Technical School

Technical education in the district started in 1876 at the Viaduct Institute, but by the start of the 20th century demand for technical education to support the numerous engineering works in the district was growing rapidly. Initially to have been a joint building with the library, budgetary problems ensured that the library was built first, with the neighbouring technical school following a couple of years later. It was opened on 28th September 1911 by Sir Henry Hibbert with a golden key presented by the contractors (Massey Brothers of Pemberton). 

In 2015 the local council took the popular decision to refuse planning permission, however this was subsequently overruled by the national planning inspectorate and the building was demolished by a private developer.

Library

The Library was opened on the 22nd July, 1909, by Lord Newton, who had donated the land that the library stands upon. The cost of the building was £3,991 15s. 9d which was covered by a £4,000 grant from the industrialist Andrew Carnegie. The public had voted in a referendum to accept the grant which was conditional on the Council levying a penny rate to support the ongoing costs of running the library. The building was designed by Mr. Myrtle Smith, a London architect, and built by Mr. Harry Fairclough, of Warrington. As well as the usual books and reference materials, the library holds a range of local interest artifacts and historical images, and is an excellent resource for the community

Frying Pan

The “Frying Pan” was created in the 1930’s as one of four small public spaces around the town. It originally had park benches but in recent years had fallen into disuse. When the Technical School building was demolished in 2015 the ornate stonework seen here was rescued thanks to the efforts of the local council, Newton and Earlestown Community Group, and financial assistance from the Wates group, and this now forms an interesting local landmark. The opening ceremony for the revamped Frying Pan was held on 2nd May 2015, where it was dedicated to the memory of Sylvia O’Neill. 

Bottle Works

The glass works was located on what is now Silverdale Road. It was established in the early 1830s to produce Crown Glass but really came into its own in 1866 when Charles Borron took it on to produce Glass Bottles. The works was closed in 1924 and demolished in 1927, exceptforWindy Bank House which was the works manager’s house, and which still stands near the corner of Silverdale Road and Belvedere Road.