Radcliffe is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury , Greater Manchester , England. [2] It lies in the Irwell Valley 7 miles (11 km) northwest of Manchester and 3 miles (5 km) southwest of Bury and is contiguous with Whitefield to the south. The disused Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal bisects the town.
Evidence of Mesolithic , Roman and Norman activity has been found in Radcliffe and its surroundings. A Roman road passes through the area, along the border between Radcliffe and Bury. Radcliffe appears in an entry of the Domesday Book as "Radeclive" and in the High Middle Ages formed a small parish and township centred on the Church of St Mary and the manorial Radcliffe Tower , both of which are Grade I listed buildings .
Plentiful coal in the area facilitated the Industrial Revolution , providing fuel for the cotton spinning and papermaking industries. By the mid-19th century, Radcliffe was an important mill town with cotton mills , bleachworks and a road, canal and railway network. [3]