BARNOLDSWICK has an approximate population of 12,000, and is located just outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park and the Forest of Bowland Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
It is administered as part of the Pendle borough, and lies within the historic boundaries of the West Riding of Yorkshire.
Nestling on the lower slopes of Weets Hill in the Pennines, astride the natural watershed between the Ribble and Aire valleys, it is the highest town on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.
It dates back to Viking times and was listed in the Domesday Book as Bernulfsuick, meaning Bernulf's Town.
For hundreds of years Barnoldswick remained a small village, however the arrival of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, and later the (now closed) railway, spurred the development of the existing woolen industry, and helped it to become a major cotton town.
Barnoldswick is the longest place name in the United Kingdom without repeating any letters.
The model number of many Rolls Royce jet engines start with the initials RB (eg. RB199) which stands for Rolls Barnoldswick, as Rolls Royce aero's design centre is situated in Barnoldswick.
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