VISITORS used to come from all over the country to look at a hillside farm above Bacup.

They didn’t come to see the panoramic view from Irwell House Farm, on Deerplay, or admire the beef cattle grazing in the fields.

No, they came to look at a stone well in the back garden – the source of the River Irwell, which was described in those days as probably the dirtiest in the country.

And they couldn’t believe that the sparkling spring water from the well could turn into the grimy sludge that crept through Manchester in the space of just 20 miles.

In 1966, the farm was owned by Harold Broxton and his wife Ruth, and he said: “At one time salmon used to swim in this river, now all it is fit for further downstream is rats.

“It’s clear as a bell here and the wife and I often drink it.

“We are connected to another spring water supply, but when that dries up we use water from the Irwell, or from the River Whitewell, which rises in our cellar!”

On its journey from Deerplay Moor, the river, which is just one that drove the Industrial Revolution, flows through Bacup, Rawtenstall, and Ramsbottom, before going on to join the Mersey, in Manchester.

Ashes and chemicals from the many mills and industry in Rossendale were once tipped into the water, along with building material and cinders from local houses.

Indeed a public health report of 1849 described the Irwell as being the receptacle for all solid matters that are found to be inconvenient, or unprofitable.

The pollution proved fatal to wildlife and, by around 1850, fish stocks had disappeared completely.

The bed of the river was also raised by the debris, and every time there was torrential rain, flood water overflowed into the cellars and lower portions of the town.

In 1870, cotton manufacturer George Maxwell built a bridge over the river at Henrietta Street.

He operated at Mashwood, now known as Henrietta Street.

Before that, access was by a simple wooden plank and by stepping stones when the river was running low.

In 1911, the river was culverted for 400 yards from behind St John’s Sunday school to behind the buildings of Industrial Place.