Carrington Moss

Carrington Moss is a large area of peat bog near Carrington in Greater Manchester, England. It lies south of the River Mersey, approximately 10mi south-west of Manchester, and occupies an area of about 1100acre. The depth of peat varies between 17and.Originally an unused area of grouse moorland, the moss was reclaimed in the latter half of the 19th century for farming and the disposal of Manchester's waste. A system of tramways was built to connect it with the Manchester Ship Canal and a nearby railway line. During the Second World War the land was used as a Starfish site and in the latter half of the 20th century, a large industrial complex was built along its northern edge. More recently, several sporting facilities have been built on Carrington Moss.Today, the land is still used for farming and several nature reserves have been established within its bounds. Parts of Carrington Moss are accessible to the public over several rights of way.HistoryA History of Flixton, Urmston, and Davyhulme claims that the name Carrington might be derived from the Goidelic Celtic root Cathair, a fortress, but a more recent theory is that it derives from an Anglicised form of a Scandinavian personal name. A Carrington Hall, seat of the Carrington family once existed to the north of Carrington Moss, at the junction formed by the modern-day A6144 and B5158 roads. The word moss, first used during the 15th century, forms part of the local name for a lowland peat bog, "mosslands". Today the term is also used to describe former bogs that have been converted to farmland.