Whitworth Rushcart - Sunday 7th September
Whitworth is one of only four Rushcart celebrations still taking place regularly in the UK, all of them within close proximity: the others are held in Sowerby Bridge, Littleborough and Saddleworth. Whitworth, however, is the only one to use heather, not rushes. The Rushcart procession starts at 1pm from North St, Whitworth and continues along Market Street finishing at The Ashcroft, with a family fun day both inside and outside. All the dance troupes involved in the procession will be showing off their skills thoroughout the afternoon and there will a bouncy castle, fairground ride, indoor and outdoor stalls as well as the Ashcroft bar and food vendors. This year there will also be a balloon modeller in the foyer of the Ashcroft.
The two wheeled ‘rushcart’ was (and continues to be) made in the week preceding the procession. Originally, the framework was built on a wagon, thatched with rushes and decorated with heather from local hills. Placed on the front of the cart was a large pair of horns and a well polished copper kettle. The cart was led by a horse, and a man walked in front with a large whip. On the evening before the procession, once the cart had been built, a celebration and bonfire was held on the moor close to where the rushes had been gathered. Nowadays, heather is still collected from local hills and the Rushcart is decorated in the days leading up to the event. The cart is now pulled by men, not a horse. The Whitworth Morris Dancers present the unique ‘Whitworth Dance’ and are seen as the bringers of luck to the Rushbearing Festival in the valley. Folklore shrouds the true origins of the Morris Dance in Whitworth; one theory is that Cornishmen brought the dances to Whitworth whilst working in the quarries. There is also mystery surrounding the sixteenth century French tune for the Morisques in Arbeau, rumoured to have influenced the themes of the Whitworth Morris Dance.