Editing Stalybridge (section)

===Traditions===

====Whit Friday====
[[Whit Friday]] is the name given to the first Friday after [[Whitsun]] in areas of northeast Cheshire, southeast Lancashire and the western fringes of [[West Riding of Yorkshire|Yorkshire]]. The day has a cultural significance in Stalybridge as the date on which the annual [[Whit Friday#Whit walks|Whit Walks]] were traditionally held. It is also the day on which the traditional annual Whit Friday brass band contests are held.

====Wakes Week====
The [[wakes week|wakes]] were originally religious festivals that commemorated church dedications. Particularly important was the [[Rushcart]] festival associated with [[Rogation days|Rogationtide]]. During the [[Industrial Revolution]] the tradition of the wakes was adapted into a regular summer break in the [[mill town]]s of Lancashire, where each locality would nominate a wakes week during which the cotton mills would all close at the same time.<ref name="Ref_ac">[http://www.cravenherald.co.uk/news/newswcraven/display.var.813544.0.final_wakes_week_marks_end_of_an_era.php Final Wakes Week Marks End Of An Era (from Craven Herald)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> Stalybridge Wakes occurs in the third week of July. Wakes Week became the focus for fairs, and eventually for holidays where the mill workers would go to the seaside, eventually on the newly developing railways.