Townapedia
Great Harwood
Great Harwood · Mike and Kirsty Grundy, CC BY-SA 2.0
Town Hall, Great Harwood
Town Hall, Great Harwood · David Dixon, CC BY-SA 2.0
St Bartholomew's Church, Great Harwood
St Bartholomew's Church, Great Harwood · Alexander P Kapp, CC BY-SA 2.0
Baptistery windows of Velarde's church St Gabriel's, Blackburn by Brian Clarke
Baptistery windows of Velarde's church St Gabriel's, Blackburn by Brian Clarke · Brian Clarke, CC BY-SA 4.0
St James' Church, Altham
St James' Church, Altham · Alexander P Kapp, CC BY-SA 2.0
St John's Church, Great Harwood
St John's Church, Great Harwood · Alexander P Kapp, CC BY-SA 2.0

Great Harwood, United Kingdom

Great Harwood is a town of 11,467 people in England, United Kingdom.

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Population11,467 GeoNames
RegionEngland
Elevation410 ft 125 m
Time zoneEurope/London
Land area0.9 sq mi 12,913 people per sq mi
Nearest airportWarton Aerodrome (WRT) 20 mi
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Why visit Great Harwood

Townapedia lists 10 parks and trails, 59 places to eat, 4 places to stay and 1 attraction in and around town.

About Great Harwood

Great Harwood is a town in the Hyndburn district of Lancashire, England, located 5 miles (8.0 km) north east of Blackburn and adjacent to the Ribble Valley. Great Harwood is part of the "Three Towns" conurbation along with the towns of Clayton-le-Moors and Rishton. In 2001, the town had a population of 11,220, which decreased to 10,800 at the census of 2011.

From the Wikipedia article Great Harwood (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Things to do1

Bowley Hill

Scenic view · 0.8 mi

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Parks, trails and playgrounds10

Dunkenhalgh Park

Park · 1.4 mi

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Great Harwood Community Space.

Park · 0.9 mi

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Haydock Square

Park

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Lowerfold Park

Park

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Memorial Park

Park · 0.5 mi

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Mercer Park

Park · 1.0 mi

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The Turrets Community Garden

Park · 1.4 mi

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Windsor Road Recreation ground

Park · 0.4 mi

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Restaurants and cafes59

Old England Forever

Bar and pub · 1.2 mi

13-15 Church Street

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Roebuck Inn

Bar and pub · 1.2 mi

High Street, Blackburn

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Canal View

Cafe · Coffee Shop · 1.2 mi

2 - 4 Hermitage Street, Blackburn

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106 County Bar

Bar and pub · 1.2 mi

106 High Street, Rishton

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Balti House

Restaurant · 1.2 mi

1-3 High Street, Blackburn

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Balti Stan

Restaurant · 1.4 mi

217-219 Whalley Road, Accrington

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Cafe Latte

Cafe

53-55 Queen Street, Blackburn

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Cross Axes

Bar and pub

7 Church Street, Blackburn

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Forts Arms

Bar and pub · 1.0 mi

Barnes Street, Accrington

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Free Gardeners

Bar and pub · 1.1 mi

Parker Street, Blackburn

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Game Cock

Restaurant · 1.4 mi

8 Whalley Road, Blackburn

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Park Hotel

Bar and pub · 0.6 mi

1 Harwood Lane, Blackburn

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47 more on the map.

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Where to stay4

Bowley International Scout Centre

Campground · 1.1 mi

Dean Lane, Great Harwood, Blackburn

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Dunkenhalgh Hotel

Motel and hotel · 1.4 mi

Blackburn Road, Accrington

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Sparth House

Motel and hotel · 1.0 mi

Whalley Road, Accrington

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Harwood Bar Caravan Park

Campground · 1.2 mi

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History

Great Harwood is a town with an industrial heritage. The Mercer Hall Leisure Centre in Queen Street, and the town clock, pay tribute to John Mercer (1791–1866), the 'father' of Great Harwood, who revolutionised the cotton dyeing process with his invention of mercerisation. The cotton industry became the main source of employment in the town, and by 1920, the Great Harwood Weavers' Association had more than 5,000 members.

The town was once on the railway line from Blackburn to Burnley via Padiham – The North Lancs or Great Harwood Loop of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. The last passenger train ran in November 1957 and goods traffic in 1964. The Martholme Viaduct on the line remains about one mile north east.

Public transport links were further curtailed in 2016, when the direct bus link to Manchester was axed by Harrogate based Transdev.

Great Harwood used to have a lively and bustling market around the town clock in the main square.

Great Harwood has three supermarkets: Aldi, which opened in November 2010, Tesco, which opened in December 2011, and Morrisons, which was previously Co-Op, which originally opened in June 2001, which also opened in 2010. There are two petrol stations, run by Texaco, as well as Morrisons.

A retained fire station is also located in the town, having opened in 1972.

From the History section of Great Harwood on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Notable people from Great Harwood

Born in Great Harwood, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.

Churches and places of worship26

Shopping9

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Gas and EV charging2

Schools, colleges and libraries13

Healthcare5

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Map of Great Harwood

129 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.

Getting there and nearby towns

Warton Aerodrome (WRT) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 20 miles away.

  • Blackburn 4 mi southwest, about 6 min by car
  • Padiham 4 mi east, about 6 min by car
  • Burnley 7 mi east, about 12 min by car
  • Haslingden 7 mi southeast, about 11 min by car
  • Rawtenstall 8 mi southeast, about 12 min by car
  • Nelson 9 mi east, about 15 min by car
  • Ramsbottom 10 mi south, about 16 min by car
  • Preston 12 mi west, about 20 min by car
  • Bolton 14 mi south, about 22 min by car
  • Horwich 14 mi southwest, about 22 min by car

Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.

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Page built November 10, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.