In the early 19th century the mines were owned by William Hulton who was High Sheriff of Lancashire in 1811 and in 1812 sentenced four men , including a 12-year-old boy , to be executed for their part in a Luddite attack on Westhoughton Mill . His orders led to the Peterloo Massacre in 1819 . In 1843 Hulton paid his colliers the poorest wages in Lancashire . He remained opposed to permitting the right to free assembly and was vehemently opposed to miners congregating with the object of forming a union
Peterloo Massacre
Peterloo Massacre
Hulton Colliery Company