Friday 29th February, 2008
It seems that, in 1664, the Wigan district was the most prosperous area in Lancashire. The evidence is supplied by the hearth tax returns of that year.
Hearth Tax
In 1662, a tax of 2 shillings (10p) per hearth in each household was introduced. During its imposition it was the government's major source of revenue. It was, however, deeply unpopular. Some householders blocked up their hearths to avoid paying the tax. There were even those who then knocked through to their neighbours' chimneys to enjoy the comfort of a fire without monetary loss.
The tax was organised on a parish or township basis. (Most Lancashire parishes were very large and were therefore divided into "townships".) Initially, money due was collected by the unfortunate local constable, who was an unpaid official voted into office by the jury of the court leet - later by members of the parish vestry. He was elected for one year from among the wealthier members of the township. Collecting unpopular taxes was just one of the many unpleasant duties performed by this local official. Most constables were extremely pleased when their obligatory year of service was over.
Hearth tax was eventually discontinued after the "Glorious Revolution" of 1688
Wigan's Prosperity
From the hearth tax returns it is possible to note the number of hearths, and therefore, by implication, the size of each dwelling. A count of houses of various sizes in each township can give an indication of relative prosperity.
The accompanying map is colour coded according to the percentage of single-hearth households in each township. Dark green shows the largest percentage and therefore indicates the least prosperous hundreds. Dark red shows the most prosperous areas.
It can clearly be seen that the Wigan area, within the square, was the most prosperous district within the Lancashire boundaries of 1664.
Wigan itself was not the most prosperous township in the area although only 55% of its housing has only one hearth. Upholland, Standish, Haigh and Ince-in-Makerfield are in the category of 40%-49%.
It must be stated that the hearth tax is only an approximate guide to wealth. Winners were those who had unheated rooms. Losers were home workers who needed furnaces to manufacture their goods and so were taxed above their level of prosperity. Consequently the cutlers of Sheffield were bitterly opposed to the tax. The many nailers in the Wigan area must also have lost out.
It is difficult to ascertain why the Wigan area was so prosperous at this time. Certainly it was a thriving market town with easily accessible coal and cannel, but this was before its expansion during the early years of the Industrial Revolution.