52 residents # 30 The Old Country

The Old Country?

The time before Springhill House was built - c 1835? There is evidence of settlement in the area before then however. The oldest house in Springhill is Polefield Cottage, dated 1642 for a start.

That however is the oldest building still standing. There is evidence of settlement before then too. When the area emerged from Forest Law in 1507, one of the pre-existing vaccaries was Deadwneclough. This lay in the area between Rawtenstall and Waterfoot on which Springhill now stands and the Clitheore Court Rolls give some evidence of a number of residents living in the area at the time of deforestation.

Before then details are scanty. It is said that on deforestation Rossendale as a whole held 16 individuals; the briefest of glimpses at the court rolls indicates that this is an under-estimate but it wasn't densely populated. Deadwenclough had one of two pinfolds in the area (probably about half way down Dobbin Lane), possibly due to its relatively central location but possibly also due to the number of settlements in the area.

The Old Country for this study therefore is the same country but before 1507. We have some idea what happened after that date. Before then, very little.

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