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“Blue plaques” are widely used in towns and cities across the country to commemorate famous people or events. Although the Council has no statutory obligation to erect blue plaques it has chosen to do so in recent years.
There are currently 26 Blue Plaques across the borough. A Blue Plaque trail guide celebrating Oldham industry, entitled “Oldham’s Industrial Heritage” is available from our reception or from Oldham Local Studies & Archives, which highlights all the blue plaques connected
with industry.
There are no formal criterion for the selection of suitable subjects for plaques although the widely accepted principle is that the person or event should be sufficiently famous to be familiar to a succeeding generation, thus maintaining the interest and relevance of the plaque over time.
The commissioning of blue plaques is currently undertaken by Planning Services as part of its conservation function, in consultation with the relevant Area Committee.
| Subject | Location |
|---|---|
| Peterloo Massacre, 1819 | Civic Centre |
| Sir Winston Churchill - MP for Oldham, 1900 | Old Town Hall |
| Incorporation as a Borough, 1849 | Old Town Hall |
| Lord Rhodes - Industrialist, Politician, Statesman | 3 Valley Cottages, Greenfield |
| Sir William Walton - Composer | 93 Werneth Hall Road, Oldham |
| Helen Bradbury - Artist | 3 Princes Street, Lees |
| Site of Oldham Royal Infirmary | Oldham VI Form College |
| Sebastian de Ferranti - Industrialist | Siemens, Manchester Rd, Hollinwood |
| Henry Platt - Industrial engineer, founder of “Platt’s” | The Smithy, Bridge House, Dobcross |
| Dr Patrick Steptoe - ‘Test tube’ baby pioneer | Royal Oldham Hospital, Maternity Unit |
| Ben Brierley - Dialect writer | 466 Oldham Rd, Failsworth |
| Joseph Platt - 1st secretary Northern Rugby Union | 11 Queen Street, Oldham |
| First Yates’s Wine Lodge | 8a High Street, Oldham |
| Current Yates’s Wine Lodge | 50 Yorkshire Street, Oldham |
| Creation of park during cotton famine & Civil War | Alexandra Park |
| Roy Chadwick - aeroplane designer (Lancaster Bomber) | British Aerospace, Chadderton |
| Annie Kenney - leading suffragette | Lees Brook Mill, Lees |
| John Bunting - largest individual mill owner in Lancashire | 115 Union Street, Oldham |
| John Lees - originator of Fish & Chips | Market Hall, Albion Street, Oldham |
| Bradbury Sewing Machines | Park Road, nr King Street roundabout |
| James Dronsfield - Industrialist | Ashton Road, Oldham |
| First cotton mill in area | Mill Brow Street, Royton |
| SSL Int. PLC - originally Seton, home of Tubular bandages | Tubiton House, Brook Street, Oldham |
| Coin Controls - world leader in transaction automation | New Coin Street, Royton |
| Lydia Becker - suffragist | Foxdenton Hall, Chadderton |
| Dame Sarah Lees - suffragist, philanthropist, Mayor of Oldham County Borough | Werneth Park, Old |
| Bishop Wheeler | Sacred Heart Church, Uppermill |
| Site of former Royton Hall | Hall Street, Royton |
| Henry Taylor - Swimmer and Olympic Gold Medalist | Chadderton Swimming Stadium |
You can also find details of Blue Plaques by searching the Historic Environment Records here.