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It is referred to in the title of [[George Orwell|George Orwell's]] 1930s polemic on Lancashire working class life, 'The Road To Wigan Pier'.
It is referred to in the title of [[George Orwell|George Orwell's]] 1930s polemic on Lancashire working class life, 'The Road To Wigan Pier'.
==History==
There was an influx of Scandinavians into the area in the early 10th century following their expulsion from Ireland in 902 AD. Their mark is left on the modern town in the form of the place-name ''Scholes'' (now a suburb of Wigan) which is from Old Norse ''skalli'' ("huts") and in the street names which end in ''-gate'' (Millgate, Hallgate, Standishgate and Wallgate); ''gata'' having been Norse for "street" (it appears in street-names in [[Denmark]], [[Norway]] and [[Sweden]]).
Following the Norman conquest (1066), Wigan was not mentioned by name in the Domesday Book (1086). Wigan was part of the Manor of [[Newton-le-Willows]] at this time, which belonged to Roger of Poitou (who had been granted land mainly in the north by [[William the Conqueror]]) and the "church of that manor" mentioned in the entry may have been Wigan parish church.<ref>[https://www.wiganarchsoc.co.uk/how.html#Medieval Medieval Wigan]</ref>
As revealed by an archaeological dig in 2005, 13th century Wigan had several pits for extracting [[coal]] and a pottery.
== Administration ==
== Administration ==
A part of the traditional county [[Lancashire]], Wigan's local government status has been changing since at least 1246, when it was granted borough status. When Lancashire County Council was established in 1889, Wigan was seen as large enough to have its own county-level local governance and thus formed a county borough independent of the council until 1974. From 1974 until 1986, Greater Manchester County Council's area was divided into metropolitan boroughs, of which the [[Metropolitan Borough of Wigan]] was one; covering an area of Lancashire centred on Wigan, but also including [[Atherton]], [[Ashton-in-Makerfield]], [[Golborne]], [[Hindley]], [[Ince-in-Makerfield]], [[Leigh]] and [[Tyldesley]]. Following the abolition of metropolitan county councils in 1986, Metropolitan Borough of Wigan Council has been run as a unitary authority, meaning it is responsible for all local government functions within that council area.
A part of the traditional county [[Lancashire]], Wigan's local government status has been changing since at least 1246, when it was granted borough status. When Lancashire County Council was established in 1889, Wigan was seen as large enough to have its own county-level local governance and thus formed a county borough independent of the council until 1974. From 1974 until 1986, Greater Manchester County Council's area was divided into metropolitan boroughs, of which the [[Metropolitan Borough of Wigan]] was one; covering an area of Lancashire centred on Wigan, but also including [[Atherton]], [[Ashton-in-Makerfield]], [[Golborne]], [[Hindley]], [[Ince-in-Makerfield]], [[Leigh]] and [[Tyldesley]]. Following the abolition of metropolitan county councils in 1986, Metropolitan Borough of Wigan Council has been run as a unitary authority, meaning it is responsible for all local government functions within that council area.