Blue Plaques in Oldham

“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

Historic Environment Records

You can also find details of Blue Plaques by searching the Historic Environment Records here.

Blue Plaques in Oldham

Historic Environment Records

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