Wigan is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas.
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33 Facts About Wigan
2.
Wigan was in the territory of the Brigantes, an ancient Celtic tribe that ruled much of what is northern England.
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3.
Wigan was incorporated as a borough in 1246, following the issue of a charter by King Henry III of England.
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4.
Name Wigan has been dated to at least the 7th century, and probably originally meant a "village" or "settlement".
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5.
In 2005 investigations ahead of the Grand Arcade development, and in 2008 at the Joint Service Centre development, have proven that Wigan was a significant Roman site in the late first and second centuries AD.
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6.
The evidence gained from these excavations shows that Wigan was an important Roman settlement, and was almost certainly the place referred to as Coccium in the Antonine Itinerary.
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7.
Wigan is not mentioned in the Domesday Book, possibly because it was included in the Neweton barony .
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8.
Wigan was incorporated as a borough in 1246 following the issue of a charter by King Henry III to John Maunsell, the local church rector and lord of the manor.
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9.
Wigan was described by Celia Fiennes, a traveller, in 1698 as "a pretty market town built of stone and brick".
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10.
Wigan began to dominate as a cotton town in the late 19th century, and this lasted until the mid-20th century.
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11.
In 1937, Wigan was prominently featured in George Orwell's The Road to Wigan Pier which dealt, in large part, with the living conditions of England's working poor.
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12.
Since 2004, the town of Wigan has been divided between five of the twenty-five wards of the metropolitan borough, each returning three councillors to the 75-member borough council.
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13.
At the Norman Conquest, the settlement of Wigan was part of the larger parish of Wigan, the majority of which was within the hundred of Newton.
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14.
Wigan accordingly became a county borough on 1 April 1889, giving it independence from Lancashire County Council.
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15.
In 1974 the County Borough of Wigan was abolished and its former area became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan.
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16.
Wigan is in the Wigan Parliamentary constituency, which was recreated in 1547 after having covered the borough in the late 13th century.
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17.
Lisa Nandy is the incumbent Member of Parliament for Wigan, having first been elected in the 2010 general election.
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19.
The Face of Wigan, located in the town centre since 2008, is a stainless steel sculpture of a face.
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20.
Wigan have been a rugby league club ever since and added the Warriors suffix to their name in 1997, shortly after rugby league had switched to a summer sport in 1996.
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21.
Wigan Borough, emerged from amateur side Wigan United, in 1920 and became the town's first club to play in the Football League when in 1921 they became founder members of the Football League Third Division North.
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22.
American Football club Wigan Warhawks compete in the BAFA flag league in the MEC Central division.
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23.
Wigan has staged motorcycle speedway and greyhound racing at two venues.
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24.
Wigan Sailing Club operates from the 69-acre Scotman's Flash in Poolstock less than a mile from the centre of the town.
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25.
Wigan is home of the Snake Pit, one of the world's oldest and most important Catch Wrestling schools, founded by professional wrestler Billy Riley.
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27.
From 1973 to 1981, Wigan Casino was the location for Wigan's weekly Northern Soul all-nighters.
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28.
Wigan Casino rose to prominence in the 1970s and, in 1978, it was named the "best disco in the world" by Billboard, an American music magazine.
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29.
Wigan remains a centre of popular music for young people, with a number of alternative pubs and clubs in the town centre.
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30.
The festival brings together a significant number of socialist organisations and sympathetic musicians to celebrate the life, ideas and influence of the Wigan-born, Gerrard Winstanley, founder of the Diggers Movement.
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31.
Wigan is home to the annual World Pie Eating Championship, usually held at Harry's Bar on Wallgate.
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32.
Wigan is the home town of the local confectionary Uncle Joe's Mint Balls.
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33.
Frequent local services operate, in co-operation with TfGM, to Bolton and Manchester, with most trains from Wigan continuing through to other destinations such as Manchester Airport, Stockport and Rochdale.
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