Newhey

Newhey (archaically New Hey) is a village near the town of Milnrow in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies at the foot of the South Pennines, by Junction 21 of the M62 motorway and on the River Beal, 3 mile (5 km) east southeast of Rochdale, 10 mile (16 km) northeast of Manchester. Historically a part of Lancashire, Newhey was anciently a hamlet within the township of Butterworth. It was described in 1828 as "consisting of several ranges of cottages and two public houses". In the early 19th century a major road was built through Newhey from Werneth to Littleborough. Newhey was incorporated into the Milnrow Urban District in 1894. Newhey expanded as part of an unplanned process of urbanisation, brought on by the introduction of textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution, and is now home to the Ellenroad Steam Museum the engine house of the former Ellenroad Ring Mill, the rest of which was demolished in 1985. It holds the world's largest working steam engine.

Lying by the older localities of Milnrow, Ogden and Haugh, Newhey is thought to have acquired its name as a result of land reclamation. In the local government reforms of 1974, this urban district status was abolished and Newhey is now part of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. Newhey was previously part of the Littleborough and Saddleworth constituency. It is now represented in the House of Commons as part of the parliamentary constituency of Rochdale.

The housing estate south of Newhey Road and east of Bentgate Street is known as Bentgate. Localities in and around Newhey include Haugh and Woodbottom. Several reservoirs lie above and to the east, including Ogden, Kitcliffe and Piethorne.

Milnrow War Memorial, a Grade II listed structure, is in Newhey's Memorial Park. Originally in central Milnrow (set back from the road near Milnrow Bridge), it was unveiled in 1924 by Major General A Solly Flood, a former commander of 42nd (East Lancashire) Division. Sculpted from Sandstone by G Thomas in 1923, the memorial is surmounted by a bronze statue of a First World War infantry soldier with rifle and fixed bayonet, symbolic of the district's young manhood in early First World War. The plinth has bronze and slate panels which show the names of local men who died in the two World Wars. Ellenroad Engine House was designed by Sir Philip Stott, 1st Baronet. Its tall chimney makes it a local landmark. Newhey parish church, dedicated to St. Thomas, was built in 1876 to serve the new Anglican parish of Newhey. Its patron is the Bishop of Manchester. The church was badly damaged by arson on 21 December 2007.