DARWEN

darwen, a municipal borough in the darwen parliamentary division of lancashire, england, 20 m. n.w. from manchester by the lancashire & yorkshire railway. pop. (1891) 34,192; (1901) 38,212. it lies on the river darwen, which traverses a densely populated manufacturing district, and is surrounded by high-lying moors. darwen is a centre of the cotton trade and has also blast furnaces, and paper-making, paper-staining and fire-clay works. in the neighbourhood are collieries and stone quarries. the market hall is the chief public building; there are technical schools, a free library, and two public parks. darwen was incorporated in 1788. the corporation consists of a mayor, six aldermen and eighteen councillors.