Origins of the placename Beardwood
The Beardwood area in Blackburn has been in existence for about 750 years. The name derives from old English Bearda and worth (or worp). The first name Bearda was common in its time. The worth element refers to a homestead, enclosure or farm. The Beardwood area offered sheltered ground, suitable for farming and an agricultural community grew up as a result.
The earliest known record of Beardwood itself is of "Simon de Berdwurthe" in the Lancashire Inquests of 1258. There are also passing references to the area in other early documents located at the Lancashire Record Office in Preston. By the mid-fifteenth century Beardwood had established itself as a permanent community.
Nowadays most of the Beardwood area has become a modern housing estate, with very little evidence of its rural past.
Matthew Cole
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