Mossley

Coordinates: 53°30′53″N 2°02′19″W / 53.5147°N 2.0387°W / 53.5147; -2.0387

Mossley is a small town and civil parish in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The town is in the upper Tame Valley in the foothills of the Pennines, 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of Oldham and 8.9 miles (14.3 km) east of Manchester.

The historic counties of Lancashire, Cheshire and the West Riding of Yorkshire meet in Mossley and local government wards and church parishes correspond to their boundaries. In 2001, Mossley had a population of 9,856. This had increased to 10,921 at the 2011 Census. It is the only parished area of Tameside, having had a parish council since 1999.

History

Toponymy

Believed to originate in around 1319, the name Mossley means "a woodland clearing by a swamp or bog".

Events

Mossley - alongside neighbouring Stalybridge and Uppermill in Saddleworth - helped launch the annual Whit Friday Band Contest, an internationally known brass band event. This came about when the three towns held unconnected brass band events on 6 June 1884.