Lowton

Article summary

Lowton is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is around from Leigh, south of Wigan and west of Manchester city centre. The settlement lies across the A580 East Lancashire Road. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, Lowton's history is closely connected with Byrom Manor, the ancestral home of the Byroms, a family which included poet John Byrom, the inventor of a system of shorthand. During the Industrial Revolution Lowton was associated with coal mining and manufacturing: it was close to several collieries and factories. At the 2011 census, the population of Lowton was split between two wards: Lowton East, and Golborne and Lowton West. The latter partially counted the entire population of Golborne, and partially the population of Lowton's western half, with the boundary between them roughly being at Scott Road to the north and Windsor Road to the south.

Key claims

1. date of birth: 1692 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
2. date of death: 1883 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
3. date of formation: 1990 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
2. The record states that the date of birth is "1692". What evidence would count against this claim?
3. The record states that the date of death is "1883". What evidence would count against this claim?
4. The record states that the date of formation is "1990". What evidence would count against this claim?
5. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
6. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1360968696