Housing the workforce in 19th-century east Lancashire: past processes,enduring perceptions and contemporary meanings

Abstract

The Lancashire Historic Town Survey, undertaken by Lancashire County Council between 2001 and 2006, examined the complex and varied history of 'working-class' housing in the east Lancashire textile towns. Often seen by the media and politicians as uniform and of low quality, and frequently condemned as slum dwellings, the surviving stock of such buildings results from past responses, both to housing requirements and to 'working-class' communities. It is argued that east Lancashire's housing has been a victim of inaccurate perceptions, both past and present, and of political bias and myth-making.