The name Pemberton derives from Penn-bere-tūn, which is believed to be a combination of the Celticpenn meaning hill, the Old Englishbere meaning barley plus the Old English suffix of -ton meaning a farm or settlement. Unmentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, Pemberton does not appear in records until 1212, when it was documented to have been a thegnage estate, or manor, comprising "two plough-lands", with an annual rate of 20 shillings payable by the tenant, Alan de Windle, to King John. There were several collieries in the area, and sandstone was also quarried. At Newtown were cotton mills and iron works. A well at Lamberhead Green was noted for its excellent water quality. The area is served by Pemberton railway station.
Governance
Pemberton was formerly a township in Wigan ecclesiastical parish, in the hundred of West Derby, and was recognised as a civil parish in 1866. From 1894 to 1904, the Pemberton parish constituted the Pemberton Urban District. In 1904 the urban district was abolished with its territory transferred to the borough and local government County Borough of Wigan. The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica describes Pemberton as being part of Wigan. In 1920, the Pemberton parish was abolished and its former area was used to enlarge the Wigan parish, making the area of the parish and county borough identical. Pemberton today is considered part of Wigan for purposes of the Office for National Statistics, and in most reputable contemporary publications. This is also the approach taken also in several other modern online sources, which omit Pemberton as a standalone settlement.
Electoral Ward
The electoral ward of Pemberton is represented by three elected councillors. The ward covers the following neighbourhoods:
Kitt Green
Lamberhead Green
Marsh Green
Wigan Council Members for Pemberton
On 28 January 2013, Councillor Barbara Bourne, a representative of Pemberton since 1996, died in office following a long term illness. She was responsible for a long campaign for a new medical centre, which was opened in the area of Kitt Green, in 2010. The office for a third councillor currently remains vacant.
Geography
Described in 1911 as "unpicturesque, bare and open", Pemberton is predominantly made up of privately owned homes and local authority maintained housing, including Newtown, Worsley Mesnes, Norley Hall, Worsley Green Marsh Green and Kitt Green. Pemberton and its adjoining district of Orrell form one continuous residential area. The soil is clay and loam, over Coal Measures and stone.
