The archive is extensive and we aim to make many of these images available online.
*SEPTEMBER 2025 UPDATE*
There are now more than 17,553 images on the website including those on our Other Collections section. There are more images to see if you View our Articles section to read longer articles written by our volunteers on a range of historical subjects.
We have received a donation of Burco Dean archive material which has not yet been digitised for the website but you will find information about Burco Dean and a small selection of images on our Articles page.
We are now operating without the benefit of Heritage Lottery Funding and welcome donations to enable us to continue scanning negatives and making them available on the website. Donations can be made directly to us or via JUSTGIVING
Or scan our Just Giving account QR Code
BCTHIC is most thankful for the generous donations made by:
Burnley Rotary, Burnley Pendleside Rotary, Stocks Massey Bequest Fund, Celeste & Kevin (in Canada) and other donors who have contributed to our funds to enable this project to continue after our Heritage Lottery funding ceased.
All funding contributions are gratefully accepted
We WELCOME NEW VOLUNTEERS and have vacancies on our Wednesday and Thursday afternoon sessions. If you can spare a couple of hours why not contact us and arrange a visit to the archive. All that is needed are some basic computer skills and an interest in local history. PENDLE AND WEST CRAVEN images can be found in the Surrounding Districts pages and we would welcome volunteers from the Pendle area to digitise images and stories about this area as we have no volunteers working on this area at the moment.
We have produced a short history about the project which you can download.
50 years Ago
Twelve-year-old David Miller, of Keb Cotes, takes a bash at eight-year-old Wayne Reynolds, of Worsthorne.
Worsthorne Festival will no doubt be remembered as giving the village its biggest ever hangover. The sun shone, crowds flooded into the village square, and the pubs stayed open all day. It was a merry picture of family fun and excitement in real folk tradition. At a conservative estimate 3,000 people invaded the village on Saturday afternoon, 14th August 1976, to take part in such games as throwing buckets of water at friends in the stocks, knocking each other off a greasy pole, smashing plates, lifting weights and carrying sacks of coal. There was folk music from Bernard Wrigley, Chatterton Riot and Priory, dancing to the Chatterton Riot Ceilidh Band, and dancing by the Britannia Coconut Dancers. Tug-of-war teams came from all over the North-West to pull their weight against local teams of tuggers.
Worsthorne Festival started three years ago as a folk festival. Last year it expanded to include other events, and in spite of pouring rain throughout the afternoon, was so popular that the committee decided to aim for still bigger and better things this year. Everyone in the village took part in organising the day, which proved successful beyond their wildest dreams.
