Simister

Simister
St George's Church was built during the First World War and opened in October 1915
Simister  Simister shown within Greater Manchester
OS grid reference	SD836058
Metropolitan borough	Bury
Metropolitan county	Greater Manchester
Region	North West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	MANCHESTER
Postcode district	M25
Dialling code	0161
Police	Greater Manchester
Fire	Greater Manchester
Ambulance	North West
EU Parliament	North West England
UK Parliament	Bury South
List of places UK England Greater Manchester

Coordinates: 53°32′56″N 2°14′49″W / 53.549°N 2.247°W

Simister is a small village in Prestwich, within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester. Historically part of Lancashire, it is located between the districts of Prestwich, Rhodes and Langley. The village is located east of "Simister Island", motorway junction 18 which links the M62, M66 and M60 motorways. Thousands of vehicles a day use this motorway intersection, so the hum from the traffic is often regarded as a nuisance but not a part of the village by the residents. Even though the village's proximity to Manchester means the residential population is mainly made up of commuters, the village has a rural feel with much agricultural activity. The main thoroughfare, Simister Lane, is often used as a rat run for cars travelling to and from Prestwich, Middleton and Junction 19 of the M60.

The Simister Village Community Association, formed in 2000, is in the process of developing a 10-acre wetland site.^[1] It has installed stone paths at a cost of £30,000 funded by grants obtained by the Committee. Woodland maintenance will be carried out during the winter using further grants.

The unusual Grade II listed St George's Church, on Nutt Lane, was designed by R. Basnett Preston in a combination of Romanesque and vernacular revival styles. A daughter church of St Margaret's, Prestwich, it was built during the First World War and opened on 14 October 1915.^[2][3]

The Hall was also the village school from 1850 until 1972, it was built by the Countess of Wilton.

The Lady Wilton Hall, on Simister Lane, was built in 1850 at the sole expense of the Earl and Countess of Wilton and housed the village school until the 1970s. Used for worship in the village prior to the construction of the church, as well as for the Sunday school, it continues to function as the church hall and is owned by the Parochial Church Council of St Margaret's.

There are also two public houses in the village, "The Farmers Arms" and "The Same Yet" both pubs are JW Lees houses.

• 
  The Farmers Arms.
• 
  The Same Yet.

References

1. Simister Wetland Site, Breathing Places.org, retrieved 2010-12-03
2. St George's Church, A Church near you, retrieved 2010-12-03
3. St George's, GenUKI, retrieved 2010-12-03

External links

• Simister photographs