell me where Peel Street once was. My ancestors (TOWNEND) lived in Peel Street in the 1841 and 1861 censuses before moving to the Manchester area. Peel Street no longer seems to exist and I have been unable to clarify where it was.

I have tried the library and local historical society but no real joy.

Many thanks
Barbara

Have you looked at the EDsheet for 1841 and 1861 to give some idea of the nearby streets

Just looked at the ED sheet for 1911 census

Some of the streets mentioned on it

Dalton Court, Christ Church Vicarage, Town Hall, Burnley Road, Mount Place, Peel St,Mills St, Ridge Foot House, Coupland St, Doghouse Lane, Pleasant View

I wil do that - sorry, sometimes just needs more than one brain (especially when mine does not seem to be working too well) lol

Many thanks

Barbara

Peel St was in the area known as Cobden. In the book I have each time it is mentioned it says 'Peel St, Cobden' (can't find my map at the moment)

don't know if this site is of any interest to you

todmordenandwalsden.couk

from what I can work out the area would have been roundabout where Doghouse Lane starts. On the same page of the census is Ridge Foot and there are still streets called Ridge Bank and Back Ridge street

Hi LancashireAnn

Thank you so much for the info

Sorry I have not been on earlier. We have been out watching a charity performance of the Full Monty

Many thanks

Barbara

Have discovered that there is actually a Peel Cottage Street and Peel Cottage Road in Walsden, Todmorden. Would these perhaps be anywhere near the original Peel Street although, looking on www.multimap.co.uk, it would appear that Doghouse Lane is very close to the main Todmorden station in the centre of the town?

My gt-gt-grandfather, Benjamin TOWNEND, was a schoolmaster in Todmorden in the 1840s -1860s and, I would imagine, at a school perhaps connected to a church as he was also a Sunday school master and a lay preacher.

His eldest son was William Greenwood Townend but I haved yet to discover the origins of his middle name of Greenwood as it does not seem to be a name that figures anywhere else in the family.

Greenwood is a very popular name in Todmorden - there are even Greenwood Greenwood's! I thought it would be easy tracing a Greenwood forename but discovered on wandering round Cross-stone cemetery how wrong I was.

it is near the station which was really on the outskirts of the toen, the centre being more on the opposite side of the main Burnley/Rochdale Road. Looking at the street names in that area of the 1851 census Centre Vale also seems to be there which is in the same area callled Cobden. I wonder if all those streets were in the area now Centre Vale Park - only guessing though

Hi LancashireAnn

Benjamin Townend who I have been researching in Todmorden married Elizabeth Sutcliffe - another very very common name in Todmorden but, fortunately, I do have her details as I have managed to trace their marriage and have a copy of the certificate.

Sutcliffes!! I have them in my tree too.

The only breakthrough with them I had was finding a will (Robert Sutcliffe) where he named everyone living in Oldroyd at the time including the son-in-law I was interested in and a brother but have not managed to identify the right family yet.

I looked at a book I have called 'Annals of Todmorden' but could not find any mention of Benjamin.

Hi Ann

The Townend line that I am researching lived at 47 Flush, Liversedge, and then there son, Benjamin (my gt gt grandfather) moved to Todmorden. He was a schoolmaster there and a lay preacher. I guess these were the reasons he moved to Todmorden but have not been able to trace the school he taught at etc. (Thought if I could get a feel for whereabouts Peel Street was it may help in the research). Later Benjamin moved to Middleton (where I hail from) and he became a City Missionary in Salford.

Do you live in Tod or is it just that your research is centred there?

Barbara

Hi Barbara

No - I live near Preston but my husbands maternal line were all from the area, mainly Mallison, West, Sutcliffe, Greenwood

Not too far to go occasionally to find graves and look at newspapers in the library

Do you know where Benjamin was a lay preacher?

No, not been able to find that out yet.

I have he and his family on the 1841 census for Todmorden and on the 1861 census for Todmorden. I looked for him on the 1851 census for ages and then someone tracked them down for me. His wife and family were with her brother in Todmorden and he was in London doing lay preacher training with 14 others from around the country.

wonder if it was at the church where he was married

is there a site or book similar to Crockfords for Congregational / Methodist lay preachers

I wondered that. They were married at Eastwood Chapel, Todmorden, but have not been able to find many records re it and those that do, do not mention him.

(Replying to this from work as having a bit of trouble with the PC at home at the mo).

Go to http://www.old-maps.co.uk/ and find coords 393500,424500
Select the 1848 Lancs & Furness and "enlarge map"
Click on Enhanced Zoom on the map, and zoom on the map some more.
You'll see there's Todmorden National School just 100m N of Christ Church, straddling the Lancs-Yorks boundary of the day.

I don't know if that's relevant - the school's no longer there, although the church is.
http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/2432369

I reckon the school was off to the right of photo, maybe 150m.
The Central Methodist Church wasn't far away - check a pic's inset map (blue grid lines are 1km apart)
http://www.geograph.org.uk/gridref/SD9324?centi=SD938242

Thank you so much mgnv

That's wonderful - I'm off to have a look now

The help on GR is brilliant

Thanks once again

Barbara